Documenting Your Marketing Strategy is not the same as Implementing Your Marketing Strategy

Patrick McFadden

When it comes to marketing, the missing link is often effective implementation.

This information is not earthshattering, but it is one that many businesses, large and small, overlook.

Documenting a marketing strategy is not the same as implementing that marketing strategy. When you document a a marketing strategy (or have created what we often refer to as an Marketing Action Plan), you’ve written down the steps to achieve a specific result.

The act of writing your strategy down certainly has value: it helps you think through the steps and standards and is a way to effectively communicate the strategy to others; but writing it down is not the most important part of developing a strategy.

Implementation on the other hand—the act of carrying that strategy out, of testing, and revising until it accomplishes the desired result—that’s where the real working on your business begins.

Remember most small businesses go through a 3 stage business development cycle, which involves Innovation, Validation and Orchestration.

If you have an idea (Innovation) and then jump right to documenting and implementing (Orchestration), then you’ve missed the vital Validation step that tells you that what you’re doing is actually the right thing to do to produce the desired result.

Let’s use a simple example to illustrate my point. Perhaps you’ve identified that your sales process is desperately in need of systematizing. So you put on your “working on it” hat and develop a sales action plan. You write down the steps that you think are the most efficient way to move a lead from inquiry to close and hand that new sales process to the person in charge of sales and viola! You’ve documented a process, handed it to somebody else to execute and now you’re done. Not quite.

The critical component that’s missing from this step, and one that will likely have negative repercussions on your business development process, is Validation.

Validation is absolutely essential to working on your business. In addition to writing it down, you have to practice it, observe it, test it, measure it—and then modify it based on trying it. And then you keep on testing it until you can get positive, proven outcome.

That is how you create a marketing strategy that produces consistent, transferable results. That’s how you work on your business.

Documenting is just one piece of implementing a strategy—it’s not the whole thing. A business full of Marketing Action Plans that do not produce great business results are just a waste of time.

By Patrick McFadden March 31, 2025
1. The Challenge: VMI was like many service providers — positioning their value around what they thought clients wanted : “Office furniture installation and assembly — let us handle creating your perfect workspace.” But the actual buyers — facility managers, project managers, furniture reps — weren’t looking for “perfect workspaces.” They were trying to avoid installation nightmares . Their real priority? ✅ Great installation days. ✅ No chaos. ✅ No missed deadlines. ✅ No angry phone calls from clients. 2. The Insight: After conducting stakeholder interviews under our marketing strategy consulting engagement , the Indispensable Marketing team uncovered critical feedback: “We need installers who maintain a professional site and follow instructions.” “We lose relationships when installations go badly.” “I need quotes back quickly or I can’t sell the job.” This wasn’t just about services , it was about trust, problem-solving , and professional reliability . So we reframed their differentiators not by what they did, but how they showed up : Same-day project quotes Problem-solving on-site Update protocol with clients Professionalism guarantee Lasting Impression Insurance 3. The Shift: We shifted the positioning from vague benefits to real-world, emotional triggers : Instead of: “Let us create your perfect workspace.” Now: “Get the perfect installation day, every time.” That subtle shift aligns with who’s actually buying (and who feels the pain when things go wrong). The end-user may care about the workspace. But the buyer cares about the install . 4. The Lesson for Others: If you’re selling a service, don’t describe what you do. Describe what the client wants to avoid or achieve — and who the real buyer is. Then, systematize what you’re already doing well and give it a name. Just like our team did with: “Same Day Quotes” “Lasting Impression Insurance” “Reliable Presence Protocol” 5. The Outcome Within weeks of updating their messaging and positioning: The company reported more qualified leads asking the right questions Furniture reps began referring them because they were “easy to work with and made them look good” They were shortlisted for larger, multi-phase projects due to increased confidence in their process But most importantly, they stopped competing on price — because they weren’t selling perfect workspaces anymore. They were selling peace of mind on installation day.
By Patrick McFadden March 8, 2025
Most marketing firms talk about tactics. We help our clients see the bigger picture.
By Patrick McFadden January 13, 2025
Discover how Google’s LSA update impacts kitchen & bathroom remodeling marketing. Learn SEO tips to attract leads and boost visibility in Richmond VA & beyond.
More Posts
Share by: