A 10-Point Checklist for Achieving Marketing Leadership

As business owners and head honchos of organizations, no matter how big or small, we have the responsibility of demonstrating marketing leadership. A vital part of that is staying relevant and infusing into our organization ideas that are practical and realistic. Leveraging innovative marketing approaches like social media and integrating them into traditional, proven systems is the way to achieve marketing leadership. As good leaders then, we ultimately steer our companies to also become successful market leaders.

But first, what’s a relevant leader? I think a relevant leader is one who has:

• the vision to drive change
• the skills to be prepared for dramatic upheavals
• and the wisdom to draw upon strong roots that will deliver success in the present times.

Here’s a 10-point reference checklist that may help you achieve and maintain marketing leadership:

1. Do you look for, absorb and retain information across multiple marketing channels and demand generation platforms that you are exposed to?
2. How good are you at recognizing marketing trends? Can you sift “fad” from “transformation”? For eg: Do you encourage your team to indulge in several social media activities, none of them focused or measurable? Or have you crafted a strategic plan to utilize specific social media tools that can deliver business goals?
3. Can you foresee trends, anticipate change and prepare your team for continued or greater success? Do you plan your lead generation initiatives around the 3 Ps?
4. Are you adept at using your own strengths and steering your organization forward despite rapidly changing market dynamics?
5. How are you different from simply “early adopters” of revolutionary marketing ideas? How do you implement institutional change rather than try to impact individual performance levels?
6. Is your company plagued by a HiPPO (Highest Paid Person’s Opinion) syndrome? Are you the one responsible? If yes, will you admit it and try to change?
7. Do you always remember that technology is only a driver of change and not change itself? Do you welcome new technologies but determine first their specific use in your business? More importantly, do you take measures to adapt them quickly and efficiently so they can help realize your vision for the company?
8. Do you lead demand generation and lead nurturing by example? Or do you leave lead generation to your sales team? (If you read my recent post where I talked about Manuel Emch, the CEO of Romain Jerome, he is a great example of a leader who takes lead nurturing and demand generation to a whole new level of “sophisticated simplicity”. Now that is an oxymoron I know, but I think there’s no better way to describe it!)
9. How involved are you in value creation as an organization for the community in which you operate? Or are you focussed on deriving value from the community for your company?
10. What thought leadership do you demonstrate to help your company innovate and excel?

What are your thoughts on marketing leadership and being a relevant marketing leader? Leave me a comment.