Backcountry Marketing

“Do not repeat the tactics which have gained you one victory, but let your methods be regulated by the infinite variety of circumstances.” – Sun Tzu, The Art of War

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Over the years, I’ve had a lot of new project inquiry calls with marketing departments to discuss video projects. After an initial conversation with a prospective client, it usually becomes very clear to me if that individual has a strategy for their project. I’d even go as far as to say that 50% of businesses have a clear strategy and the other 50% are flying by the seat of their pants. I’ve often wondered, why is this? Generally, we only end up working with the folks who have a clear strategy (or help develop it ourselves) but I’ve got to assume that the brief look I’ve had behind the scenes into the marketing department is also a reflection of the business in general. In this episode with Sharon Scott, we discuss exactly that question and more. 

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Sharon Scott has held roles in marketing, product development, and buying throughout her career in the outdoor industry. Now, she's the founder of OtterScope.net, fractional and interim product, marketing, and strategy for passion-fueled brands that get people outside, and out of their comfort zones. She breaks down the following:

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• The signs in a business that a new strategy is needed
• Managing against bias in strategy development
• The pitfalls of strategy
• The process of developing a strategy
• Disseminating the strategy throughout the organization
• Staying flexible and adapting your strategy with new information

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After our conversation here are some further questions I had:

• After developing a strategy, are most businesses patient enough to see it through? 
• The businesses that don’t have a strategy, but are successful, do they not have a strategy or have they just not defined it in a written format? Perhaps the organization knows the strategy without knowing it.
• How much of the leadership's time should be spent on strategy? 
• As the saying goes “You don’t know what you don’t know,” how can an organization expand its knowledge to make a more informed strategy? 
• How much of a strategy should be based on trial and error? 
• In orienteering, a navigator is constantly checking their bearing against their forward progress and adjusting. How much of a strategy should be flexible enough to accommodate micro changes in a heading? 

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- Cole, Founder of Port Side Productions and host of the Backcountry Marketing Podcast

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