Change Implementation Techniques for Creating a Sense of Urgency

Technique 2.62 Marketing Audit (Some Questions)

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Introduction

. Definition

"...marketing is the positioning of your company, its goods and services, to enable ongoing maximum return for minimal outlay..."

Ian Farlow, 1996

. Remember: marketing is more than

- advertising

- merchandising

- possessing the best and latest products or services

. A marketing audit involves questions around 5 topics (the marketplace, your company's position in the marketplace, your customers, your competitors, and your products and services)

i) The marketplace

- How different is the current market from 12 months ago?

- Are there any new developments on the horizon your company should be preparing to embrace?

ii) Your company's position

- Where does your company sit in the marketplace?

- Where do you think your customers and industry see the company is positioned?

iii) Your customers

- Are you maximizing the potential of your existing customer base?

- Are there untapped markets you are currently ignoring?

iv) Your competitors

- What are they doing differently from you?

- What are you doing differently from them?

v) Your product and/or service

- Does it represent a real value proposition to your customers?

- Are you constantly repositioning your offer to ensure competitiveness?

(source: Ian Farlow, 1996)