• by Elise Stieferman , December 22, 2023

The following was previously published in an earlier edition of Marketing Insider.

The middle market is made up of resilient, innovative businesses that are one-third of the United States economy.

These brands face intense pressure to maintain aggressive year-over-year growth, building top line revenue and market share. But often, proactive brand strategy becomes an afterthought as all hands are on deck to simply support the demands of current business and operationalize at scale.

This stalls long-term growth, resulting in unclear marketplace positioning and eroding initial competitive advantage.

Very few brands have the budget of the P&Gs of the world. But proactively planning the core components of your brand marketing strategies and building continual learning into your day-to-day will help the team accomplish more with less.

Here are eight tips to gain market share from enterprise brands by using a flexible advertising strategy:

Do the upfront work.  Avoid the urge to rush into market. Conduct holistic, in-depth audience, industry, and brand research to craft an intentional messaging strategy based on audience insights.

Micro-target niche audiences. While your competitors blast generalized messaging to the masses, dodge in between to reach niche communities. Using hyper-relevant, personalized content, you can build small groups of avid brand supporters who will organically amplify your message as you grow.

Cut out the fat in media buying. Find out where your competitors are overspending. Then, outsmart them by using media channels that can precisely reach your most qualified audience in a measurable environment, thus reducing wasted impressions and spend. For example, instead of a national TV buy, opt for an audience-based CTV campaign targeting specific interest groups.

Prioritize media quality. Purchase media based on attention and quality metrics rather than only cost efficiency - this also often correlates with better brand safety and reduced ad fraud.

Allow for flexible campaign flighting. Concentrate dollars to shorter flights that increase frequency and are more likely to build brand salience. Your strategy should think long-term, but your media activation should be planned in shorter increments to shift with changes in market conditions, consumer preferences, and your business goals.

Concentrate on consideration.  Let competitors do the work of raising general awareness about the value of your category. Instead, leverage contextual targeting and keyword research to educate and steer the audience toward converting to your brand.

Go all in when it matters most. Capitalize on tentpole events to make a splash without needing to dole out major budgets year-round. Direct buys for major live TV events, in-person event sponsorships, digital site takeovers, or even print campaigns in relevant publications can be worth the substantial investment when the timing is right.

Do the unexpected. Resist the urge to simply imitate what the competition is doing. You got to where you are today by having a unique value proposition. Your brand strategy and marketing communications should be similarly distinct. But don’t rest on your laurels. Pivot with what the data from your marketing is telling you is working, rather than working off instinct alone.