{"id":96392,"date":"2022-11-08T08:03:14","date_gmt":"2022-11-08T08:03:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/blog\/2026\/09\/28\/types-strategic-marketing\/"},"modified":"2026-11-09T15:40:40","modified_gmt":"2026-11-09T15:40:40","slug":"types-strategic-marketing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailrelay.com\/en\/blog\/2022\/11\/08\/types-strategic-marketing\/","title":{"rendered":"Strategic marketing: what it is, stages, tools and examples for your business"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Strategic marketing decides where your business is heading: which customers it targets, with what offer and against which competitors.<\/p>\n\n

It works on a long-term horizon, with analysis before action. Day-to-day campaigns come afterwards and make up operational marketing.<\/p>\n\n

Put simply: strategic marketing chooses the destination and operational marketing drives the car.<\/p>\n\n

Here are its characteristics, stages and tools, plus a complete example for a small business with a template you can copy.<\/p>\n\n\n

What is strategic marketing?<\/h2>\n\n

A strategy is a plan with the actions needed to reach a goal.<\/p>\n\n

Strategic marketing applies that idea to the relationship between your business and its market.<\/p>\n\n

A practical definition:<\/p>\n\n

\n

Strategic marketing is the long-term planning that analyzes the market, the competition and the company to choose where to compete and with what advantage.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

Jos\u00e9 Luis Munuera and Ana Isabel Rodr\u00edguez sum it up in four questions in their textbook “Marketing estrat\u00e9gico”:<\/p>\n\n

    \n
  1. What are my customers’ needs and wants?<\/li>\n\n\n
  2. How do my competitors do it?<\/li>\n\n\n
  3. What is my potential as a company?<\/li>\n\n\n
  4. How can I do it better than my competitors?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n

    If you have a clear answer to all four, you already have the foundation of your strategy. If not, any campaign you launch will be partly a shot in the dark.<\/p>\n\n

    Strategic marketing doesn’t stay inside the marketing department.<\/p>\n\n

    It affects the product, the price, how you sell and how you look after your customers.<\/p>\n\n

    Characteristics of strategic marketing<\/h2>\n\n

    These are the six characteristics that set it apart from other ways of doing marketing:<\/p>\n\n

    Feature<\/th>What it means<\/th>Small business example<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
    Long term<\/td>Looks 2-5 years ahead, not at the next campaign<\/td>“In 3 years we want to be the go-to language school for English for work”<\/td><\/tr>
    Based on analysis<\/td>Decides with data on the market, the competition and the company<\/td>A SWOT analysis and market research before changing prices<\/td><\/tr>
    Customer-oriented<\/td>Starts from what the customer needs, not from what the company wants to sell<\/td>Asking customers why they buy and why they leave<\/td><\/tr>
    Seeks differentiation<\/td>Aims for an advantage the competition can’t easily copy<\/td>Native-speaker teachers specialized by industry<\/td><\/tr>
    Involves the whole company<\/td>Marketing, sales, product and customer service all pull in the same direction<\/td>The support team knows the positioning and applies it<\/td><\/tr>
    Reviewed over time<\/td>It isn’t a closed document: it is adjusted if the market changes<\/td>Reviewing the plan once or twice a year<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n

    Of these six, the hardest one for a small business is the last.<\/p>\n\n

    The plan gets written once and forgotten in a folder.<\/p>\n\n

    Differences between strategic and operational marketing<\/h2>\n\n

    Both are necessary and they complement each other. Strategic marketing decides what to do and for whom. Operational marketing carries it out with specific, measurable actions.<\/p>\n\n

    Aspect<\/th>Strategic marketing<\/th>Operational marketing<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
    Question it answers<\/td>Where and how do we compete?<\/td>What are we doing this month?<\/td><\/tr>
    Time frame<\/td>Long (2-5 years)<\/td>Short (weeks or months)<\/td><\/tr>
    Decisions<\/td>Target audience, positioning, value proposition, markets<\/td>Campaigns, promotions, content, sale prices<\/td><\/tr>
    Tools<\/td>SWOT, PESTEL, Porter, Ansoff, BCG, Canvas<\/td>Marketing mix, campaign calendar, email, ads<\/td><\/tr>
    How it’s measured<\/td>Market share, profitability, customer value<\/td>Clicks, conversions, cost per lead, campaign sales<\/td><\/tr>
    Who decides<\/td>Management and the marketing manager<\/td>Marketing and sales team<\/td><\/tr>
    If something goes wrong<\/td>The strategy is reviewed (calmly)<\/td>The campaign is changed (right away)<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n
    \"Infographic<\/figure>\n\n

    A common mistake is mixing them up. If an email campaign isn’t working, you change the campaign. There’s no need to change your target audience.<\/p>\n\n

    And the other way round: if nothing has worked for months, the problem may be strategic. More campaigns won’t fix it.<\/p>\n\n

    Benefits of strategic marketing for your company<\/h2>\n\n

    Having a marketing strategy helps you:<\/p>\n\n