Page 92 - GLOBAL STRATEGIC MARKETING

Briefly, the strategic marketing process is defined by the mission
statement to define the business in terms of its long-term goals and
aspirations (Doole and Lowe, 2008; Drummond et al, 2003). In order to

make decisions on strategic choice, formulation and implementation, a
marketing audit is essential to determine the organisation’s current

situation. This can be achieved by identifying strengths and weaknesses
within the internal environment and opportunities and threats within the
external environment. An efficient marketing audit is critical to this

process as it provides information on which all strategic decisions should
be based.

The strategic marketing process also helps to answer the following

questions:

• Where are we now?

• Where do we want to be?

• How do we get there?

• How can we ensure arrival?

The answers to the above questions can be determined through the

strategic marketing process. ‘Where are we now’ is addressed by the