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DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MARKETING AUDIT AND MARKETING MONITORING


MAIN DEFINITIONS

Marketing audit and marketing monitoring are two distinct concepts related to the evaluation and analysis of a company's marketing activities. Here is what these terms mean:

Marketing audit is the process of systematically reviewing and assessing a company's marketing strategies, programs, processes, and resources to identify strengths and weaknesses, identify opportunities for improvement, and develop recommendations for future actions. During a marketing audit, aspects such as target audience, brand positioning, promotional channels, communication tools, marketing activities, and their results are analyzed.

On the other hand, marketing monitoring is the process of continuously observing and tracking the effectiveness of a company's marketing actions in real-time. It involves collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data on marketing activities to determine how successfully the company is achieving its marketing objectives. Marketing monitoring allows for timely identification of issues and the ability to adjust strategies if necessary to achieve optimal results.

The difference between marketing audit and marketing monitoring lies in their focus and nature:

• Marketing audit is typically a one-time or periodic process conducted to thoroughly analyze a company's marketing efforts and provide recommendations for further improvement.

• Marketing monitoring, on the other hand, is an ongoing process that takes place in real-time or at regular intervals. It aims to continuously track and evaluate the effectiveness of marketing initiatives, enabling the company to respond quickly to changes and make adjustments if necessary.

Therefore, a marketing audit involves a more in-depth and comprehensive analysis of a company's marketing actions, while marketing monitoring is about ongoing observation of their effectiveness. Both processes are important for ensuring a successful marketing strategy, but they have different characteristics and objectives.


USAGE SITUATIONS

Marketing audit and marketing monitoring can be useful in various situations. Here are a few specific cases where these approaches are employed:

Marketing audit:

• Prior to strategic planning. Marketing audit is used to evaluate the company's current marketing strategies, programs, and resources before developing a new strategy. It helps identify strengths and weaknesses, opportunities, and issues that require attention.

• When market conditions or the company's situation changes. If the company faces market changes, altered competitive situations, or issues with marketing effectiveness, a marketing audit can assess how the company can adapt to new conditions and find avenues for improvement.

• When an update to the marketing strategy is needed. A marketing audit serves as a valuable tool for reviewing and updating the marketing strategy. It helps evaluate the effectiveness of current strategies, identify new opportunities and risks, and develop recommendations for further actions.

Marketing monitoring:

• Implementing key marketing campaigns and promotions. Marketing audit is used during marketing campaigns and promotions to measure their effectiveness, track consumer response, and make timely adjustments to achieve better results.

• Launching new products or services. Marketing audit is crucial when launching new products or services as it allows for monitoring market and consumer reactions, identifying weaknesses, and making improvements to marketing efforts

• Testing new ideas and hypotheses. Marketing audit enables companies to experiment with new ideas, hypotheses, or strategies and evaluate their effectiveness in real-time. It helps determine what works and what needs adjustments.

Overall, marketing audit is used for a detailed analysis and evaluation of a company's current marketing efforts, while marketing monitoring is focused on continuously tracking and evaluating the effectiveness of marketing efforts in real-time. Both approaches can be valuable depending on the specific situation and needs of the company.


DIFFERENCES IN METHODS

Different methods of data collection and analysis are used for marketing audit and marketing monitoring. Here are some methods that can be applied more specifically to each of these processes:

Marketing audit methods:

• Internal data analysis. Evaluation of internal data such as marketing plans, strategies, budgets, sales data, and campaign results.

• External analysis. Study of the external environment, market, and competitors, including trend analysis, consumer surveys, market research, and other external sources of information.

• Competitive analysis. Researching competitors' marketing strategies and tactics, including product analysis, pricing, promotions, etc.

• Positioning analysis. Assessing consumer perception of a product, brand, or company through the study of associations evoked by the product or service and their prevalence among the target audience.

Marketing monitoring methods:

• Metrics and analytics. Measuring key marketing metrics such as conversion, website traffic, time on site, deviations from target metrics, etc. The use of analytics tools such as Google Analytics allows for data collection and reporting on the performance of marketing efforts.

• Social monitoring. Tracking mentions of the company or brand on social media and the internet, consumer reviews, discussions, and sentiment analysis. This can be done using specialized social media monitoring tools that track mentions and assist in analyzing audience sentiment.

• Campaign monitoring. Monitoring the effectiveness of advertising campaigns, including ROI analysis. This helps evaluate the results of advertising efforts and make adjustments for improved performance.

Therefore, marketing audit is a necessary element of a company's marketing efforts as it allows for a deep analysis of marketing aspects, identification of weaknesses and issues, strategic alignment, and finding ways for improvement. On the other hand, marketing monitoring is valuable for its real-time operational data that provides an overview of the effectiveness of marketing efforts, enables quick response to changes, and identifies new opportunities. Both approaches are important for continuous improvement of marketing strategies and achieving success in business.

Achieving the commercial objectives of a company through effective marketing requires a deep understanding of the market situation, consumer needs, the ability to analyze and explore alternatives, and a creative approach to problem-solving. Our company has extensive experience in defining optimal marketing strategies for our clients' businesses, creating a strong brand and market positioning, as well as developing a marketing mix and implementing the chosen strategy. You can familiarize yourself with the services and solutions our company offers on the "Services" and "Solutions" pages, respectively.