Where to focus
Which customers and opportunities deserve attention, what the business can credibly offer them and where it should stop spreading itself too thinly.
Marketing strategy & advisory
Marketing strategy for the business you are building.
You may have a capable team and trusted agencies, but still need someone to help you decide where marketing should focus. I work with Irish SME founders, MDs and in-house leads to examine the choices, agree a direction and turn it into a plan the business can use.
When this helps
A decision needs more than another opinion.
Perhaps the business has changed, but the marketing plan has not. You may be considering a new market, questioning an investment or trying to give the team a more useful brief.
Advisory support gives you someone to work through that decision with. We start with the commercial question and look at the evidence, constraints and people involved.
You retain responsibility for running the function. My role is to help you reach a decision you can explain and give the people delivering it a sound basis for their work.
From the business goal to the work
Give each decision a direction.
- 01
Business goal
What needs to change?
- 02
Marketing priorities
Where should we focus?
- 03
Agreed plan
What will we commit to?
- 04
Accountable delivery
Who owns the next step?
Review progress and use what we learn to inform the next decision.
The work
What we can work through.
What the plan should commit to
How the marketing priorities connect to the commercial goal, what each needs to succeed and who will make the next decision.
What to fund
How to judge proposed spending against the job it needs to do, including the people and follow-through required beyond the campaign itself.
What the team needs
Whether the gap sits in leadership, roles, agency briefs or working practices, before assuming that another hire or supplier is the answer.
Working together
Start with the decision in front of you.
I do not offer fixed packages or publish a price list. We agree the scope around the responsibility, pace and level of involvement required.
Understand the situation
We discuss the business goal, what is getting in the way and what you need to decide. I will tell you honestly whether I can help.
Examine what matters
We agree which information and conversations are needed. That could include the current plan, customer evidence, sales feedback or a review of how work is being delivered.
Make the choices explicit
We work through the options and trade-offs. The aim is a recommendation the leadership team can act on, with its assumptions made clear.
Give the work an owner
We agree what happens next, who is responsible and how progress will be reviewed. Any continuing advisory support is scoped with you.
A useful outcome
Something the team can work from.
The output depends on the question we agree to address. It might be a decision paper, a revised marketing plan or a brief that gives your team and partners a better basis for delivery.
Whatever the format, it should explain the choices, the work required and who owns the next step. We agree that output before the work begins.
I remain the senior point of ownership on every engagement, supported by a significant network of strategic partners across specialist areas of marketing. They extend Method’s capability when the work requires it.
See selected workBefore we speak
Which kind of support fits?
How is this different from a fractional CMO?
Advisory work supports a decision or an existing marketing lead. As a fractional CMO, I take ongoing ownership of marketing direction as part of the leadership team. If that is the gap in your business, read about fractional CMO support.
Can you work with our existing team and agencies?
Yes. The starting point is the capability already in the business. We can involve the relevant people in the work and make sure the resulting direction gives them a useful brief.
Do we need a full strategy project?
That depends on the problem. A defined question may need focused input; a wider change may need more substantial work. Our first conversation is about understanding that difference before agreeing a scope.
A useful first conversation
What does the business need to decide?
Tell me what you are considering, where you are stuck and who is already involved.