When it comes to marketing and marketing communications there are many theoretical models and methodologies organizations use with the hope that the theory they apply will work for them in practice.

We’d like to draw your attention to a particular strategy, i.e. the Three-Legged Stool Model, which has been applied to businesses for many years and is now finding new meaning in the marketing arena. The original business model states that a good business needs three fundamental aspects to keep it up and running, similar to the three legs of a stool each being essential to keep the stool up and standing. In business, these three stools stand for marketing, sales and operations.

When it comes to marketing these three legs differ – they stand for online, print and in-person, three core elements that are the vital mix of mediums for marketing success. Let’s take a quick look at how these three mediums play a role in contributing towards a better marketing practice:

  1. Online Ideally you need to have the right mix of elements online that are integrated, being able to tell different sides of the same story. Use carefully curated content across blogs, downloads, eNewsletters, SMS etc. to be able to reach potential customers at different points in different ways.
  2. Print Many businesses have tried to move away from printed matter entirely and work exclusively on digital platforms only to realize it isn’t working. Print is still a powerful medium and using press, magazines etc. to spread out your content is of vital importance to the communications mix, irrespective of the power of digital media.
  3. In-Person Never underestimate the power of a personal connection and rapport with potential audiences and clients. Again, while digital and online media are becoming powerful communications mechanisms, having corporate events, exhibitions etc. are still a very good way to get to know your audiences better and vice versa. In fact online media creates a curiosity with potential customers for more personal interactions with the brand, so in reality they support each other in the consumer’s journey to purchase with you.

Understanding how your marketing operations merge into an integrated message is as simple as understanding how a stool stands up; just like it takes three legs at three perfect angles that complement each other to keep a stool up, it takes three very different mediums of consumer interaction, working in harmony with each other to walk the consumer from the point of interest to the point of purchase. Keep these three core essentials in mind when you next look at your marketing plans for the year.