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You Don’t Need a Campaign – You Need a Strategy

Published June 27, 2025

Why reactive marketing misses the mark (and what to do instead)

For many small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs), marketing often feels like a scramble to “do something” when sales dip or competitors make noise.

Leaders or teams rush to launch campaigns, hoping for quick wins. But without a solid strategic foundation, these efforts rarely deliver lasting results.

In this article, I share insights from my work as a Fractional CMO, explaining:

Why campaigns alone won’t solve deeper business challenges
How to avoid knee-jerk marketing reactions
The critical questions SMEs should ask before launching any campaign
How to ensure marketing efforts align with your broader business strategy

Because you don’t just need a campaign. You need a strategy.

The Campaign Crisis!

I remember working as a Fractional CMO for a fast-growing professional services firm. Most weeks I’d have mentoring sessions with their in-house marketing coordinator. They were bright and capable, but often started the meeting with something like:

“ Steve and Pete reckon we need a LinkedIn campaign to do XYZ.”

No background. No brief. Just a sudden need to “do a campaign.”

This wasn’t unusual, and it wasn’t really her fault either.

In many SMEs, this is how marketing plays out: someone senior feels a dip in sales, flags a concern in a leadership meeting, and decides a “campaign” will fix it.

What they really mean is, “We need to boost revenue, fast.”

But here’s the problem: campaigns aren’t band-aids. They’re (or should be) the output of strategy, not a substitute for it.

The Real Question: Why This, and Why Now?

Most of the time, these “urgent campaigns” are knee-jerk responses to short-term problems:

A sales dip this month.
Pressure from a board meeting.
A competitor’s campaign that’s caused internal FOMO.

So, when someone says, “Let’s launch a LinkedIn campaign,” the first question should be: Why this, and why now?

1. What’s the actual business objective?
2. What insight or trend is driving this idea?
3. And critically: why would your audience care?

Without those answers, a campaign is just a tactical flinch. Something that feels proactive but rarely delivers lasting impact.

” Without those answers, a campaign is just a tactical flinch. “

Campaigns Should Serve the Bigger Picture

In reality, a proper campaign isn’t something you can (or should) whip up in a 1-hour session.

It should be the execution layer of a broader marketing strategy—one that’s built on market insight, audience understanding, positioning, channel planning, messaging, and measurement.

And critically, that marketing strategy must itself be aligned to a robust, clearly defined business strategy.

Marketing doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Every campaign, every piece of content, every dollar spent should ultimately serve the business’s overarching goals – just like every other function in the organisation.

Without that connection, you’re flying blind.

Why This Happens (And Why It’s Costly)

Many SMEs fall into this pattern because:

Marketing is viewed as a “doing” function rather than a strategic lever.
The job is often handed to junior staff who aren’t empowered (or experienced enough) to push back or build strategy.
There’s pressure to produce something fast—especially when sales are down.

But trying to fix structural issues with a few ad creatives and a boosted post is like trying to fix a leaky roof by repainting the ceiling.

Campaigns Should Be the Last Step

A well-built campaign comes only after you’ve answered:

What are we trying to achieve, long-term – does it fit into our overall business objectives?
Who are we speaking to, and what do they need?
What’s the right message, channel mix, and timing?
How will we know if it worked?

Only with that in place can a campaign actually drive the kind of results businesses want.

Final Thought

If you’re finding that your team is constantly reacting, scrambling to “do a campaign” every time revenue dips, then it might be time to pause.

Because you don’t need another quick-fix campaign.

You need a strategy.

If you are interested in utilising my marketing consultancy and fractional CMO services to grow your business , contact me today using the form below, and start your journey toward greater, professional and strategic success.