How to develop a marketing strategy

A marketing strategy is a plan that helps a business achieve its goals in the market. It is not just a set of separate actions, but a cohesive system that builds a path from attracting customers to retaining them, improving the customer journey at every stage.

Why is it necessary? Without a clear strategy, your business will be moving blindly, which is not the best path to success. Without analysis, planning, and the right promotion tools, you risk losing money and missing the best opportunities for growth. In this context, SEO promotion becomes an important element as it helps improve website visibility in search engines, driving organic traffic and strengthening brand awareness.

Many confuse strategy with tactics. A strategy is a long-term and well-founded plan, while tactics involve specific actions taken to execute that strategy. In general, strategy is "what we do," while tactics are "how we do it." A simple example: strategy is building a strong brand, while tactics include conducting PR campaigns or using influencer marketing to increase brand awareness.

Why is a marketing strategy important for a business?

First, a clear plan helps minimize risks and allocate resources effectively. When you have a clear path, you don't waste money on ineffective channels or ideas, and you can properly set up lead generation through Google Ads, TikTok marketing, or an SMM strategy.

Second, a marketing strategy helps focus on long-term goals. It is not only aimed at current sales but also at building a brand, customer retention, and sustainable growth. It also includes product marketing, digital advertising, and improving customer experience through the use of big data and marketing research. In general, it’s not just a whim — it’s a necessity for any business that wants to remain competitive.

What does a marketing strategy look like — key elements

The elements of a marketing strategy are always interconnected, forming a cohesive picture that drives a business toward its goal. Let’s take a closer look at the most important components.

Market and сompetitor analysis

Before making decisions, it’s crucial to understand what’s happening in the market. What digital trends are present? What threats or opportunities are available to you? A SWOT analysis can help clearly define your strengths and weaknesses, as well as potential risks and advantages. It’s equally important to study the actions of your competitors — what methods they use, where they have succeeded, and where they have fallen short. Using tools like Semrush or Ahrefs can help make this analysis deeper and more precise.

Defining the target audience (customer persona)

Think about who exactly will be buying your product or service. Creating a "portrait" of your customer is an important step, which involves analyzing age groups, interests, and the needs of your audience. To do this, you can use various data sources: website analytics through Google Analytics, social media, surveys, and questionnaires, to more accurately segment your audience.

Choosing promotion channels

Which channels should be chosen for business promotion? In the context of the growth of digital marketing and the multitude of available platforms, this question is not so simple. However, the key goal is to choose the channels that align with the interests of your target audience and the specific characteristics of your business.

Conduct a marketing analysis to understand where your audience is most active. For example, if your product is targeted at young people, platforms like TikTok or Instagram may be much more effective than traditional TV advertising. If you are targeting corporate clients, LinkedIn could be a key tool.

With SEO, SEM, and PPC advertising, you can fine-tune targeting and improve performance marketing. To minimize costs and increase conversion, retargeting or remarketing is a great option to return to those who have already interacted with your brand but did not make a purchase.

Developing a unique selling proposition (USP)

What makes your company special? How does your product or service differ from competitors? This is what defines the Unique Selling Proposition (USP). The USP should address specific problems of your target audience and demonstrate that your business offers a solution that others do not.

Content and advertising strategy development

Content marketing encompasses a wide range of activities, including storytelling, video content, infographics, as well as blogging and social media management. It is important not only to generate content but to create it with a clear focus on the needs of your audience.

Useful, engaging, and personalized content that aligns with the sales funnel stages will help increase audience engagement. At the early stages, it is recommended to raise awareness using informational materials, and then employ more targeted approaches such as case studies, reviews, and special offers.

Advertising is an integral part of the strategy. Try to understand which types of advertising work best for your business: contextual ads, PPC, retargeting, and others. Each advertising campaign should be tailored to the characteristics of your audience to minimize customer acquisition costs and increase conversion rates.

Use of automation and CRM systems

To simplify and accelerate marketing processes, it's worth investing in marketing automation to manage campaigns more effectively, track user behavior, and achieve desired metrics in the shortest time possible. Advertising automation software allows for efficient interaction with users at all stages of their journey.

CRM systems, on the other hand, help organize customer relations, maintain a history of interactions, and predict future needs, thereby improving customer loyalty.

Mobile marketing and YouTube promotion

An important part of the strategy is mobile marketing, considering the growth of mobile device usage for shopping and brand interactions. Therefore, it is essential to optimize your website and advertising campaigns for mobile devices, as well as utilize YouTube promotion to create video content that can go viral and reach a wide audience.

Loyalty Programs

A loyalty program helps establish long-term relationships with customers, increasing their value for the business.

Stages of developing a marketing plan

To develop a marketing strategy, it is essential to follow specific steps. For increased efficiency, it is important to structure the process correctly. Below, we will take a detailed look at the key stages and what needs to be considered at each of them.

Step 1: Market and competitor analysis

Start with analysis. This is a great opportunity to understand the current state of affairs in the market and identify problems. First, perform a SWOT analysis to assess internal and external factors that might affect your business.

Next, conduct a competitive analysis. Using tools such as Semrush, Ahrefs, and SimilarWeb, you can obtain detailed information about competitors' positions, their strengths and weaknesses, content, and even advertising campaigns. Based on this analysis, key insights are formed. As a result, you'll be able to identify which marketing strategies are most suitable for your company. Additionally, marketing analytics tools like Google Trends can be used to evaluate current trends and the needs of your target audience.

Step 2: Defining the target audience

Create a detailed profile of your target audience based on data such as age, gender, interests, and needs. Divide the audience into segments. To gather data, use tools like Google Analytics, social media insights, as well as surveys and questionnaires.

Step 3: Formulating the unique selling proposition (USP)

Your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) should clearly differentiate your product or service from competitors, focusing on the benefits that solve specific problems for your target audience. It's important for the USP to be clearly and concisely formulated so that the consumer immediately understands the value they will receive.

Step 4: Choosing marketing channels

Now that you understand who you want to attract and what makes your product unique, it's time to choose the channels for promotion. You can use:

➤ content marketing (blogs, articles, videos) to increase awareness and attract customers through organic traffic;
➤ targeted and contextual advertising (PPC) to quickly attract the target audience;
➤ SEO optimization to improve rankings in search engines;
➤ email marketing to build relationships with customers;
➤ SMM (Instagram, TikTok, or LinkedIn) for audience interaction and enhancing branding.

A media plan will help you detail the budget and determine how much money should be allocated to each specific marketing channel.

Step 5: Developing a content strategy

When developing a content strategy, think about what content formats will suit you (articles, videos, infographics, etc.), how often to publish materials, and how to build the content funnel from awareness to purchase. Evaluate the usability of the website and ensure that it is well optimized.

Step 6: Defining KPIs and performance metrics

The final step is measuring success. To understand how effective your efforts are, you need to set clear KPIs (ROI, CTR, CAC, CLV, etc.). It is also recommended to use Google Analytics and CRM systems to track the effectiveness of each campaign and make timely adjustments.

Marketing strategy examples

Let's look at several examples of successful cases so you can see how marketing promotion strategies work in reality.

These examples show how different marketing methods can be used to achieve specific goals.

Mistakes in developing a marketing strategy

So, basic marketing strategies are the most important foundation for the successful promotion of a business, but their incorrect or incomplete understanding can lead to serious mistakes:

➤ Lack of a clear goal. Basic marketing strategies should begin with a clear understanding of what the business wants to achieve — whether it's increasing sales, attracting new customers, or raising brand awareness. Without a clear goal, it's difficult to assess the effectiveness of actions and determine which tools and communication channels to use to achieve the desired results.
➤ Ignoring audience analysis. Neglecting customer segmentation or misunderstanding their needs leads to incorrect targeting.
➤ Working without analytics and testing. Without regular analysis and A/B testing, you won't be able to improve your strategy.
➤ Lack of flexibility in strategy. The market is constantly changing, and the strategy must be flexible enough to adapt to these changes.

Considering the possible mistakes, it's essential to carefully think through every step when creating a strategy to minimize risks.

Marketing strategy trends in 2025

Personalization of marketing is becoming increasingly important. AI and machine learning help create more accurate and personalized offers for users, which contributes to higher conversion rates.

The growth of video content, especially on platforms like TikTok and YouTube, opens new opportunities for brands. Video formats continue to gain popularity, and their influence on marketing strategies should not be underestimated. Visual content can capture the audience's attention much faster than text messages.

The use of voice technologies and the development of voice search are also becoming important elements of marketing strategies. Topics such as sustainability and corporate social responsibility continue to gain traction and will undoubtedly remain popular in the future.

Conclusion

To achieve success, it is crucial not only to understand business goals but also to implement them effectively. Developing a well-thought-out plan helps avoid risks and allocate resources efficiently. To remain competitive, it is essential to monitor market changes and adapt approaches flexibly. A comprehensive approach, including analysis, targeting, and the use of various channels, will ensure stable growth and long-term results.