Match Your Budget to Your Market Position

Build a flexible budget by aligning to business goals and justifying ROI.

RETIRED CONTENT

Please note that the content on this page is retired. This content is not maintained and may contain information or links that are out of date.

Without a metrics-driven approach to budgeting, the CMO will face several challenges:

  • Inability to defend budgets: CMOs may struggle to justify their budget allocations and lose control over their contribution to the company's overall goals.
  • Diminished marketing influence: Marketing may lose its position of influence in driving the company's progress.
  • Top-down resource allocation: Without coordination in budget planning, CMOs might receive top-down instructions on where to allocate resources, which may not align with their strategic vision.
  • Overspending or underspending: Failing to maintain the pace of spending could lead to resources being spent too quickly or not being used effectively.
  • Lack of leadership team coordination: Inadequate coordination with the rest of the leadership team could lead to conflicting priorities and strategies.
  • Slower recovery: When the economy bounces back, it may take longer for the company to recover, as it may have missed opportunities to adapt and optimize its marketing efforts.

This SoftwareReviews methodology and tools will guide you through creating and managing a budget that will work despite adverse conditions.

  • Review your current budget and develop a strategy to optimize it.
  • Create a forward-looking budget strategy that focuses on target markets and segments with a high yield of revenue.
  • Pivot to increasing low-effort and high-return campaigns and activities.
  • Prioritize spend when the budget needs adjustment.

Book Your Workshop

Onsite Workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn’t enough, we offer low-cost onsite delivery of our Project Workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a road map in place to complete your project successfully.

Module 1: Conduct a Marketing Campaign Audit

The Purpose

Conduct a comprehensive review and audit of your current marketing campaigns and budget. Identify areas for improvement and potential opportunities for growth.

Key Benefits Achieved


Review and audit your current marketing campaigns and budgets, developing an audit framework and metrics to improve strategy, optimize budget, and foster collaboration. The outcome leads to better decision-making and long-term success in the market.

Activities: Outputs:
1.1 Workshop kickoff and objectives
  • List of KPIs for each campaign, along with data sources, monitoring frequency, and people responsible
1.2 Review current marketing campaigns and budgets.
1.3 Develop audit framework and metrics.
1.4 Audit campaign performance.
1.5 Analyze audit findings and identify opportunities.

Module 2: Develop a Marketing Performance Model

The Purpose

Establish a performance model that effectively measures the impact of marketing efforts on your business objectives

Key Benefits Achieved

A data-driven approach to decision-making and the ability to optimize marketing strategies for better results and ROI.

Activities: Outputs:
2.1 Determine metrics for model.
  • Formula for scoring marketing campaigns
2.2 Map marketing efforts to metrics.
2.3 Build a draft performance model.
2.4 Test and refine model with sample data.
2.5 Finalize model and methodology.

Module 3: Identify High-Value Customer Segments

The Purpose

Analyze customer data to identify and prioritize target segments, enabling you to create more effective marketing strategies tailored to specific buyer personas.

Key Benefits Achieved

Increased customer engagement, higher conversion rates, and better allocation of marketing resources.

Activities: Outputs:
3.1 Analyze customer data to identify segments.
  • Profile of high-yielding customer segments
3.2 Profile target segments and buyer personas.
3.3 Identify priority segments based on value and propensity.

Module 4: Optimize Spend and Resources 

The Purpose

Assess the effectiveness of the marketing campaigns in terms of ROI and spend efficiency and identify opportunities to optimize your marketing budget and resources.

Key Benefits Achieved

Key benefits include cost savings, improved campaign performance, and a more efficient allocation of resources, ultimately leading to better marketing results and a stronger competitive position in the market.

Activities: Outputs:
4.1 Analyze campaign ROI and spend efficiency.
  • Identification of the resources and programs that have the highest returns
4.2 Identify improvement opportunities.
4.3 Develop optimization recommendations.
4.4 Create plan to shift budgets and resources.

Module 5: Create a Strategy to Implement the Changes

The Purpose

Review and validate the performance model, develop potential downturn scenarios, and create a marketing blueprint for various economic conditions

Key Benefits Achieved

A more resilient and adaptable marketing strategy that can effectively navigate fluctuating market conditions, ensuring long-term success and growth for your business.

Activities: Outputs:
5.1 Recap days 1-4 and day 5 objectives.
  • Strategy for harvesting and reinvesting marketing funds, timing of marketing investments, and planning for a comeback in the event of a downturn
5.2 Review performance model and flexibility.
  • Action plan for implementing the blueprint
5.3 Develop downturn scenarios and forecasts.
5.4 Present blueprint and wrap up workshop.
Visit our IT’s Moment: A Technology-First Solution for Uncertain Times Resource Center
Over 100 analysts waiting to take your call right now: +1 (703) 340 1171