The difference between a marketing strategy and a marketing plan

by | Oct 4, 2024 | Newsletter

I’m a huge fan of using AI to simplify and amplify your content. I’ve put this week’s newsletter into Google’s NotebookLM to create an audio conversation between two AI hosts. The AI version expands on the newsletter and, at times, hallucinates, but I think it’s an interesting way to think about repurposing your content.

Marketing Strategy and Marketing Plans Explained

To build your brand, you need both a marketing strategy and a marketing plan. Each plays a critical role, but they serve different functions:

A Marketing Strategy answers big-picture questions like:

  • What are we trying to achieve?
  • Why are we doing this in the first place?

A marketing strategy is your long-term vision for engaging with your audience. It’s where you define:

  • Positioning
  • Value proposition
  • Overarching goals

It’s also about selecting your content categories, topics, and platforms.

A Marketing Plan handles the tactical and execution side.

  • How are we going to get there?
  • What steps do we need to take to achieve the strategy?

The plan is like a shot, providing the nitty-gritty, specific actions and timelines needed to make your strategy come to life. It includes frameworks and templates, and it’s practical, tactical, and ready for immediate use.

While your strategy is the compass guiding you north, the plan is your GPS giving you turn-by-turn directions to your destination, complete with gas station pit stops and coffee breaks.

Developing marketing strategies and plans are things I help clients do as part of ​The Brand Messaging System™️​, which is a proven step-by-step, guided process to help founders get really clear on their message, offer, and marketing so they can clearly articulate who they are and what they do succinctly.

It’s delivered 1:1, mono a mono, typically over 45-60 days. The Brand Messaging System™️ is what founders turn to when they’re starting their business, pivoting their business, or growing their business and know they need a marketing strategy and a plan that connects their message to everything they do.

Breaking It Down: Marketing Strategy vs. Marketing Plan

While the difference may seem clear, let’s break down what makes each one unique and how they differ:

Marketing Strategy:
Your strategy defines the long-term approach and vision for your market engagement.

It’s aligned with your company’s top-level goals and vision. A clear marketing strategy keeps you focused and ensures that every move you make is purposeful.

Think of it as ‘why you do what you do’—like your brand’s essence, but with fewer existential crises. This is the 30,000-foot view, focusing on the bigger picture and laying the foundation for all your marketing efforts.

Marketing Plan:
A detailed marketing plan provides you with execution clarity. A plan allows you to take action and measure progress over time because without a plan, even the best strategies will fall flat.

Your plan is more specific and operational. Focusing on the ‘how’—the friendly GPS voice saying, ‘In 200 feet, order your next round.’

Plans follow a practical methodology, laying out exactly what needs to be done—what channels, content, and tools you’ll use; it’s the step-by-step guide to executing your strategy.

Using Both Builds Awareness for Your Brand

Combining marketing strategies and plans is like having your favorite margarita after a long day; they help you build awareness while also building an audience for your brand.

1 Start with Strategy:
Look at your positioning, customer needs, and your competitors. Set clear, long-term goals for the next 1, 3, or 5 years.

2 Develop a Tactical Plan:
With your strategy nailed down, dive into the details. Identify specific platforms, social media, email marketing, and content to help you execute your strategy. Set timelines and get started.

3 Iterate and Adjust:
Like the creation of a great recipe, while your strategy is long-term, your plan and ingredients should be flexible.

As you learn what works and what doesn’t, refine your recipe and keep your eye on the long-term goal. Your strategy shouldn’t change too often, but adjusting the tactics in your plan is essential for staying agile.

To sum up, a solid marketing strategy gives you the direction and purpose you need to grow your business, while a well-thought-out marketing plan turns that strategy into action.

Last Call: What’s Your Next Step?

So, you’ve got the strategy (your brand’s North Star), and you’ve got the plan (your trusty roadmap). But what happens when the details get fuzzy or you’re unsure if you’re mixing the right ingredients?

That’s where The Brand Messaging System™️ comes in. A 1:1, guided process that unmuddles your message, offer, and marketing into clear-as-a-martini (not a dirty one) clarity in just 45-60 days.

When you’re ready, ​schedule a call​, and let’s chat about your strategy so we can create a plan that works for you.

Have you ever hummed a song you hear often but don’t like? I do this on some of our longer drives in the RV.

The more you hear the song, the more familiar you become with it, and eventually, without a conscious thought, you’ll begin to like the song, “It’s growing on me,” you’ll say.

And that is how the Mere Exposure Effect works.

You hear the song enough, and it burrows a hole right into your brain, and before long, you’re dancing in the driver’s seat.

The good news for you is that brands work the same way.

You can use this sneaky little psychological “trick” to grow your brand and business. If your audience isn’t engaging with your content or converting into customers, it’s likely because they haven’t seen your brand enough to develop a connection yet.

Read the highlighted part of the last sentence again.

Let’s get this out of the way. Many founders, especially those of you running solo businesses and even executives, do not want to “market” themselves because you think it’s being brag-a-docious.

Well, I’ve got a question for you. If you don’t put yourself out there and market your business or brand, who will? Answer: No one. If you’re not marketing your business or brand, your audience will gravitate toward those who advocate for their business or brand.

The Mere Exposure Effect works on a simple principle: the more your audience sees you, the more they’ll trust you.

BTW—if you’re struggling with this, The Brand Messaging System™️ will not only help you clarify your message, but it will help you understand how to repeat your message across the right platforms.

That’s the magic of the Mere Exposure Effect. And it’s available to you.

The Psychology of Familiarity

The Mere Exposure Effect isn’t just a fancy term for “I’ve seen that a lot.” It’s the reason people feel comfortable with things (and brands) they’ve been exposed to repeatedly.

It’s like going to the same bar enough times—the bartender eventually knows your drink, you know the managers, and then “suddenly” it feels like home. Like Norm from Cheers. The brewery we frequent in Golden, New Terrain, feels like to us.

Why This Matters:

Simply put, familiarity builds trust. In a world overflowing with ads, content, pitches, and people, you will gravitate toward what feels familiar. The repeated exposure builds trust. You want your audience to think of you as that bartender who always gets their order right—reliable and just there.

How it Works:

Every little exposure—whether it’s your logo, tagline, or a killer piece of content (even with low or no engagement), slowly chips away at your audience’s uncertainty. They may not notice it immediately, but they start to trust your brand over time.

This is why it takes 5-7 impressions before people remember your brand.

How to Use the Mere Exposure Effect to Your Advantage

First, you don’t need to be a massive brand to use this effect; you can be a very small brand, just getting started. The trick is consistent and strategic repetition, something I work with my clients on in The Brand Messaging System™️, to make your audience familiar with your brand without being overwhelmed.

Here’s how you can start using it today:

1 – Identify Core Messages

You knew this one was coming, so let’s not overcomplicate things. Pick 2-3 core messages that you want your audience to associate with your brand.

For The Distilled Brand, I tend to think about “clarifying messaging,” “distilling complex ideas into memorable messaging,” or “communicating your value online.”

These core messages become your go-to ingredients, like the bourbon in an Old Fashioned—foundational, reliable, and always on hand.

Pro Tip: If you’re thinking, but I’ve said this before, good. That’s the point. The more you say it, the more people believe it.

2 – Repeat Your Core Messages Across Platforms

Start spreading your message without feeling like “that guy” who talks about his cat in every conversation. The trick is to keep it fresh, for example:

On LinkedIn: I might drop some knowledge on the importance of clear brand messaging.

In Email: I might share how a client nailed their offer after simplifying their message (which happens often).

On the Website: I’ll hit readers with the same value prop—again and again.

Consistent Visuals: Repetition isn’t just about words—visuals need to stay on brand too. Keep your color schemes, logos, and fonts consistent across platforms. It’s like wearing your signature style, think Steve Jobs; Jeans, black turtle neck. People will start to associate it with you without even thinking about it.

Pro Tip: If you feel the urge to switch things up just because you’re bored, resist. Consistency breeds familiarity, and that’s what we’re after.

Create a Content Calendar for Repetition

If low engagement or conversions are slowly killing you, don’t worry. You don’t need to do more; you need to show up consistently and stay on message. This is where I see people get in trouble with their content; they get bored and start talking about other things. If that’s you, stop doing that.

Instead, put together a plan for your content so it stays fresh but familiar. Here’s a hyper-critical four-week example calendar for The Distilled Brand®:

Week 1:

LinkedIn: Publish a post about “How simplifying your message can change everything.”

Newsletter: Share a client success story where clarity made all the difference. Basically, it reinforces your post.

Week 2:

Instagram Story: Do a behind-the-scenes look at a workshop or a peek at your process.

Blog Post: Write about the impact of a clear message on sales and engagement.

Week 3:

LinkedIn: Publish another post. Maybe this time, the topic is posed as a question, “Is your message as clear as an Old Fashioned? If not, it’s time to simplify.”

Lead Gen Post: Offer a free resource, like a downloadable guide, to help your audience clarify their messaging. (This is where you build that trust and get some leads.)

Week 4:

Podcast Appearance: Talk about how simplifying messaging has changed your clients’ lives. Don’t be shy—share those wins and repeat your core message again.

Keep in mind this is an example. The platforms and mediums you choose must align with you and your audience.

Track What Works

Like someone keeping track of your drinks at a bar, you need to keep track of what resonates so you can begin to fine-tune your message and keep serving up content your audience loves.

If your posts about clear messaging, for example, are driving conversations—double down on that and weave that same message into your emails and website.

Metrics to Watch:

Engagement: Are your posts getting likes, reactions, comments, and reshares? If not, you may need to tweak your message. Review your post topics are working and double down on those.

Conversions: Track the number of clicks, sign-ups, or sales after implementing the mere exposure effect to see if repeated exposure to your core message is driving conversions.

Brand Sentiment: Are people mentioning you or your brand in their posts (positively, of course). If so, you’re doing your job.

Refine Based on Data: Data not Boredom. The beauty of repetition is you can keep testing. If your message about “clarity” works wonders on LinkedIn but falls flat in emails, tweak the way you present it in different formats.

Don’t overthink this. Repetition works best when you keep it simple, track what’s working, and adjust when necessary. Like Kaizen principles or perfecting a cocktail recipe, it’s all about small tweaks over time.

The Key: Put yourself out there again and again.

Last Call: Your Action Plan for Memorable Messaging

Before we close the tab on this week’s newsletter, here’s a summary of what you need to remember:

Define your core message: What do you want to be known for? Write it down and stick to it.

Be consistent: Repetition is key—whether it’s your message, visuals, or content strategy. Stay the course (as long as you have the right message, which is the topic of next week’s newsletter).

Track and refine: Keep an eye on what’s working and adjust your approach based on engagement and results.

Final note. With The Brand Messaging System™️, I help you craft your core messages, then build a strategy for you to amplify them across all your platforms—making it easier for the Mere Exposure Effect to work its magic.

The right kind of repetition doesn’t just get you noticed; it makes you unforgettable.

Now go out there and start repeating yourself like a pro, and if you need help, schedule a call. Let’s look at how you can leverage the mere exposure principle to maximize its effect on your brand or business.

Whenever you’re ready, here’s how I can help.

The Brand Messaging System™️: For founders and business owners who want to articulate your value so clearly that your audience knows who you are and what you do without guessing. Imagine not worrying about what to say when asked, “What do you do?” Or not worrying about needing to get another job because your leads have dried up. If that sounds like something you need, the BMOS may be for you. Schedule a call, and let’s chat.

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