CMO to CEO, How to Work Together to Develop a Marketing Strategy

Ultimately, the CEO is responsible for a company's marketing strategy, so it's important to understand what it takes for a CMO to implement one successfully. The following is how CMOs should develop a marketing strategy.

Define the purpose.

The first step in developing a marketing strategy is to define the problem you're trying to solve. As with most things, it's important not to jump straight into solutions without first identifying what you are trying to accomplish. If you don't align your goals with those of your company and understand how they fit into the big picture, then any efforts made will be wasted because they won't provide value or ROMI (return on marketing investment).

The second step involves defining what success looks like for both short-term and long-term objectives: What do we want out of this campaign? Who do we want our target audience members (TAMs) to become after interacting with our content? How much revenue do we need this year in order for us as an organization--or even just one department within that organization--to survive? There should be no shortage of metrics here; make sure they're realistic enough so that when results come back negative (as sometimes happens), there won't be any disappointment or frustration over missed expectations simply because someone didn't think through everything beforehand!

Expanding on the topic of TAMs, every business will have different customer segmentation based on many factors such as demographics, psychographics, behavior, and many others. It is imperative that the CEO, CMO, Marketing and Sales team be aligned with who the TAM (target audience) members are. Remember that the target audience is the ideal customer a company wants to reach and convert into your target customers.

When developing the strategy, it is important to define other variables, such as choosing the right marketing channels and considering what channels have been used in the past. Those channels can include Social Media, SEO, Email, or Paid ads.

Beyond choosing a marketing channel is researching whether your target customer can be reached by these marketing channels. Are email lists available? Are there audience segments that can be leveraged? Is there an existing market analysis that can be used? Is your potential customer influenced by social media marketing? Would influencer marketing have an impact?

A strategy is not set in stone; it is meant to be continuously analyzed and adjusted based on results. Continuously analyze and adjust to reach your goals, and be flexible with your strategy.

Establish marketing goals with the alignment of the CEO.

In order to ensure your strategy is successful, it is important that the CEO approves of it. The CEO should be able to explain the strategy to the team and have a clear understanding of why this marketing initiative will help the company. It's also important that the marketing team knows what success looks like and how they will measure its achievement.

It is suggested that the marketing goals be presented as SMART goals. It is an easy framework that helps goals be clear, concise, and achievable. Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Using the SMART framework will help make the goals easier to track and measure progress towards.

SMART goal to increase website traffic campaign Example:

• Specific: Increase website traffic from 10,000 visitors per month to 15,000 visitors per month by the end of the quarter.
• Measurable: Website traffic can be measured using various tools, such as Google Analytics.
• Achievable: The increase in website traffic is realistic. It is achievable if the marketing team has the resources and expertise to achieve the goal.
• Relevant: Website traffic will be relevant if it aligns with the overall marketing strategy.
• Time-bound: The goal has a deadline of the end of the quarter.

There are many editable SMART Goals templates online. A free worksheet by Smartsheet can be found here.

Set deadlines.

Deadlines are important for keeping your team on track. They can be used as a measurement of progress, and they also help motivate people to get things done by a certain time. Deadlines should be realistic and achievable, not impossible tasks that will cause your team members to feel anxious or frustrated. If you set too many deadlines at the beginning of your strategy, it may become overwhelming for everyone involved.

Set deadlines for each task in your marketing strategy plan so that all members of your team know what needs to be done and when. This way, everyone knows exactly where they stand at any given point in time and whether or not they need additional help with their workload before reaching their next deadline date.

Marketing encompasses a range of elements such as marketing efforts, marketing campaigns, marketing plans, content marketing, public relations, marketing activities, and marketing tactics. A CMO not only needs to make sure all the marketing functions come together to make a successful marketing plan, but must also make sure the Chief Executive Officer has the same shared goals, all while aligning the marketing budget.

Create a communication plan, with both the marketing team and CEO.

The communication plan is a crucial part of your marketing strategy. It should be clear and concise, with an easy-to-understand format that everyone can follow. The plan should also be flexible enough to accommodate changes in the target market or business environment.

For example, if the CMO wants to communicate directly with the team via email rather than meeting in person, then this should be reflected in your communication strategy so everyone knows how they can get hold of him or her at any given time.

• Identify key stakeholders as part of your plan.
  • CEO
  • CXO – would it be beneficial to include other C-level executives.
  • Internal team
  • Other relevant parties
• Flexibility of the Plan is important.
  • Be able to adapt to changes in the market.
  • Take advantage of new opportunities.
  • Monitor and stay ahead of the competition.
  • Respond to customer feedback.
• Be able to adapt to changes in the market.
• Take advantage of new opportunities.
• Monitor and stay ahead of the competition.
• Respond to customer feedback.

Create a detailed plan that outlines the communication channels, timelines, and responsibilities. Monitor the plan's progress and evaluate its effectiveness regularly.

Choose a team leader and delegate responsibilities.

The team leader should be the person who can best communicate with the CMO. This will make it easier to get approval for any changes in strategy, as well as ensure that all members of your marketing team are on board with what you're trying to accomplish.

The team leader should then delegate responsibilities to other team members and ensure that each member understands their role in implementing your strategy.

To be successful, the team leader will need to provide his team members with the resources they need. This may include training, tools, and support. The team members must be given authority to make decisions on how to implement the strategy; this will help them be more effective and efficient.

Make sure everyone understands their roles.

When you're putting together a marketing strategy, it's important that everyone understands their role. If one person is confused about what they're supposed to do, or if the expectations aren't clear, then it will be difficult for them to contribute effectively.

Ensure that everyone knows what they need from each other and how their work fits into the overall plan. For example:

• What tasks does each team member need from others?
• How much time do they have available?
• Are there any resources that need sharing between departments (e.g., data sets)?

Share information often, including any obstacles or opportunities that arise or may arise in the future.

• Share information often, including any obstacles or opportunities that arise or may arise in the future.
• Use a communication tool to keep everyone informed.
• Make sure you have a communication plan in place before you start sharing information with your team members so they know what they need to do when they receive information from you.
• Make sure you have a team leader who is responsible for delegating responsibilities among other team members and keeping track of progress made by each person on the team (or groups within the larger organization).

Conclusion: Now what?

Now that you know what it takes to implement a successful marketing strategy, it's time to get started! Remember that the most important part of this process is communication. Make sure everyone on your team understands their role and knows what information needs to be shared with others. If there are any obstacles or opportunities that arise or may arise in the future, make sure everyone knows about them as well so they can plan accordingly.