We are often approached by companies that know something is not working with their marketing program, but they’re not sure what’s wrong or how to fix it. As the old saying goes, “the first step is to acknowledge that you have a problem,” so they’re clearly in the diagnostic stage of their journey.

1. Start with Data: The best place to start in diagnosing the problem is to collect the performance metrics from every advertising channel, social media platform, website, trade show and PR platform to learn what is performing and what is not. If it’s not driving sales leads or enhancing awareness of your company, it is ripe for improvement or replacement. If you have customer satisfaction and employee engagement data, we recommend looking for clues in that data as well.

2. Google Yourself: Next, we suggest searching for your company, its leaders, and products/services to see how you look from a prospective customer’s perspective. Are you coming up in the search results? Do you have positive reviews from current and past customers? Is your message compelling and consistent? Would you click on that link, or would you select a competitor?

3. Ask Questions: Seek feedback from current and past customers, employees, friends and other business professionals that you trust. Ask them to describe your business in their own words, and what makes it different or better than others in your sector. If the answers are inconsistent or dramatically different than you would expect, there is either a problem with your message or a problem with how you are delivering it.

These three steps will give you a great start in your efforts to diagnose what is working and what is not. We can help you figure out how to quickly cure whatever is ailing your marketing program.