 I always say that creating a marketing wish-list is easy – it's prioritising it that's the hard part. That's why I use the Watertight Marketing methodology with many of my clients. It's a logical and structured approach to prioritising your marketing activities to get the best return on your investment. Using this approach, you "traffic-light" the "leaks" in your marketing processes and address the red leaks first, in the right order. But it's not a once-and-you're-done activity. I recommend clients review their leaks every six months or so, to stay focused on their priorities and on track to achieve their long-term goals. As you might imagine, after working on addressing a red leak in your business, hopefully it will turn orange and then eventually green. However, that doesn't always happen. Why? Because you are working towards a constantly moving goal-post. Getting marketing fitBryony Thomas, award-winning author of Watertight Marketing, uses the fitness analogy a lot when describing the "marketing habit" you need to get into as a business owner. It's particularly apt here. If you wanted to start running but you couldn't yet run even a mile, you might set yourself a goal of training up to a 5k. And when you'd run that for the first time you'd feel pretty chuffed with yourself: rightly so. But once you'd run 5k a few times, you'd start to think "actually I can aim higher than that" and you'd decide to do a 10k. And then perhaps a 15k. And then a half marathon. In marketing it's the same. You might think "if I can implement X then that would be brilliant. I'd be really happy with that and give myself a green for that leak". And when you implement that piece of marketing for the first time then you should definitely give yourself a pat on the back. But when you start getting a few greens you'll find yourself thinking "actually I think we can do better than that". And the goal-posts move. At the same time, you'll probably be learning more about your customers and you'll be understanding your audience's needs better. The things you thought were quite good 6 months ago might no longer be adequate. The result is that no business is ever fully "Watertight". Mine certainly isn't! Marketing is never "finished" If a leak gets downgraded then this will change your priorities. The beauty of the Watertight Marketing methodology is that it enables you to rapidly respond to market changes by reprioritising your marketing activities in a matter of minutes. You can also quickly see the impact a new piece of market information, or a new marketing tool or technique will have on your marketing plan. If a leak suddenly gets downgraded to red, you will just bump it up your plan and action it sooner. If you haven't used the Watertight Marketing methodology in your business yet, start here with this fantastic online diagnostic tool. You might also want to read the book. Or drop me a line to find out how it might work for your business. This blog draws on key concepts, frameworks and illustrations that form part of the Watertight Marketing™ methodology. These remain the intellectual property of Watertight Marketing Ltd and are used with permission and under license.
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