OFF-MUTE 🔈
💬 “Doing more with less” seems to be the 2023 marketing mantra.
💥 Companies are continuing to find creative ways to increase brand awareness, drive demand and build community with reduced resources.
🔮 But, no one knows how 2024 will play out.
📝 While this complicates planning, there are steps you can take to simplify the process. Here’s some timely budgeting advice from our Executive Vice President Keith Giannini to set your company up for success:
☑️ Reflect on the past year. How did your business model evolve in the last six to 12 months? Did your deal cycles or customer/product focus change? Budgets are impacted when the go-to-market strategy shifts. Now is the time to get a clear baseline of where you are today and align as a team on the top growth areas to work toward.
☑️ Identify the silos. Are you truly taking an integrated approach? It’s often easier said than done. Look for gaps across processes and teams — from communications and PR to content and demand gen — to streamline your approach. Without an orchestrated surround sound strategy, you may not be maximizing those marketing dollars.
☑️ Assess resources and expertise. Where do you need internal and external support? If you’re considering hiring a new agency partner in 2024, we recommend starting your search now and getting referrals from people you like and trust (here’s some advice to help guide that process). Also, find ways to consolidate spending. For instance, consider combining content marketing and PR investments to streamline the creation and distribution of thought leadership and branded content.
☑️ Lean on data. What are the numbers telling you? Use them to inform every decision. Just remember to balance short and long-term investments. When times are tough, it can be easy to start chopping certain awareness-building activities that are harder to measure than demand-generating ones. Don’t sacrifice the long-term health of the business to appease short-term adjustments.
☑️ Stay flexible. Is more change on the horizon? Probably! Make sure your team and partners can scale and pivot quickly, as budgets and priorities often change throughout the year.
