M
arketers I’ve been speaking with lately report a similar challenge: there is so much that is out of our control. Algorithms are changing, upending traditional website traffic patterns. The way consumers seek out and digest information is changing, rendering tried and true marketing tactics less effective. Prices are unstable, leaving companies to anticipate the impact of tariffs that may or may not materialize. Budgets are unstable, making companies unclear about how to plan for what may be around the next corner. Hiring and staffing within marketing and comms teams is changing, with companies trying to anticipate their needs as AI proliferates.
It’s a lot to take in. How do you adapt? In a world that seems like it’s changing by the minute, how can you continue to drive effective marketing and keep your team motivated? Today’s climate makes it easy to freeze – to wait to see what comes next, to wait until the pace of change levels out, to keep relying on the same playbook until you have a chance to fully analyze all of the changes. But that’s not the answer.
Now is the time to control what you can control. That means it’s time to take stock of what’s working right now: how your team is working, how your brand is working, how your techniques are working, and what can be improved. Taking the time to audit and assess your marketing function can ensure that the elements you can control are all optimized for maximum effectiveness and efficiency.
Actionable Marcomms Assessments
With the theme of controlling what’s in your control, we recommend focusing on the following five factors of effectiveness. While we love nothing more than a broad audit of the entire landscape – competitors, emerging threats and opportunities, and the like – these five focus areas are more likely to give you immediate action items and help you prioritize today.
- Resources: How is your team currently structured? Are there gaps in skillsets? Are you leveraging your tech stack to its fullest extent? Are your supporting vendors effective partners? Making sure all of your existing resources are working effectively is one of the factors most in your control.
- Alignment: Does your team fully understand its purpose? Are you working toward the same overarching goals? Does the rest of the organization understand and contribute, as relevant, to your work? Interestingly, 40% of CMOs in the 2025 CMO Insights Report noted that inter-departmental collaboration is only somewhat or not at all effective – a sharp increase from only 25% the prior year – making this a critical area to evaluate and address for many organizations.
- Channel, messaging and creative effectiveness: Which marketing tactics are working best right now? How has that changed this year so far? Do you need to reallocate resources accordingly? In this quickly changing environment, what worked in January may not be as effective six months later.
- Audience engagement: Which audiences are responding best right now? Which are actually making buying decisions? Which have the budgets to actually act on those decisions? Which are interacting with your brand most? Amidst uncertainty, the people in your audience who are ready and empowered to take action may have shifted.
- Internal communications: Are team members throughout the organization communicating consistently? Are they clear on your organizational mission and growth trajectory? Your associates are your best brand ambassadors and are on the front lines of communicating your brand day to day. In times of uncertainty, making sure they are aligned and invested is key.
Armed with the knowledge such an assessment uncovers, you can make better decisions, prioritize and optimize your current processes in this world of uncertainty. Not sure where to start? Full Tilt has done dozens of such assessments in the last couple years alone, helping companies determine what’s working, what’s not, and where to focus. Let’s chat about how we can provide an external view and unbiased input for your team.
