what is a marketing strategy 
a marketing strategy refers to a business s overall plan to convince customers to buy its products or services a marketing strategy determines how to reach prospective consumers and turn them into customers it contains the company s value proposition key brand messaging data on target customer demographics and other high level elements a thorough marketing strategy covers the four ps of marketing product price place and promotion understanding marketing strategiesa clear marketing strategy should revolve around the company s value proposition this communicates to consumers what the company stands for how it operates and why it deserves the customers business a well constructed value proposition provides marketing teams with a template that should inform their initiatives across all of the company s products and services the ultimate goal of a marketing strategy is to achieve and communicate a sustainable competitive advantage over rival companies to do this a business must understand the needs and wants of its customers whether it s a print ad design mass customization or a social media campaign a marketing asset should effectively communicate a company s core value proposition for example walmart wmt is widely known as a discount retailer with everyday low prices low prices are its value proposition so all its business operations and marketing efforts are rooted in that idea which appeals to its core consumer base 1 its marketing strategies may be found on tv in print or on the accounts of social media influencers but they all emphasize the same value proposition of low prices on everyday products many companies use market research to identify what is most important to consumers and how to differentiate their products or services from those of competitors this information can be used to identify untapped audiences and develop a plan for reaching them which will increase sales and improve a company s bottom line marketing strategies vs marketing plansthe marketing strategy is outlined in the marketing plan this is a document that details the specific types of marketing activities a company will conduct in a given timeframe it contains important information such as what the current and near future marketing initiatives will be how they will be conducted what their goals are and the timetables for enacting them a company may have separate marketing initiatives for each of its products or services it may also have multiple marketing initiatives for the same product or service that are implemented at different times or on different platforms marketing strategies inform a business s marketing across many verticals and over a longer period of time these strategies should ideally have longer life spans than individual marketing plans because they contain value propositions and other key elements of a company s brand which generally hold constant over the long haul marketing strategies cover big picture messaging while marketing plans delineate the logistical details of specific campaigns for example a marketing strategy might say that a company aims to increase authority in niche circles where their clients visit the marketing plan puts that into action by commissioning thought leadership pieces on linkedin 