#Success: The 5 Things Every Marketing Leader Must Know

#Success: The 5 Things Every Marketing Leader Must Know

Congratulations - you work in marketing. 2017 is your year! The political, economic, and technological environments are ripe for change. Consumers are ripe and ready for a new conversation. Are you ready to own this opportunity?

If you are in marketing, you have a tremendous chance to speak to a population who wants to speak back to you. They want share of voice and, if you do it right, you will will gain share of wallet as a results.

As a marketing leader, your success will be measured on your ability to own this opportunity and deliver results for your business. How do you lock down a win? Make sure you master these 5 critical points of success. They will enable you to create an unflappable marketing strategy.

Why am I here? After careful review and evaluation, you might have an idea in your head of what you need to accomplish in your role. Great! But that is only 1/2 of the battle.

  1. Know what the leadership team is expecting you and your team to accomplish. Sometimes it aligns with your ideas, and sometimes it does not. At the end of the day, you need to create a strategy and plan that feeds a higher vision. Getting this right is critical in enabling your success.

What are my resources? Once you know what's expected, take an inventory. I haven't many marketers who feel they have access to enough budget and talent. You'll need to be resourceful.

2. Once you know what is expected and what tools you have, consider yourself 25% ahead of the status quo. Most marketers skip these two steps and go right to a plan, hoping to gather consensus and resources later. Not you. Be resourceful. Look for ways to get what you need to make things happen based on what you have access to. Reallocating budgets, bringing in partners, opening up new channels and even being scrappy are all ways to help get you to the next level. Remember, if it was easy, they wouldn't need you.

What decisions can I make? No marketing plan will work if you don't know where the company draws the line. Finding out what decisions you are expected to make vs. facilitate could spell the difference between success and failure for your plan.

3. The best marketing plan is only as good as it's flawless execution. John F. Ellett is a genius when it comes to creating clarity around this very point. (Thanks for the recent reminder of this one!) You can't execute if your decisions to spend dollars, add resources or change process are not supported, or blocked. If you create your plan understanding where the line is drawn, you can define ways to get around obstacles to your success.


How well do I speak....? Sharing your marketing plan highlights with key stakeholders (from the product team, finance, technology and even design) can be tricky. Sometimes they just don't understand what language you are speaking. Find a way to translate into their language.

4. Your amazing marketing plan might not get the support it needs if others in your organization don't understand how it will help the broader mission and benefit them. Don't ignore this! With clear focus and a great plan, your biggest obstacle could be establishing effective communication with other teams. Finding a shared voice is one of the most critical skills you can lock down.

What's next? You can't stay status quo - so think about what risks you will take to innovate and grow. Decisions in this area can create competitive advantage, profits and expansion.

5. Every person in marketing needs to think out of the box, innovate and find new ways to accomplish key goals, and grow the business. CMO's from Arby's and M&M provide just two examples of marketing leaders who will always take risks knowing that it will pay off. Stay inspired by start-ups. Try three new solutions a quarter. Partner with up and coming technology that can make your company stand out. Keeping an open mind will pay off in profits down the road.

Being in marketing is not just a job, it's a commitment to creating a strong future for your company. Stepping back and making sure you have a good handle on these five foundational points of success will enable you to achieve more. It will also allow you to step out of any rut you might have fallen in, thinking that your contributions don't make a difference.

I've recently read a number of great articles about marketing success. They are listed here in case they might also inspire you:

Why Today's great CMOs will be the CEOs of 2020 (Gartner)

10 Great Expectations: What CEOs want from their CMOs (CMO.com)

8 Superhero Traits all CMOs should possess (Inc)

Navigating Change: Advice for CMOs (Allocadia)

33 Tips for Marketing Success (Entrepreneur)



Sean Tomarelli

Founder & CEO at OnConferences

7 年

Jeanniey Mullen, Great article. I'd love to promote this on www.ChiefMarketingOfficer.Online. Would that be ok?

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Gill Gibbs

I provide creative, effective solutions to optimise Brand presence & impact

7 年

And how well do I write?

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Aaron B.

Strategic FP&A Sales

7 年

And sales intelligence ;)

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