Marketers are often reliant upon single-play tactics. The route-one pass. The obvious strike towards goal – the advertising, the sale prices, the same old message bellowed from the side-lines. Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!

Lots of shots…lots of endeavour. Nothing to show on the scoreboard.

There’s never enough time available to you to change your tactics. To surprise the opposition. To win the hearts of your fans.

We even have the joy of the Chairman breathing down our necks demanding more from their hard earned budget.

It’s time to start planning your marketing strategy like a Premier League manager

Your fans, the audience, deserve more. If you’re wanting to win the hearts of your online audience and build your loyal following, it’s about time you added the following star performers to this week’s marketing team-sheet.

The brand less ordinary starting XI

Goalkeeper: Purpose

You can invest heavily in your front line marketing tactics. Without building from the back, you’ll find your tactics are left wide open to an attacking onslaught by your competitors.

You don’t enter the field unless you have a strong and vocal purpose at the back of your formation. Purpose is there for you through the good times and bad. You can rely upon Purpose. Purpose is only every substituted when a marketing plan is facing severe bombardment and there’s no other opportunity to change your tactics.

Defender: Empathy

Empathy takes on a crucial role in defence. Empathy is a fan’s firm  favourite. It’s your home-grown talent. Utilising empathy can bring an exceptional performance out of your left-field context. On it’s day empathy will be at heart of every passage in play.

Rely upon Empathy to provide you with width and a better idea of where your play is heading.

Defender: Perspective

Perspective sits at the centre of defence. Some clinical long-range passing can see Understanding being brought into play. The link-up between the two can lead to multiple attacks right through the middle of the field. Perspective is often ignored by your opponent’s manager leaving a free reign to attack from the back. You will often find Perspective as the most vocal of your backline. 90% of your fans will love Perspective. Sure, they’ll ruffle a few feathers, but without Perspective your tactics are fruitless.

Defender: Humility

Humility takes on the ambassador role for the team on the pitch. Respected by fans and opposition alike, Humility’s a team-play through and through. Always aware of the tactics of the competition, Humility ensures that nobody in the team gets carried away with tales of grandeur or title-talk too early in the season.

Humility is level-headed and treats all around them with dignity and composure and knows that they can look their audience in the eye, win or lose, and the fan knows Humility has done all they can to bring a smile to their face. Every team needs a little Humility in their ranks.

Defender: Insight

Managers have often been known to leave Insight on the bench. Insight isn’t the first name on a marketer’s team-sheet and often struggles to hold their position in the Starting XI. There’s a fear that Insight’s tactics will be replicated by the opposition and giveaway the gameplan. It rarely happens.

Insight is a precocious talent for any marketing team. Insight is a playmaker that can often lead to goalscoring opportunities by-passing midfield and spraying 60-70 yard passes direct to the feet of Difference.

Midfielder: Context

Many teams struggle to match the talents of Context. Context links up sublimely with Empathy on the left-side of the field. Context is a player your fans are always looking out for. When your marketing strategy is on-the-ball, Context plays a key role in ensuring your fans retain interest.

Context is a creative outlet and when utilised correctly, with Empathy and Understanding, can form a formidable combative partnership at the heart of your strategy.

Midfielder: Understanding

At the heart of midfield Understanding plays a critical role. Often overlooked by more obvious playmakers such as Assumption and Persuasion, Understanding helps to gel every forward-movement and is known to work well with both Context and their midfield partnership with Trust.

Rely upon Understanding to ensure that your tactics don’t appear to automated. Make sure Understanding keeps an eye on the ball at all times, without Understanding, you’re going to see lots of passes go astray and your competitors will quickly catch the eye of your most loyal fans.

Midfielder: Trust

Without Trust in your starting eleven, you’re going to struggle. Trust isn’t known for their creativity. They’re a workhorse often known for short and clinical passing movements to the frontline.

Trust is a difficult player to tackle and rarely takes their foot off of the ball. Often man-marked, Trust is a sometimes ignored for a more direct approach that will see your tactics fail.

Rely upon Trust to ensure your tactics don’t become over-exuberant. Whilst you’re trying to keep your fans entertained, Trust plays a pivotal role in every forward movement you make.

Midfielder: Educative

Out on the right-hand side, Educative performs an essential role during your more conservative passages of play. Teaming up with Insight, Educative is a routine playmaker that can slow the game down. With tremendous stamina, your team can rely upon Educative as a consistent outlet during the last stages of the match. Where Educative lacks flair, you can rely upon their approach play to counter any attack of the opposition.

Educative is your most experienced player. Whilst competitors will go with younger and quicker routes to goal, Educative is a central figure when your fans demand more from you.

Forward: Command

For many managers, Command is the first name on the team-sheet. The problem many managers often find is how to utilise the strength of Command. Played in the right position, Command’s linkup play with Difference creates a formidable forward partnership.

Most managers play Command in a roaming position where they’re often caught offside. Playing the long-ball past midfield tacticians, such as Context and Trust, can leave fans tearing their hair out in frustration.

When Command is used in their correct position, in line with Difference, get ready for some spectacular displays of attacking prowess.

Forward: Difference

Ask any manager and they will tell you that Difference matters. Managers often talk-up the impact of Difference but few know how to utilise Difference correctly. You will often find Difference being substituted by managers early in the second half for more obvious routes to goal, such as Value or Discount.

Play to the strengths of Difference and you’ll have a team that on it’s day can beat any competitor. A team without Difference is a team that’s going to struggle.

Your brand less ordinary

Is your audience prepared to wear the replica shirt of your brand less ordinary? Are you turning your one-time visitors into long-term fans?

Don’t invest all your budget into a one-trick pony strategy. Ask Liverpool… it’s best not to bite off more than you can chew. Reshuffle your marketing strategy and introduce your own Starting XI and see what impact they will have on the long season ahead of you. Maybe Europe is beckoning?

 

 

 

 

 

 

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