If you get your marketing messaging right, your strategy will come to life. Get it wrong and the best strategies will fail. Businesses that pay attention to accurately articulating and aggressively distributing their messaging are rewarded with increased branding effectiveness, compelling competitive differentiation and a more productive sales force. Defining the marketing messages is one of the anchors of a strategic marketing plan - it melds competitive positioning, features and benefits, and an understanding of the sales process and buyer roles into coherent, and whenever possible, concise language.

Depending on the complexity of the offering, the number of vertical industries targeted, and the specifics of the buying process, getting the messaging right can be a daunting and time consuming effort. But without accurate messaging, advertising and other promotional dollars are wasted. Sales personnel struggle to make their goals often creating their own messaging on the fly. Failure to get the messaging right can lead to decreased sales productivity, delays in getting new sales reps up to speed, inconsistent or outdated messaging and slower product launches.

Getting the messaging right means making it a high priority – and making the investment required whether it entails the time of staff members, outside assistance or a combination of both.