Strategy, Positioning and Branding in Marketing

By Allison Zwarka

There are four main stages a marketer goes through during a project:

1.       Analysis, strategy and positioning

2.       Media exposure and critical mass

3.       Commercialization

4.       Implementation

Analysis, Strategy, and Positioning

The first stage of starting a new project consists of research and creating a plan of attack. This step also includes creating brand design and choosing a position.

Media Exposure and Critical Mass

This stage consists of making sure to keep your good or service in the media and on social networks. The second step of this is making sure to keep attracting people because they are a vital part of generating revenue.

Commercialization

Once taking a position and transforming your brand based on that position you should start to market all other commercial products relative to yours. In the sports marketing field this could mean stadium products, sponsorship deals, image and television rights of different players, and licensed products. This step requires the use of sales strategies and selling products in order to make money.

Implementation

The final phase is just as important as the rest of the steps. Implementation, or putting your plans into effect, is what you are working for in all the previous steps. Once you've implemented your plans you want to talk to customers and see their reactions to create good relationships with them. These relationships can help to create customer loyalty and lead to better deals in the future. This step is also where the marketer reflects and makes sure they have fulfilled all agreements and requirements of all contracts.

The first steps of this process require thought and planning while the final steps consist of carrying out these plans and making money from them. There is a lot of pressure to make money from all promotions and marketing done throughout the process and it is the marketers job to make sure that happens.

Calzada, Esteve. Show Me the Money!: How to Make Money from Sports Marketing. London: Bloomsbury, 2013. Print.