You’ve probably heard the expression ‘If you aim at nothing you’ll hit it every time’ and this could not be more true than in the world of marketing, digital or otherwise.

The mission of your company or organization must be firmly established and clearly defined before any marketing efforts can be even thought up.  Not the mission of the marketing efforts or campaigns, but the actual mission of the group.  Why do you exist?  Why are you here?  Making money is not an answer, by the way. It’s surprising to me how many organizations haven’t taken the time to etch this in stone, engrave it on the walls or tattoo it on the employees.  Many talk about an ‘elevator pitch’ but to me it’s more than that.  I can sum up my organization without really knowing what our mission is all about.  I can sell the products but do I know what the overall mission is as to where these sales fit?

Get your mission, then your marketing efforts will become much clearer.  Where this comes up the most is in the discussion of whether to attend that certain trade show or get a Facebook fan page or start a Twitter page or a million other options that are out there now.  The is sue is not whether it’s the right thing to do in the eyes of the trends, but what is the right thing in regards to your MISSION?

If you don’t plan on spending a lot of time interacting and responding on Twitter, don’t set one up.  When someone  goes to your page they will just write you off as a trend-jumper.  If you don’t plan on producing videos, don’t get a YouTube channel for your company.  What’s the point?  Just so you can say you’re there?  How will it help you move towards your mission?

As you assess your current marketing efforts, next to each initiative ask the simple question of whether this moves the needle towards the mission or not.  You might be able to save yourself a good bit of money and time.

Photo by: koalazzymonkey

Author

With over a decade of experience, I have managed online marketing for a wide range of industries including biotech, high-tech, financial, higher education, non-profit, manufacturing, hardware providers, and startups. My specialty is helping business make the right turn with their online efforts focusing on lead generation and analytics.

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