There are many books written about strategic marketing and the authors seem to delight in making it look really sophisticated and complex. In actuality, strategic marketing is really pretty simple.
Strategic Marketing is about analyzing opportunities while answering three basic questions:
– What might we do?
– What do we do best?
– What must we do?
So, why change your marketing strategy? Most of the time companies change because they have no choice. They are forced to change because of factors such as declining profitability, environmental changes, outright failure, political or legal changes, advances by the competition, socio-economic change, and population shifts.
The word strategy is generally used when people want to change things rather than maintaining the status quo. While there may be many potential marketing strategies, pragmatism generally rules the day and companies will focus on on what must be done to make a profit today.
Generally speaking there are only four types of marketing strategy:
1. Market Penetration Strategy- Sell existing products to existing markets.
2. Market Development Strategy- Sell existing products to new markets.
3. Product Development Strategy- Create new products for existing markets.
4. Diversification Strategy- Create new products for new markets.
Marketing strategy involves the selection of markets and the development of programs to reach those markets. The programs that help reach those markets are venerable 4 Ps of Marketing: Price, Place, Product, and Promotion.
It is really that simple.
John Bradley Jackson
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