Spring forward

I love this time of year - gardens, parks, fields and hedgerows are different every day as something new blooms. And business feels more positive as the days get (theoretically) warmer.

This month... more on the SOPE marketing framework and a couple of announcements. (So essentially: me, me, me.)

Does the world really need another marketing framework?

There are dozens of marketing frameworks available already – some have been around for decades, some are specific to sectors or segments, and some are so complicated you need a framework to deal with the framework.

I didn’t set out to create a framework which fitted a neat acronym, but I’m a marketer and acronyms are our currency. What I did set out to do was to organise the elements I need to understand quickly when I go into a business as a consultant or as a fractional CMO. I needed to get up-to-speed with lots of facets of the business super fast. The SOPE Framework helps me do that.

I also wanted to create a framework based on common sense, understandable to business founders as well as marketers. Marketing is really about common sense – but common sense, as my father says, isn’t very commonplace these days. The Framework will present the areas for work understandably and sensibly.

The Framework has four core sections:

• Strategy
• Organisation
• Process
• Execution

Each section has thematic areas, broken down into several elements.

By listing out and grouping all the elements of your marketing, you immediately start to see where the gaps are.

But the volume of gaps can be overwhelming – where should you start?

The SOPE Framework uses a scoring mechanism which allows you to dispassionately rank the importance of those gaps (and yes, I love a split infinitive).

The scoring enables you to focus activity on the most valuable work.

>> Right now, the SOPE Framework is available as a workshop accompanied by a report and roadmap. In the coming months, I will make it available as a licensable document - more on that in due course!

New client update...

I'm very pleased to start a new fractional CMO engagement with embedded finance provider Scroll Finance. It's a really exciting opportunity to make a difference, particularly in the green retrofit space.

Don't miss out...

I still have some availability for fractional CMO work - around 1-1.5 days a week, but it's likely to fill fast. Drop me a message if you'd like to discuss your business.

Mentoring

Over the last few months, I've been working with the founders of two awesome early-stage start-ups. Both are marketplaces looking to solve real problems for consumer audiences (though both in quite different spaces).

>> I'm now set up at online mentor platform MentorCruise to make booking sessions easier.

??If you want to try out walking mentorship, rather than online, please let me know!

Cheers

Richard