None of these breakthroughs required a significant investment in typical marketing.<\/p>\n

To contrast the effectiveness of the two types of marketing even further, in one of those cases above, after the success had been achieved using Foundational Marketing techniques a new management team invested in a mid six-figure re-branding typical-marketing program that didn\u2019t move the needle a bit \u2013 losing the discipline of Foundational Marketing along the way.<\/p>\n

Why don\u2019t more firms adhere to Foundational Marketing disciplines?<\/span><\/p>\n

They don\u2019t know what they are: B-school educators are fantastic at teaching principles and concepts, but in general, weak at delivering a practical approach to moving those principles and concepts into practice. I speak from experience as, at different times, both an MBA student and MBA-level university instructor. Concepts and principles education does not equate to skills, tools and process disciplines. Most B-school graduates do not come out newly-minted with a honed skill set and tool kit.<\/p>\n

They haven\u2019t developed a standard tool kit: You are more likely to find a dozen carpenters that use the same field-proven tools and processes for their trade, than a dozen top B-school graduates that use the same tool kit and process for strategy development. Coming to the job site, most marketing practitioners have to create their own tools and processes, convince the executive team to learn, trust and use them and support the execution discipline to see the resultant strategies through to success. Not to place all the blame on the practitioner, many firms simply haven\u2019t developed a Foundational Marketing process and tool kit.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s tougher to do: Typical marketing programs are an easy way out \u2013 particularly if everyone in the industry is \u201cdoing something\u201d. They can be delegated and the deliverables are easy to see: a new web site, a new logo, a bigger show booth.<\/p>\n

They don\u2019t have the discipline to do the Foundational work first: Unless the top-dog insists that Foundational Marketing receives first priority and is the right way to do marketing, it won\u2019t get done. Foundational Marketing is a \u201cthink-before-doing\u201d approach.<\/p>\n

They think it takes too much time: Building a good foundation doesn\u2019t take long if you have the right tools. We have witnessed strategic decisions made in a few days with execution and success in as little as 90 days.<\/p>\n

They don\u2019t believe in it because they\u2019ve never seen it work: Using and trusting Foundational Marketing principles does take some faith and practice, but the track record is proven.<\/p>\n

Under the Hood of Foundational Marketing:<\/span><\/p>\n

Practicing Foundational Marketing is really not difficult if you have the right tools. Good and sound foundational marketing tools are based on empirical marketing science. Even non-marketing people can learn and succeed using them. In a way, a good Foundational Marketing tool is like a cell phone. You don\u2019t need to be an electrical engineer with an understanding of electromagnetic field and communications theory to use a cell phone. All of that has been done for you and integrated into the cell phone. Good Foundational Marketing tools have already integrated sound empirical marketing science into them.<\/p>\n

Success with Foundational Marketing does require \u2013 and this is the difficult part \u2013 transforming the way your organization thinks and the way your team executes marketing and sales. It really comes down to a battle of the mind \u2013 more than a battle of the wallet. When your organization understands Foundational Marketing \u2013 and begins to use its tools and techniques, both the probability of success and the return on investment of your marketing programs skyrocket.<\/p>\n

A complete Foundational Marketing approach has four components:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00b7 Market Strategy: A proven and steadfast way to decide what market segments to focus on and what differentiated position to carve out for your firm and each of its products.<\/p>\n

\u00b7 Business Development Initiatives: These are about how you will approach the segment(s) of the market you have decided to target. While components of tactical (typical marketing) are included, emphasis here is on specific customers to target, specific messages to communicate, the customer\u2019s buying process, channel-to-market decisions and leveraging the intra-market customer-to-customer communication network in the target markets of choice.<\/p>\n

\u00b7 Sales Disciplines: There are two parts of the sales disciplines component of Foundational Marketing. Both require training and consistency. First, an effective, consistent sales process is a must \u2013 one which qualifies, discovers needs, proposes good solutions, and wins\/sustains long-term clients. The second part is a differentiated sales story that is meaningful to customers \u2013 one which assures that your unique benefits story is told consistently through all channels to all target customers. It\u2019s a story that emphasizes the economic, emotional and physical benefits in the right priority, for the right customers, in the right market. Sounds obvious, but many clients actually fail in these two fundamental requirements.<\/p>\n

\u00b7 A Performance Driven Culture: Think of the components of Foundational Marketing as the gears of an engine, the culture of a firm is the oil in the oil pan. (See the figure below). To consistently achieve your goals, the organization\u2019s culture must encourage teams to communicate, execute, adjust, think, make decisions and lead in an honest way. A culture of performance excellence is defined by: accountability, clarity of expectations, measurements and metrics, ownership, open and honest communication, fact-oriented, sense of urgency, rewards and consequences, frequent checkpoints and the ability to quickly and constructively confront barriers and problems. With a culture of performance excellence lubricating Foundational Marketing, the engine hums. Without the oil of a culture of performance excellence, the gears seize.<\/p>\n

Can Foundational Marketing fail?<\/span><\/p>\n

Foundational Marketing programs do fail – for one of three reasons: First, if an organization does not have the discipline to execute and follow through, any program will fail. Foundational Marketing programs are no exception. Secondly, it is possible that some firms are too far gone to be saved by a Foundational Marketing program. However, in 20 years of consulting, we have witnessed only one firm in the second category. They required a complete change of their business model to survive. They did survive, but at a much lower revenue level.<\/p>\n

Finally, we have witnessed firms that have relapsed. Relapse is characterized by success with Foundational Marketing, followed by a reversion back to sole dependence on those items in the typical marketing list. Relapse is very costly in money, time and lost opportunity. A relapse typically occurs when a new, uniformed marketing and sales or C-level executive enters the picture.<\/p>\n

A Final Word:<\/span><\/p>\n

A good example of the need for foundational discipline is in the weight loss arena. The basis of all weight loss programs is discipline: discipline to eat better, discipline to exercise more and discipline to adhere to a healthy lifestyle. The latest exercise machine does not obviate the need for discipline.<\/p>\n

So it is with Foundational Marketing. Good tools and processes are needed \u2013 but organizational discipline fuels the best results. Foundational Marketing, supported by a culture of performance excellence has proven again and again to lower marketing and sales costs, increase market share, achieve more rapid adoption of new products and increase significantly the firm\u2019s return on investment.<\/p>\n