Marketing and Brand Strategy Training Course

Participants can translate business priorities into measurable marketing objectives and decisions.

• Business objectives converted into marketing, brand and customer outcome targets
• SMART objectives written with baselines, targets, deadlines and accountable owners
• Revenue, margin and customer lifetime value linked to marketing choices
• Acquisition, retention and cross-sell priorities compared through economic value
• Marketing’s role clarified within sales, product, operations and customer service
• Balanced scorecard logic used to connect activity with strategic outcomes

Participants can build an evidence-based view of market attractiveness, risks and competitive pressure.

• PESTLE analysis identifies policy, economic, social and technology implications
• Porter’s Five Forces tests category profitability and bargaining power
• Market size estimated through top-down and bottom-up demand calculations
• Growth scenarios built from adoption, frequency, spend and retention assumptions
• Competitor mapping compares offers, price points, channels and claims
• SWOT converted into strategic issues rather than unranked factor lists

Participants can evaluate customer evidence and turn findings into usable marketing insights.

• Research questions framed around decisions, hypotheses and evidence gaps
• Qualitative interviews structured using laddering and critical incident techniques
• Survey findings checked for sample bias, wording effects and significance
• Social listening interpreted alongside research, sales and service data
• Voice of Customer themes coded into needs, pains and expectations
• Insight statements distinguish observed facts, interpretation and strategic implication

Participants can define actionable segments and select priority audiences using explicit criteria.

• Segmentation variables combine needs, behaviour, value and accessibility measures
• B2B buying groups mapped by role, influence, risk and decision authority
• Segment attractiveness scored by size, growth, profitability and strategic fit
• Targeting choices tested against capability, channel reach and competitive intensity
• Primary, secondary and excluded audiences defined for focused investment
• Segment profiles documented with evidence, triggers, barriers and purchase criteria

Participants can create evidence-based personas and identify the jobs driving customer choice.

• Personas built from behavioural evidence rather than demographic stereotypes
• Jobs to Be Done statements capture progress sought and context
• Functional, emotional and social jobs separated within purchase decisions
• Buying triggers, anxieties and alternatives identified through decision journey analysis
• Decision-making units mapped for complex institutional and business purchases
• Persona assumptions challenged using research evidence and frontline observations

Participants can develop customer-centred value propositions with credible proof and differentiation.

• Value proposition canvas matches customer pains, gains and required jobs
• Offer features translated into functional, emotional and economic benefits
• Points of parity separated from meaningful points of difference
• Reasons to believe supported by evidence, capability and customer proof
• Message hierarchy prioritises primary promise, support claims and detail
• Value propositions adapted for priority segments without diluting core meaning

Participants can define a differentiated brand position and consistent brand promise.

• Positioning statements specify audience, frame, benefit, reason and distinction
• Perceptual maps reveal competitive white space and credibility constraints
• Keller Customer-Based Brand Equity model connects salience, meaning and resonance
• Brand purpose assessed against business conduct, customer relevance and proof
• Brand promise translated into behaviours, messages and experience standards
• Category entry points used to improve mental availability at purchase occasions

Participants can recommend brand architecture choices for portfolios, services and new offers.

• Branded house, house of brands and endorsed brands compared
• Portfolio roles defined as driver, flanker, cash generator or entry offer
• Naming decisions assessed for clarity, transferability, risk and legal constraints
• Brand extensions tested against fit, credibility and parent-brand dilution
• Service lines organised around customer needs rather than internal structures
• Architecture governance assigns ownership for naming, identity and approvals

Participants can align pricing, packaging and value communication with customer and commercial needs.

• Value-based pricing compares customer economics, willingness to pay and alternatives
• Price architecture separates entry, core, premium and enterprise offers
• Conjoint analysis findings interpreted for feature, price and bundle choices
• Promotional pricing evaluated for margin impact, brand signals and repeat behaviour
• Bundles designed around complementary needs, usage patterns and purchase barriers
• Price messages framed through outcomes, proof and total cost considerations

Participants can map customer journeys and identify experience improvements that support the brand promise.

• Journey maps document stages, goals, emotions, touchpoints and ownership
• Moments of truth prioritised by customer effort and commercial consequence
• Service blueprints expose backstage dependencies behind customer-facing experiences
• Customer effort score used alongside satisfaction and recommendation measures
• Omnichannel handoffs assessed for continuity, information loss and delay
• Recovery journeys designed for complaints, failures and trust restoration

Participants can select channel roles and design a route-to-market aligned with audience behaviour.

• Channel roles assigned for awareness, consideration, conversion and retention
• Owned, earned, paid and partner media evaluated against objectives
• Direct, distributor and marketplace routes compared for control and economics
• Channel conflict anticipated through pricing, service and territory rules
• Go-to-market plans sequence launch readiness, demand generation and sales enablement
• Customer channel preferences tested against cost-to-serve and service requirements

Participants can build integrated campaigns that connect a central idea with channel-specific execution.

• Campaign brief defines audience, objective, proposition, mandatories and measures
• Big idea development connects customer tension with brand promise
• RACE framework sequences reach, act, convert and engage activities
• Content pillars organise messages by audience need and decision stage
• Media phasing matches seasonal demand, purchase cycles and budget availability
• Creative evaluation checks clarity, distinctiveness, credibility and call to action

Participants can plan digital activity and content operations around customer needs and conversion paths.

• Search intent mapped to informational, commercial and transactional content
• Landing pages structured around relevance, proof, friction reduction and action
• Email journeys triggered by behaviour, lifecycle stage and stated preference
• Social media roles defined for community, service, education and demand
• Content calendars balance campaign peaks, evergreen assets and reactive communications
• Marketing automation rules documented with consent, ownership and escalation paths

Participants can align marketing plans with sales processes, lead management and account priorities.

• Service-level agreements define lead quality, response times and ownership
• Lead scoring combines fit, intent, engagement and sales feedback
• Account-based marketing selects priority accounts, stakeholders and buying signals
• Sales enablement materials connect proposition, objections, proof and next steps
• Pipeline stages aligned with campaign offers and customer decision milestones
• Closed-loop reporting links campaign contacts with revenue and conversion outcomes

Participants can select performance measures and use testing to improve marketing decisions.

• Marketing funnel metrics connect reach, response, conversion and retention
• Brand tracking measures awareness, consideration, preference and association strength
• Customer acquisition cost compared with lifetime value and payback period
• Attribution models contrasted across first-touch, last-touch and multi-touch approaches
• A/B tests define hypotheses, control groups, success criteria and sample needs
• Dashboards distinguish leading indicators from lagging commercial outcomes

Participants can justify marketing investment and manage external partners against clear performance expectations.

• Zero-based budgeting links proposed spend to objectives and expected outcomes
• Business cases state assumptions, costs, benefits, risks and decision gates
• Return on marketing investment estimated using incremental contribution logic
• Agency briefs specify scope, audience, deliverables, timing and evaluation criteria
• Supplier scorecards assess strategic quality, delivery, cost and collaboration
• Budget reallocation rules respond to performance signals and changing priorities

Participants can establish controls that protect brand trust, customer rights and claim credibility.

• Brand guidelines govern identity, tone, imagery, messaging and accessibility
• Approval workflows control high-risk claims, promotions and public responses
• Data consent practices checked against purpose, preference and retention requirements
• Green, social and purpose claims tested for evidence and substantiation
• Crisis communication protocols define response roles, holding statements and escalation
• Brand safety criteria guide media placement, partnerships and influencer selection

Participants can convert strategic choices into an accountable implementation plan and review cycle.

• Ninety-day plans sequence priorities, dependencies, milestones and accountable owners
• RACI matrices clarify decision rights across marketing, sales and operations
• Marketing calendars coordinate launches, campaigns, events and always-on activity
• Test-and-learn backlogs prioritise assumptions by impact, confidence and effort
• Monthly performance reviews examine results, causes, decisions and follow-up actions
• Change communications explain priorities, responsibilities and expected working practices

Participants can build, review and present a complete evidence-based marketing and brand strategy for a selected offer or portfolio.

• Market diagnosis synthesises external forces, competitors, customers and strategic issues
• Priority audiences justified through segment value, needs and accessibility evidence
• Positioning and value proposition tested for distinction, relevance and credibility
• Integrated campaign plan connects channels, content, timing, budget and ownership
• Measurement framework specifies objectives, indicators, baselines, targets and review cadence
• Peer review challenges assumptions, trade-offs, risks and implementation feasibility