Is your marketing in Jell-O or is it in concrete? Have you seen the classic episode of the comedy show The Office where Jim puts Dwight’s stapler in Jell-O? In case you haven’t, here it is. What a hilarious prank, to put their stapler in jiggly Jell-O. Nothing is really hurt, it just takes some time to dig the stapler out and wash it off. That would be very different if Jim put the stapler in concrete. There would be a permanency to the prank.

Sometimes I run into business managers who treat their marketing like it is set in concrete – there is nothing you can do to change it. Marketing should be much more pliable than that. Why? Because marketing should reflect the mood of consumers since they are the ones who will buy your products and services. If you staunchly refuse to change with the times, you will find that you open yourself up to your competitors to pick off your customers. That is why I recommend that marketing plans be written with the notion that they will be challenged internally from time to time to make sure they still match what is happening in the marketplace.

Can you also change your marketing too often? You certainly can. If you are forever shifting marketing directions so that consumers never get to know what your brand is all about, you are doing yourself a big disservice. Remember that Jell-O starts out very watery and needs time to set up. Your marketing needs time to make an impact on your customers.

How do you know when to make a change and when to stay put with your marketing? Stay on top of what is happening in the general marketplace and see how that is impacting the attitudes of your customers. Take a look at what your competition is doing too. I would not suggest you copy them, but I would become aware of what they are doing to market their brand and compare what they say to what you offer. Keep close tabs on your analytics. This will help you gauge when you are being successful and when a current campaign is losing steam.

One last thing; sometimes managers don’t want to change marketing because it is a lot of effort to do so. At the detriment of their own growth potential, they resist change. You cannot be that rigid and grow your business to its full promise. You’re setting your marketing in concrete and expecting it to lead your business development, but you will come to a point where it will hold you back. Set it in Jell-O. It is much more pliable.