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BURKE’s new client advisory service, Burke CMO, offers businesses not only the counsel and direction of an experienced branding / creative design / advertising agency, but also access to senior-level marketing staff on an ongoing, as-needed basis. In effect, BURKE becomes its Chief Marketing Organization (CMO).

When BURKE amps up to begin a Strategic Marketing Plan as an organization’s CMO, our first step is to brainstorm the unlimited marketing and advertising possibilities.

Brainstorming is one of those exercises that on the surface, seems easy, but using effectively can be challenging. BURKE’s company meetings can often resemble brain hurricanes more than brainstorms. The endless pounding of ideas floods the conference room and spills into our offices and out the windows.

Working with so many different opinions can be an amazing way for creatives to produce new thoughts and ideas. Here’s the catch, you can’t just generate a list of ideas, you also need to create a strategic plan for those ideas. That’s where a SWOT analysis or, “Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities and Threats” analysis, will come in handy for determining your plan’s success.

Unlike brainstorming, the information used in a SWOT analysis is not based on personal opinion, but founded in real data and information. “Strengths” and “weaknesses” describe attributes and flaws within your organization (helping you or holding you back). “Opportunities” and “threats” are external to your organization (again, helping you or holding you back).

When creating strategies you want to consider how you might leverage your organizations strengths and opportunities to overcome its weaknesses and threats. Those “hows” are your tactics (the steps you take to get there and your brainstorming process), which eventually become your strategy.

Utilizing a well-formed strategy is the difference between a good advertising campaign, and a great one. So, the next time you’re in a planning meeting, or wondering which steps you should take to grow your business, start with a SWOT analysis. You’ll never turn back!