Part 1: Audit Your Current Marketing Strategy: A Quick Self-Check for Businesses
Step 1: Take a Fresh Look at Your Goals
First things first—what are you trying to achieve with your marketing?
What are your current goals? Are you looking to build brand awareness, get more leads, boost sales, or improve customer loyalty?
Are these goals still relevant? If your business has grown or shifted, you may need to update them.
How are you measuring success? Do you have clear metrics in place, like website traffic, conversion rates, or social media engagement?
If you’re not crystal clear on what you’re trying to achieve, or if you haven’t checked your metrics in a while, it’s time for a refresh. You can’t fix what you can’t measure!
Step 2: Know Your Audience Inside and Out
Your audience is the foundation of your entire strategy, so it’s critical to ensure you’re reaching the right people and speaking their language.
Who’s your ideal customer?
Are your marketing messages actually speaking to their needs and pain points?
Are you hanging out on the platforms where your audience spends their time?
Take a second look at your buyer personas or customer profiles. Have their habits, interests, or behaviors changed? Make sure your marketing messages still make sense for the people you’re trying to connect with.
Step 3: Check Your Channels and Tactics
You’re probably using a bunch of different channels—social media, email, content marketing, SEO, paid ads—but do you know which ones are pulling their weight? Time to find out:
Which channels are bringing in the best results?
Are you spending too much on channels that aren’t delivering?
Are you using each channel to its full potential?
For instance, if you’re pouring money into Facebook ads but barely seeing any returns, it might be time to rethink your targeting or shift those resources elsewhere. On the flip side, if Instagram is driving tons of engagement, that’s a win you should continue to build on.
Step 4: Audit Your Content
Content is the heartbeat of your marketing strategy. Whether it’s blog posts, videos, social media updates, or email campaigns, you need to ensure what you’re putting out there is actually engaging your audience.
Is your content valuable and relevant to your audience?
Does it align with your brand voice?
Are you creating different types of content for different stages of the customer journey?
Look back at your top-performing content. What’s working? Is it certain topics, formats, or styles? Identifying what your audience connects with can help you focus on creating more content that hits the mark.
Step 5: Walk Through the Customer Journey
Imagine yourself as one of your customers. From the first time they visit your website to when they (hopefully) make a purchase, what’s their experience like?
Is your website user-friendly and easy to navigate?
Are your calls-to-action clear and enticing?
Do you have a smooth follow-up process for leads?
If there are any bumps in the road—like a confusing checkout process or unclear messaging—you might be losing potential customers before they even have a chance to convert. Make sure the entire experience is as seamless as possible.
Step 6: Reassess Your Budget
Let’s talk money. You’re likely investing a good chunk of change in your marketing, so it’s important to make sure those dollars are going where they’ll have the biggest impact.
Are you spending the most on channels that are delivering the best results?
Are you throwing money at tactics that aren’t producing much?
Your budget should align with what’s working, not what you think should be working. A budget audit can reveal where you should be doubling down and where you might need to pull back.