Many companies have very capable sales and marketing team members and leaders, but still struggle to achieve consistent results. Lack of alignment and focus are common challenges, especially for growing businesses whose entrepreneurial spirits invite frequent change.
In this environment, it is easy for the marketing department to become reactive: responding to executive or sales requests for whatever shiny object or flavor-of-the-day idea comes along. Resources become diluted as marketing tries to keep pace – and initiatives often get replaced with new ideas before they can fully prove their impact. The business is committing “random acts of marketing”.
As a result, CEOs and their executive teams often question the value of marketing. They know they are spending money, running programs, and hiring employees – but they’re not sure what they’re getting as a result of this investment.
Authentic Brand helps high-potential businesses build Marketing Traction™ through our proprietary methodology and our community of executive marketing leaders and coaches.
For clients who already have a senior marketing leader on-staff, our Coaching program provides a proven framework to build stronger focus, alignment, and accountability for revenue teams: helping teams overcome “random acts of marketing” and positioning marketing to be a strategic partner to sales in driving revenue results.
Our Coaches usually engage on a 12-month retainer, working with marketing leaders and revenue teams to refine their strategic plans, collaborate through weekly cadence meetings, and prioritize key initiatives through a series of quarterly workshops.
Proven Success
We’ve worked with many clients – across industries and markets – to help build Marketing Traction™ and revenue results. Below is one of our client’s stories. See more stories, and a wide variety of logos and testimonials here.
Related Resources
How to strike a balance between innovation and perfection in marketing
There’s a delicate balance between progress and perfection in marketing. When businesses strive for perfection, decision-by-consensus slows or stalls efforts. Innovative products, campaigns, and services never make it to market or a competitor launches their offering first, diluting your offering and investments. On the flip side, there’s a risk of moving too quickly and promising something that the business can’t deliver on or launching something that doesn’t meet customers’ needs.
Focus, fear, and flexibility — why they matter to 2020 business growth
We’re halfway through 2020, one of the most multi-faceted years in our lifetimes. As businesses look to the second half of the year, they’re scrambling to adapt their go-to-market approach to navigate the disruptive economic environment. They’re asking tough questions about their relevance in this new market and whether their product or service needs to change. They’re looking for new opportunities to grow.
The lesson that businesses will learn this year is one that has always been true. Focus is critical for sustained growth.
Activating your service plan to genuinely support stakeholders [SERVE•ival Part 3]
The rapidly-evolving nature of a crisis requires marketing and communication teams to stay nimble by listening carefully to their key stakeholders, adapting quickly, and leaning more purposefully into the turns. Crises are a time when showing up in the service of your customers, employees, and communities matters. Businesses must consider how they can best serve their stakeholders during these times.
Allocating your resources in the right direction [SERVE•ival Part Two]
Crises often put businesses in one of two scenarios. They are either suddenly thrust into survival mode or, in some cases, the disruption of the crisis creates a growth opportunity. Regardless of how a crisis impacts a business, marketing and communication teams need to be ready to strategically allocate resources in the right direction, make quick decisions, and communicate clearly and frequently.
Assessing your brand’s opportunity to serve [SERVE•ival – Part One]
When crises hit that disrupt life for businesses and communities, marketing and communication teams must react quickly and strategically to determine the best path forward for the brand. If marketing teams choose the wrong path, they risk coming off as careless, disingenuous, and opportunistic.
Own your brand — Why you need to invest more in the marketing channels you control
Every business, no matter its size, type, or revenue, has limited resources to direct toward marketing. Unlimited marketing budgets don’t exist, and that’s especially the case for the small to midsize businesses we work with at Authentic Brand. When resources are limited, it’s critical that a company invests in creating brand value through its owned marketing assets (e.g., website, blog, content). These assets are essential to building marketing programs that deliver returns.
Guiding your brand and stakeholders through times of uncertainty
We are living through unprecedented times as we face the COVID-19 crisis. Businesses of all types are experiencing significant disruptions that force them to re-think their entire go to market strategy and approach. Our CMOs came together to provide their best advice on what to do right now to guide your business and brand forward.
Beyond lead generation — marketing’s role as a strategic revenue partner across the customer lifecycle
Growing businesses often think new lead generation should be the primary — and sometimes only — objective of marketing. This mindset fails to recognize the strategic role marketing can play to generate revenue across the full customer lifecycle, particularly through nurturing and engaging existing customer accounts, and how important that is for driving growth.
Getting real about demand generation: Expectation vs. reality
Demand generation. These two words often cause anxiety for B2B marketers because they frequently come attached to unrealistic expectations. Business leaders tend to think that creating demand is solved by executing a few digital marketing tactics or implementing a marketing automation tool. In reality, demand generation is much more complex.
The value of a fractional CMO: Quick impact and low risk
There’s a point in a company growth cycle when businesses recognize that they need to invest in marketing for continued growth. Often these companies have been sales-driven until they realize they need a marketing leader dedicated to building brand awareness and driving meaningful engagement to support business objectives. They often choose between hiring a full-time leader, a fractional CMO, or a marketing agency.
What is Marketing Traction?
Marketing Traction is a methodology we developed to help small, growth-focused businesses build strategic marketing departments and create alignment between sales and marketing. It uses simple tools and a structured process to establish alignment, accountability, and focus.
EOS Marketing Strategy: Turning Big Ideas into Action
If you’re familiar with Authentic Brand, you know we’re big fans of EOS®, the Entrepreneurial Operating System and its EOS marketing strategy framework. EOS is effective at creating vision, traction and alignment in growth-oriented companies. Learn how you can go from an EOS marketing strategy to strategic marketing action.