Developing a marketing strategy without a clear business strategy can feel like steering a ship without a map. You’re not alone—many consultants, employees, and marketers find themselves in this situation. But while it’s challenging, it’s also a valuable opportunity to bring clarity and alignment to the organisation.
Here’s how to navigate this tricky situation and deliver real value along the way.
Hint: You can apply this in lots of other circumstances too. For example, if you're asked to develop a people strategy or a technology strategy. Or even if you just want to do better in your role.
Why Alignment is Critical
Marketing strategy doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It’s part of a bigger picture that includes the organisation’s goals, priorities, and vision. Without alignment to a business strategy (whether explicit or implicit), marketing efforts risk being misdirected, inefficient, or completely ineffective.
To overcome this challenge, you’ll need to uncover, clarify, or even create that alignment.
Six Practical Steps to Get Started
Ask If a Strategy Already Exists
Many organisations believe they have a strategy, even if it’s not well-documented or formalised. Start by asking for any materials they might have—presentations, documents, or even casual notes.
Even if what you find isn’t a true strategy, it can reveal priorities, goals, and assumptions. These insights can be a stepping stone for your marketing efforts.
Uncover the Implicit Strategy
If the organisation struggles with the concept of "strategy," try avoiding the term altogether. Instead, ask simple, open-ended questions like:
- What would you like to achieve?
- Why is that important to you?
- What (else) are you doing to achieve that?
- What’s working well or not working well?
- Who are your customers, and what are they saying?
The answers can help you piece together an implicit strategy, even if it’s not formally articulated.
Create a Provisional Marketing Strategy
Sometimes, you need to move forward despite strategic gaps. In such cases, draft a provisional marketing strategy based on the information you’ve gathered.
Be transparent with stakeholders: this plan is interim and subject to change as the business strategy becomes clearer. This approach keeps momentum while leaving room for refinement.
Make sure you state all of your assumptions very clearly. This may invite others to want to engage with or change them. And at least it will be clear to everyone why you developed the strategy you have.
See: Bonus thoughts for developing your marketing strategy below.
Propose Developing a Business Strategy
If the absence of a business strategy is a major roadblock, propose creating one.
For consultants, this is an excellent upsell opportunity to expand your engagement. For employees, it’s a chance to demonstrate your value and drive alignment across the organisation.
You can use tools like StratNavApp.com to guide this process collaboratively. It offers frameworks like the Balanced Scorecard, SWOT analysis, and Business Model Canvas, plus AI support to uncover insights and accelerate progress.
Leverage Customer and Market Insights
When internal clarity is lacking, start externally. Focus on understanding your target audience:
- Who are your customers?
- What do they need or value?
- How does your organisation meet those needs?
Customer insights can serve as a foundation for both marketing and business strategies, helping to ground your efforts in real-world demands.
Infer the Strategy If Necessary
As a last resort, you may need to infer the organisation’s strategy based on what you’ve observed. Develop a draft of what you think the strategy should be and validate it with stakeholders to ensure alignment.
While this approach isn’t ideal, it gives you a framework to guide your work and spark conversations about priorities and goals.
Collaboration and Tools Are Key
Navigating a situation like this is rarely a solo effort. Look for allies within the organisation who share your frustrations and vision. Together, you’ll have a stronger voice and greater impact.
Additionally, leverage tools like StratNavApp.com, which simplifies strategy development with:
- Templates for business and marketing strategies.
- AI-powered insights to fill in gaps and identify opportunities.
- Collaboration features to align stakeholders.
These tools make it easier to bring clarity and structure to even the most ambiguous situations.
Final Thoughts
Working without a clear business strategy is challenging, but it’s also an opportunity to add value. By uncovering implicit strategies, creating provisional plans, or helping to develop a formal strategy, you can guide the organisation towards better alignment and greater success.
Ready to take the first step? Tools like StratNavApp.com are here to help you streamline the process and deliver results.
🌟Bonus thoughts for developing your marketing strategy
Whether you have a clear business strategy or not:
- Define Clear Marketing Objectives: Establish specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals for your marketing efforts. This provides direction and a basis for evaluating success.
- Understand Your Target Audience: Conduct thorough market research to identify and understand your target audience's needs, preferences, and behaviours. This ensures your marketing efforts are customer-centric and effective.
- Develop a Unique Value Proposition: Clearly articulate what differentiates your product or service from competitors. A compelling value proposition attracts and retains customers by addressing their specific needs.
- Allocate Resources Wisely: Determine your marketing budget and allocate resources efficiently to maximize return on investment. This includes selecting appropriate channels and tools that align with your objectives and audience.
- Monitor and Adapt: Regularly assess the performance of your marketing activities and be prepared to adapt strategies based on data-driven insights. This flexibility allows you to respond to market changes and improve outcomes.
Incorporating these elements can strengthen your marketing strategy, even in the absence of a formal business strategy.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Why is it important to align a marketing strategy with a business strategy?
Aligning a marketing strategy with a business strategy ensures that marketing efforts support the organisation's overall goals. Without alignment, resources can be wasted on misdirected or ineffective campaigns.
What should I do if the organisation doesn’t have a business strategy?
You can ask if any implicit strategy exists, create a provisional marketing strategy, or propose developing a business strategy collaboratively. Tools like StratNavApp can help streamline the process.
How can I uncover an implicit business strategy?
You can ask questions such as: What do you want to achieve? Why is that important? What’s working well or not working well? These answers often reveal the organisation's goals and priorities.
What tools can help develop a marketing or business strategy?
StratNavApp is a great tool for developing both marketing and business strategies. It offers collaborative features, strategic frameworks, and AI support to streamline the process.
What should I focus on if there’s no clear business strategy?
Focus on understanding the target audience through market research and customer insights. This can serve as a foundation for creating a customer-centric marketing strategy and eventually informing a broader business strategy.