What is strategic marketing management?
Strategic marketing management is a term that describes the process of putting your company’s mission into action through precise and strategic methods. All of that was meant, of course, to maximize the effectiveness of your current marketing strategy.
At its core, Strategic marketing management is making strategic decisions within a marketing strategy to improve that Strategy.
The History of Strategic Marketing Management
Strategic marketing management has a long history and has seen a significant transformation over roughly 30 years compared to today.
3 Phases of Strategic Marketing Management
1. Budgeting
companies initially used the term “budgeting” to apply everything from strategic management to marketing and everything in between. The approach was primarily concerned with budgeting and control systems, as implied by the technique’s name. When it came to marketing plans and audits, the method relied on the budget and its numerous forms to manage them.
2. Long-term planning
After completing budgeting, long-range planning became necessary as the emphasis switched to forecasting. It was possible to make sales, costs, and profits projections and project managers based on current market trends.
3. Developing a strategic plan
When companies implemented strategic planning in the 1970s and 1980s, the emphasis was on general direction and control over planning. Even though some predicting was involved, the primary focus was on the business side of things.
Marketing management on a strategic level
We are now living in the period of strategic management, which began in the 1960s. Strategic marketing management incorporates all of its previous variations and merges them into a single strategy. In all of their variations, all of the approaches are intended to be used to manage the current plan better.
Examples of strategic marketing management
Keep in mind that strategic marketing management entails making strategic decisions within the context of your current marketing plan to maximize the effectiveness of your project. This can be illustrated by the marketing strategy employed by Apple in its product development and marketing.
Before the smartphone craze took over the world, there weren’t many choices of phones on the market to choose from. Apple steps in with its strategic marketing management techniques. They saw a demand for a product on the market and took the necessary steps to develop and implement a strategy. They were successful. These days, nearly everyone carries an iPhone in their pocket.
In reality, during Apple’s early years, the company made all of its decisions based on forecasts and strategic planning. For example, the Apple logo is relatively straightforward in its design because the company wanted it to be simple to recall. As a result, the fruit was given the name “Apple” for their brand recognition.
Combining these decisions and implementing their strategic marketing management resulted in their international renown being made possible.
Another excellent example is Tesla, which has seen significant changes in only a few short years. Tesla entered the market when most believed that electric cars were nothing more than dull money-savers, and he dramatically transformed the industry. Tesla is widely regarded as the world’s first luxury electric vehicle manufacturer due to its intelligent marketing management efforts.
Strategic Marketing Management Pros And Cons
Strategic marketing management is based on adapting to your market as the environment changes around you. It doesn’t matter what your ultimate aim is; what matters is the path you take to get there.
Implementing strategic marketing management in the commercial sector is relatively well understood and recognized.
Benefits of Strategic Marketing Management
1. improved understanding of the marketplace
Because of the extensive study required to implement strategic marketing management correctly, you will undoubtedly have a deeper grasp of your target market. It will be necessary to perform market research on domestic and international markets and competition and market trends.
2. Contributes to the identification of strategic directions
Managing your marketing strategy strategically entails making more innovative judgments that are more in line with the company’s objectives.
3. It has the potential to be highly profitable.
Strategic marketing management, when done right, can produce some astounding benefits for a company’s marketing efforts. This could lead to improved control over a company’s budget and an overall rise in the company’s long-term viability.
Overall, there are numerous advantages to employing this type of management. With strategic marketing management, you are making strategic decisions to improve your company’s overall performance and grasp the marketplace as a whole.
Strategic marketing management has some disadvantages. As beneficial as strategic marketing management can be for a company, some disadvantages are considered. Here are some downsides to strategic marketing management that you should consider before putting it into practice:
1. Budget versus actual costs
As we’ve discussed previously, effective marketing management frequently necessitates making split-second decisions that might alter the course of a business. The cost of marketing campaigns is high, as is the advertising price, and even simple analysis and research might result in a financial loss. You might make a choice that has a significant impact on the overall cost of the campaign. If the budget is overstretched, this will blow the budget.
2. It takes a significant amount of time
Researching and planning for strategic marketing management can take a significant amount of time. For the process to be accurate, it is necessary for the initial planning to be precise as well.
3. It is possible that it will not be profitable
Making these strategic judgments may not be the best course of action. They are frequently dangerous, so you may wind up with nothing to show for your efforts after the period. As you may be aware, marketing campaigns, whether strategic or not, can often take months to complete before they are considered successful. That means you may end up squandering a significant amount of your own time, but you may also waste everyone else’s time on the marketing team.
These are only a few of the most significant challenges when engaging in strategic marketing management activities. Some things may go wrong with a business plan, like any other methodology, marketing strategy, or business plan.
Is Strategic Marketing Management the right Strategy for my Company?
I am considering whether or not strategic marketing management is the appropriate fit for your team.
The inevitable question arises: is strategic marketing management the perfect fit for your team? The solution to that question is relatively straightforward. Yes, it is possible to succeed if you and your team are willing to fight against the negatives to achieve the positives.
However, as we previously stated, there will be negatives no matter how you look at it from different perspectives. For those in charge of a large organization with plenty of money to spend in the budget, making the wrong decision may not be as detrimental as it appears. When it comes to a tiny firm with only a handful of people, a minor error might have devastating consequences for the entire organization.
The most important step is research. Market trends, competition, and the client’s needs will all be considered while making precise decisions and taking prudent risks.
On the other hand, The firm cannot function effectively without a clear marketing plan. Activities will squander resources, money, and time. A company may be investing in the wrong thing. The behavior may be correct, but the message is incorrect. Alternatively, it might be the proper activity but targeted at the lousy market.
What makes the matter worse is that a company without a planned marketing approach will frequently not be able to measure results correctly. This might cost organizations thousands of dollars in lost money that you could have caught far earlier if the proper tracking mechanisms had been in place.
So, consider the following: before you reject strategic marketing as a solely important function to huge organizations with significant expenditures.
