Improving Marketing’s Internal Credibility?

Forrester came out with a report on March 9th that offers ideas to improve marketing’s internal credibility. They postured that “Today's marketing function lacks authority, follows the lead of other departments, and operates disconnected from peer functions. To build momentum for marketing reinvention, marketers must focus on three key activities:

1) Setting executive expectations regarding responsibility and accountability

2) Building bridges with peer functions through communication and collaboration

3) Extending internal capabilities by balancing skills and resources.”

This is good advice yet so typical of the “lean,”  “efficiencies” approach to marketing. Marketing is not a product it is a strategy. While I would not suggest that what Forrester is recommending is wrong and is probably worth investigating. I would instead say that it is more about the marketing than the department and its relationship with internal constituents.

Question: Do you know how to make an internal marketing organization more credible? Answer: Outside results.

Question: Do you know how to gain outside results?

Answer: Leverage the internal points of corporate credibility to establish market credibility.

Question: How do you find those internal points of credibility?

Answer: Create them.

Question: What are these points of credibility?

Answer:

·        Listen to the breath of the market, listen to your customers, partners and vendors, listen to the product solution and deliver something that addresses the pain that customers are having

·        A strong credible management team; a product that delivers a clear value and answers a need; brand recognized customers; marquee strategic partners; and contributing your vision to the unique trends in the market (see Credibility pyramid)

·        Gaining third party recognition from influencers and leveraging that to find more influencers

·        Becoming an expert/influencer

Have you ever noticed, when the marketing programs are successful the marketing department has more resources and respect? Yes it is possible the marketing department in hampered by the departments around them, the lack of resources available to them and the executive ranks that don’t support them. I have been there I know that this is often the case. However, if your own “marketing head” is in the right strategic place and you have done your homework (the bullet items above), you can use under the radar programs to win points and elevate your status. Under the radar programs are low budget guerrilla programs that can confirm your marketing strategies. For example if you can’t get the big budget for that direct campaign you have been planning, do a viral program. If the advertising idea is not approved, do a survey of your web site users and leverage the results of that survey into a blogger outreach or broader publication PR program. If the fundamental strategy is being questioned, do an audit of customers or the media to confirm or change the strategy (an audit is also a strategy to gain credibility through influencers --to validate programs).

There are a ton of other things you can do. The bottom line is; get your passion back and do the great work that is inside of you. The marketing programs that you put out there, despite the internal hindrances, is a big part of the credibility you need to improve marketing’s internal corporate respect. I think the priority should be the marketing, and then do what Forrester recommends to clean up the remaining internal challenges.

Following is from the Forrester web site on the report:

March 9, 2007

How To Improve Marketing's Internal Credibility

Three Keys Set The Stage For Reinvention

by Peter Kim

with Cliff Condon, Cindy Commander, Sarah Glass, Jennifer Joseph

This is a document excerpt:

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Marketing leaders are starting to take steps to reinvent their organizations in order to drive long-term success. But they are discovering that they lack the internal capital required to lead change. Today's marketing function lacks authority, follows the lead of other departments, and operates disconnected from peer functions. To build momentum for marketing reinvention, marketers must focus on three key activities: 1) setting executive expectations regarding responsibility and accountability; 2) building bridges with peer functions through communication and collaboration; and 3) extending internal capabilities by balancing skills and resources.