The Found Gen

Marketing That Works.

Business Growth

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A Step-by-Step Guide to Building Your 2026 Marketing Strategy

The start of a new year is the perfect time to take a step back, assess your marketing efforts and plan for the future because, trust us, “winging it” rarely works. A solid marketing strategy keeps your brand top-of-mind while driving growth, building loyalty and ensuring every dollar you invest works as hard as your morning coffee. 

Here’s your step-by-step guide to creating a marketing plan that will set your business up for success in 2026 without the guesswork, panic emails or caffeine-fueled all-nighters.

1. Reflect on 2025: What Worked and What Didn’t

      Before you can look ahead, you need to take a solid look in the rear-view mirror. A clear understanding of where you are today (and how you got there) will help you define goals for the future. So, zero in on your past campaigns:

      • Which strategies brought the highest ROI?
      • What content, channels or promotions fell flat?
      • Did your audience engagement and lead generation meet expectations?

      Analyzing your wins and lessons learned will set the foundation for smarter decision-making in 2026.

      2. Define Your 2026 Marketing Goals

      Armed with that information, you can now define what you want to achieve this year. As always, your goals should be SMART:

      • Specific – The goal must be clear with not an ounce of ambiguity in it (i.e., increase website traffic by 20%).
      • Measurable – You must be able to track your progress. Tie a number or other measurable criteria to your goal.
      • Achievable – This is the reality check portion of your goal setting. Can it be realistically attained given your resources and other constraints?
      • Relevant – Goals are most effective when they are tied to your broader business objectives. Their purpose should align with your priorities.
      • Time-bound – Timelines are strong motivators. Establishing parameters for completion adds urgency, focus and accountability.

      When we put it all together, a SMART marketing goal might be something like: “Increase web traffic by 20% over the next 6 months by posting 1 blog post per week.” Clear goals like this guide your strategy and make it easier to evaluate success.

        Your audience drives your marketing decisions. That’s why it’s crucial to refine your understanding of exactly who you’re targeting. This can be done by segmenting your audience based on demographics, behaviors and preferences; gathering insights from surveys, customer feedback and analytics tools; and identifying pain points your brand can address.

        3. Understand Your Audience Better Than Ever

        The more detailed your audience profiles, the more personalized, relevant and effective your marketing campaigns will be because the goal with any marketing strategy is to meet the right person at the right place and the right time. If you don’t know who they are and what they need, how can you help them?

        4. Map Out Your Channels and Content Strategy

        Next, decide where and how you’ll communicate with your audience (this is the “right place and right time” portion of your strategy). Common platforms include:

        • Email marketing – Plan your campaigns, newsletters and automated flows.
        • Social media – Identify platforms where your audience is most active.
        • Content marketing – Decide on frequency and format for content (blog posts, videos, infographics, eBooks, and other web and print content channels).
        • Paid advertising – Consider whether to augment efforts with PPC, social ads or retargeting campaigns.

        Bring it all together with a cohesive content calendar that aligns your goals and key dates for the year. Keeping your strategy front and center helps ensure consistent messaging across all touchpoints.

        5. Budget Wisely and Allocate Resources

        Even the best strategy fails without the right resources. Determine how much budget you can dedicate to each channel and campaign, and whether you need to hire talent, outsource or invest in new tools to get there. A smart allocation plan ensures you’re investing where it counts most.

        6. Lather, Rinse, Repeat

        Lastly, recognize that a marketing strategy is never “set it and forget it.” Build in regular reviews—quarterly or even monthly—to assess results, tweak tactics and seize emerging opportunities. Flexibility and responsiveness will keep your 2026 strategy relevant and turn a good plan into a great one.

        Ready to Make 2026 Your Best Marketing Year Yet?

        At The Found Gen, we specialize in helping businesses craft strategic, actionable and results-driven marketing plans. If you want to hit the ground running in 2026 with a strategy that drives growth and builds lasting connections, contact us today.

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        Sales v. Advertising v. Marketing: What’s The Difference?

        Here’s the thing, sales and advertising are not the same things. While they both share the same parent (which is marketing, by the way) and share a similar goal for business growth, they are fundamentally different.

        We can tell that a little crash course is needed here, so we’ll begin. Many smaller companies see advertising as a way to support the selling portion of the business. The advertising can help inform potential customers about the company’s products and varied services. Sales, however, seeks to close the deal with those customers and get them to commit.  Starting to see the difference?

        Here are few more ways that these two differ.

        The One Vs. The Many

        Did you know that sales are more personal than advertising? From phone conversations to in-person, there is no way around customer interaction. Those in sales have direct access to customers, allowing for a more personalized experience and allowing them to interact with the product. Advertising, on the other hand, is non-personal in nature. It involves one-way communication and focuses on reaching many people at the same time. There are also many mediums advertising can use, including billboards, television, the Internet, radio, etc.

        Push vs. Pull

        Why do companies use sales and marketing? To put it simply, you need both to succeed in your business. However, the function is where the difference lies. Let’s frame it with an example, shall we? Sales reps go out and push the company’s product. Wholesalers then run with the baton and push the product on retailers, and retailers on the consumers. Advertising, however, pulls products through different distribution channels to deliver a brand’s unique message to consumers. In turn, the consumers desire the product and apply pressure for it. 

        Priorities, Priorities, Priorities.

        Sales introduce the key benefits and features of any product during events and presentations. They may even compare their product and its features to competitors with similar products. What is the objective? It always remains the same: close the sale. Advertising has a different goal. It is designed to follow the AIDA principle (attention, interest, desire, and action). Advertisers may use catchy headlines or noises to attract attention from potential clients. They also dabble in the art of writing and produce compelling copy to keep the consumer’s interest. Advertisers may then have the consumer picture herself using the product to create desire.

        Frequency

        Last but not least is frequency. Sales is usually more infrequent than advertising and cannot hold the sustainable message like a good advertisement. While sales reps may see a customer one or two times (depending on the need for the product), an advertisement has a lasting reach and impact.

        And with that, the game of sales vs. advertisement is done. If you have further questions on how to increase either in your business, shoot us an email and see how we can help.