Whether you’ve heard the term “agile” in the workplace before or not, agile marketing can help your business grow efficiently and effectively. In this article, we’ll cover the basics – what it is, how it’s different from what you’re probably used to, and why you need it.
What is agile marketing?
According to Agile Marketing:
Agile Marketing is an approach to marketing that takes its inspiration from Agile software development and that values:
- Responding to change over following a plan
- Rapid iterations over Big-Bang campaigns
- Testing and data over opinions and conventions
- Many small experiments over a few large bets
- Individuals and interactions over one-size-fits-all
- Collaboration over silos and hierarchy
In short, being agile means using best practices, testing, and data to create a marketing strategy that evolves as customer needs evolve. But the principles (or guidelines) and processes to carry out those values may change over time.
The difference between agile marketing and traditional marketing
The biggest difference between agile marketing and what you’re probably used to is the timeframe involved. Traditional marketing typically involves the development of a large, annual plan (or even a 3- or 5-year plan) while agile marketing focuses on shorter-term plans. Agile marketers adjust their plans quickly, creating multiple iterations of plans, while traditional marketers stick to a sort of master plan.
Another difference is the focus. Agile marketers focus on the customers, while traditional marketers focus on the business. As customers’ needs change, so does the sales cycle. Agile marketers adapt their efforts to meet the ever-changing needs of the customers while traditional marketers stick to the business’s set sales cycle.
In short, agile marketers expect, embrace, and adapt to change while traditional marketers maintain their process and avoid change.
Why your business needs agile marketing
For many businesses, agile marketing should sound like an excellent idea! But if you’re not convinced yet, here are a few reasons why your business needs agile marketing.
Customer needs are ever-changing
During the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses accustomed to traditional marketing and planning had to ditch their 1-year, 3-year, and 5-year plans, and scrape together alternative options. This process felt foreign and harried – because it was vastly different from the experience they were accustomed to. They couldn’t adapt fast enough because they didn’t have the values and processes in place to do so.
For businesses that use agile approaches, including agile marketing strategies or using an agile marketing team like SharedTEAMS, switching gears wasn’t anything new – even though some of the challenges were. Because agile marketing is built on the idea that things can change quickly, it’s not a surprise or disruption when they do.
Platforms are always updating
Google, Apple, Facebook – the platforms you use for your marketing are constantly changing to meet the needs of the customers they serve. This means that you need to be able to change when the platforms change – or your business gets left behind.
It’s cost-effective
To put it simply, when you spend time and money on the right marketing programs at the right time, it’s more cost-effective. When you spend time and money on the marketing programs that are listed on a 5-year plan, you could be wasting money and time.
Finding the right marketing channels and strategies will always hold more value for your business operations than a blanket approach. Think of it like this: no one goes to their favorite clothing store and shops for clothes that will simply fit on their bodies – they look for items that fit their specific body size and shape, as well as their own personal style. Marketing expenses are the same way – you can pay for something that is 2 sizes too big, or includes 3 social media platforms that your prospects and customers aren’t using, or you can tailor your approach to fit your business goals, mission, and industry.
Plus, if you choose agile marketing, you don’t have to waste time and money on building extensive 5-year plans that are destined to fail.
Gain transparency
Even when you are completely delegating project work to your marketing team, agile marketing offers transparency into the approach behind the project work and the project work itself.
When marketers are transparent about their work, there are no silos between marketing teams or other business teams, which means that you stay updated every step of the way. This helps you know that your marketing efforts are aligned with your business efforts and goals.
Increase productivity
When you focus on what matters when it matters – rather than focusing on what you thought would matter 6 months ago – you’re able to increase productivity all around. But if you’re stuck with following a plan, like when following traditional marketing values, then you may be wasting your time working on tasks and following strategies that no longer serve your business.
Start Your Agile Marketing Journey Today
At SharedTEAMS, you are your own marketing director. Our team is here to help you build and execute a marketing strategy, but you can assign projects, pause them, and send updates within projects whenever it suits you and your business’s needs.
Partner with our agile marketing team today. No long-term contracts. No minimum terms. Learn how our memberships work here.