Introduction
Many businesses invest in several marketing tactics at once, including SEO, Google Ads, social media advertising, email marketing and content creation. The problem is not necessarily the number of tactics being used. The problem is that they often operate independently, communicate different messages and pursue disconnected goals.
In this clip, Mark Jamieson explains how an overarching marketing strategy helps individual tactics support one another, creates a more consistent customer journey and makes it easier to understand what is producing results.
Summary
There is nothing wrong with using multiple marketing tactics. In fact, a combination of channels is often necessary to reach customers at different stages of their decision-making journey.
The challenge arises when those tactics are managed in isolation. An SEO campaign may focus on one message, paid advertising may promote another, and email marketing may follow up with content that feels unrelated to either one. Even when each tactic is technically performing, the overall marketing effort can feel fragmented.
A strong marketing strategy connects these activities. It establishes consistent messaging, defines the role of each channel and creates a clear path from initial awareness to conversion.
For example, a prospective customer may first discover a business through search, later see a paid social ad, visit the website and then receive a follow-up email. When these tactics work together, the business can better understand how each touchpoint contributed to the final result.
Digital marketing also provides valuable transparency. Businesses can measure the path from the first click through attribution and conversion, helping them identify what is working, what is not working and how their marketing investment is contributing to revenue.
In This Series
5 Videos- Strategy Starts with Research: Why Tactics Should Never Come First 1:26
- Why Your Marketing Tactics Need to Work Together 2:23
- 3 Look Beyond Vanity Metrics: Focus on What Actually Drives Results 1:58
- 4 Brand Differentiation: How to Stand Apart in a Crowded Market 1:10
- 5 Customer Lifetime Value: How It Should Influence Your Marketing Spend 1:18
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Key Takeaways
Full Video Transcript
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00:00:00:00 - 00:00:22:09
The one other thing we see, Mark, is we come into a a new client and they're doing all these different tactics, and there's no overarching strategy I equated to. It's the equivalent of strategy to me is the foundation. It is. You can't build a house with a strong foundation. So maybe we can speak to that a little bit about how we kind of pull all those tactics and make sure it's part of an overarching strategy.
00:00:22:10 - 00:00:45:10
No, absolutely. And I think, you know, there's absolutely nothing wrong with tactics, and there's actually nothing wrong with having multiple tactics, you know, trying to bring in similar results. But the fact that the matter is, is these tactics need to be working together. Oftentimes what I've seen with past agencies is maybe to have an adverse campaign run and to have an SEO campaign run, and they have a paid media campaign running, maybe to have an email marketing campaign running.
00:00:45:10 - 00:01:13:19
But each one of these tactical solutions is speaking in different message, if that makes sense, you know, without one complementing the other. So, you know, I think this is really when you back up. This is where strategy comes into play, is strategy is not just about recommending to a client, hey, we should do some AdWords so you know you're visible on page one for keywords you may not be ranking for, maybe be doing some email marketing to try to retarget some of these clients that may have come in and not converted.
00:01:13:23 - 00:01:35:02
But the fact of the matter is, is most people don't have a linear solution as to how each one of these tactics can work symbiotically to produce an overarching result. And I think that essentially is the main issue. Yeah, and these things get pulled together. The clients can be wasting money. They're going to be wasting their time, and they want to know what's working.
00:01:35:04 - 00:01:54:02
They want not only what's working but but what's not working and why. And that's so key to this whole thing, isn't it? And it is, you know, and you know, and I've said this many times when you and I have spoken, one of the reasons that I love digital so much is because of its transparency is everything can be measured from the click to the attribution to the conversion.
00:01:54:08 - 00:02:18:00
And I think what's important here is when you have tactics that are working together with and with an overarching strategy, you can really start to see how one tactic fed into another tactic that fed into another tactic that produced a result, which is typically a conversion that made the incline some money. So this is really when we're talking tactics over strategy.
00:02:18:00 - 00:02:22:16
This is the big picture solution that you want to be working with. And that's why it's so important to do the research early on.
Meet the Speakers
Learn From Experienced Marketing Leaders
Our educational videos are led by experienced digital marketing professionals who work with businesses every day to solve real-world marketing challenges. Each video session is built around practical insights, proven strategies, and lessons learned through hands-on client experience.
Mark Jamieson
CEO, WSI Ottawa
Mark Jamieson is the CEO of WSI Ottawa and a digital marketing strategist with decades of experience helping organizations grow through data-driven marketing, AI adoption, search strategy, and business innovation. He regularly speaks on the future of digital marketing, AI, and business growth, helping organizations understand how emerging technologies can create measurable competitive advantages.
Pat Whalen
Partner, WSI Ottawa
Pat Whalen works closely with organizations to develop practical marketing strategies that align business objectives with measurable outcomes. With extensive experience in business development, sales strategy, and client engagement, Pat helps organizations identify opportunities for sustainable growth through strategic marketing and digital transformation.
Frequently Asked Questions
We’ve compiled answers to some of the most common questions related to this topic. These FAQs expand on the discussion and provide additional context to help you better understand the concepts covered in the video.
Why should different marketing tactics work together?
Customers rarely make a decision after seeing a single ad or visiting a website once. They may interact with a business across search, social media, email and other channels before converting. Coordinated tactics create a more consistent and persuasive journey.
What happens when marketing channels operate independently?
Disconnected channels can produce inconsistent messaging, duplicate effort and wasted spending. They can also make it difficult to determine which activities are influencing conversions.
Do all marketing channels need to use exactly the same message?
Not necessarily. The wording and format may change depending on the platform and audience stage, but the underlying positioning, value proposition and brand message should remain consistent.
How can SEO and paid advertising support each other?
SEO can help a business build long-term organic visibility, while paid advertising can provide immediate exposure for priority keywords, offers or audiences. Data from one channel can also help improve targeting and messaging in the other.
How does email marketing fit into a broader strategy?
Email marketing can nurture prospects who have already interacted with the business. It can reinforce key messages, answer common questions and encourage people to take the next step after visiting the website or responding to an ad.
What is marketing attribution?
Marketing attribution is the process of identifying which interactions or channels contributed to a conversion. It helps businesses understand the customer journey rather than giving all the credit to the final click.
How can a business tell whether its tactics are working together?
Look for consistent messaging, shared campaign goals, coordinated audience targeting and reporting that shows how customers move between channels. If each tactic is measured separately with no connection to the customer journey, the strategy may be fragmented.
Turn Disconnected Marketing Into a Coordinated Strategy
Your SEO, paid advertising, social media, email and content should do more than run at the same time. They should reinforce one another, guide prospective customers through a consistent journey and contribute to measurable business growth.
A Marketing Strategy Review can help identify disconnects between your current tactics, clarify the role of each channel and uncover opportunities to improve performance.