How to Rebuild an Underperforming Marketing Function in 90 Days

Understanding Why Marketing Functions Underperform

Many factors can cause a marketing function to struggle. These often include lack of internal expertise, inconsistent messaging or over-reliance on legacy activities. Sometimes business leaders do not know where their marketing budget goes each month. Without robust measurement systems, it becomes tough to quantify results. Before making any changes, it is necessary to identify what is not working and why. Using a structured marketing audit reveals underlying issues while clarifying strengths and weaknesses within existing strategies. This step provides a foundation for meaningful improvements.

The Assessment Framework: Starting with a Marketing Audit

The first step in any 90-day plan involves a comprehensive marketing audit. This assessment framework helps audit existing assets, from campaigns and analytics to social channels and content libraries. The audit examines everything against business objectives. Industry standards for marketing agency and SEO firm benchmarks must guide this review. Analysing activities in this structured way exposes gaps and inefficiencies. The audit should also assess how current marketing efforts serve specific business objectives. It cheques whether the organisation leverages digital marketing channels fully or needs expertise from a marketing firm Atlanta-based businesses trust.

Aligning Audit Findings with Desired Outcomes

Translating audit results into actionable insights guides the next steps. The main question becomes: "Where does the team fall short and what solutions align with business growth Atlanta needs?" These insights can inform the selection of new strategies, resourcing decisions and digital marketing investments. For companies with knowledge gaps, partnering with a marketing consultant or even outsourcing to a fractional CMO can quickly boost capacity.

Strategy Refinement with Support from a Marketing Strategy Consultant

After the audit, it is important to refine the marketing strategy based on findings. Any comprehensive plan should focus on data-backed decision-making. Remove tactics that do not serve set objectives and invest more in areas with proven potential. A marketing strategy consultant can help ensure all changes serve a business’s market and revenue goals. Their external perspective cuts through internal bias, ensuring strategies follow best practise and are grounded in market realities. Setting SMART goals—specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound, guides the entire transformation process.

Developing a Fresh Go-to-Market Plan

Strategy refinement often leads to a refreshed go-to-market plan. This details which audiences to target, the channels to prioritise and how to structure messaging. Collaboration with a marketing agency or marketing firm improves results by applying deep expertise across different platforms. Channels like search, paid social and email can work together to achieve the defined objectives. Regular updates to the plan must reflect ongoing performance, with a marketing firm or strategy consultant on hand to pivot when needed.

Resourcing: Building the Right Team for Success

Effective resourcing creates the backbone of any high-performing marketing function. Traditional models often place all tasks on a small, overstretched team. Outsourced marketing presents a way to address skill gaps without heavy investment in permanent staff. For example, a fractional CMO can provide executive-level leadership for part-time or project-based needs. Outsourcing content, design and analytics to a marketing agency or marketing firm Atlanta businesses trust can also bring in needed skillsets. With resourcing in place, teams become more agile and can keep pace with business growth Atlanta companies demand.

Outsourced Marketing Versus In-house Recruitment

In many scenarios, outsourcing outperforms the traditional recruitment model. Marketing firm partners offer access to specialists, digital marketing experts, SEO firm strategists and data analysts, on a scalable basis. This flexibility is vital in the early stages of a 90-day turnaround. Leveraging this model ensures the function keeps running while implementing improvements. When necessary, marketing consulting firm Atlanta-based partners fill critical gaps and provide guidance for both short and long-term progress.

Channel Optimisation: Driving Results through Digital Marketing

Channel optimisation is essential when rebuilding a marketing function within a tight timeline. The process involves reviewing every acquisition and engagement channel, from organic search and paid ads to social media. The analysis covers each channel’s reach, engagement and lead generation ability. A specialist SEO firm improves organic performance by enhancing website on-page elements, keyword targeting and link building. Similarly, a marketing agency can take charge of social media and paid channels, continually testing and refining for best results.

Integrating Digital Marketing Solutions

An integrated digital marketing strategy removes silos. Campaigns on different channels reinforce each other. For example, high-performing blog content supports SEO and gives value to paid AD campaigns. Using data-driven insights, a marketing consultant can coordinate multi-channel efforts to ensure reinforced messaging and effective audience targeting. Consistent, ongoing channel optimisation can drive lead generation and customer engagement, supporting the broader goals of business growth Atlanta organisations seek.

Reporting Realignment and Accountability

Restructuring reporting processes guarantees alignment between marketing outcomes and business goals. Many organisations lack precise tracking, which prevents proper analysis and corrective action. Reporting realignment creates clear, frequent and actionable reports that all stakeholders can understand. This realignment involves setting new key performance indicators (KPIs), automating dashboards and establishing regular performance check-ins. Clear reporting provides the feedback loop businesses need for timely decision-making. Bringing in a marketing strategy consultant ensures objective reviews of results and unbiased recommendations for further optimisation.

Communicating Progress during a 90-Day Plan

Establishing regular reporting rhythms over the 90-day transformation period is essential. Weekly or fortnightly check-ins allow teams to celebrate small wins and address setbacks quickly. Marketing auditing frameworks support objective measurement. Whether working with a fractional CMO, SEO firm or a marketing agency, transparency remains paramount. The right reporting structure keeps executive teams confident in the process and lets marketing functions prove their ROI.

Embracing Change Management and Stakeholder Buy-in

Restructuring any business function requires careful change management. Stakeholders may have differing views on project priorities, investments or measures of success. Securing their buy-in through transparent communication, regular updates and evidence-based reporting is vital. Skilled marketing consultants help align executive and departmental interests. Demonstrating early wins and linking efforts directly to business growth Atlanta organisations want is an effective way to secure continued support.

Training and Upskilling Existing Teams

The transformation process offers the best opportunity to train and upskill internal teams. Investing in up-to-date digital marketing training or workshops with a marketing consulting firm Atlanta provider fosters team confidence and self-sufficiency. Ensuring employees grasp new reporting systems and channel optimisation tools reduces future friction. Involving staff in each step, from marketing audit to reporting realignment—ensures ongoing improvement and secures a culture of accountability.

Maintaining Momentum after the Initial 90 Days

After a 90-day turnaround, leaders must maintain positive momentum. Embedding regular review cycles, continued resourcing and periodic marketing audits sustains high performance. Focusing on continuous learning and adaptation is key. Collaborations with a marketing firm, SEO firm or marketing agency maintain specialist insight, keeping teams ahead of market trends. Leveraging ongoing input from a marketing strategy consultant ensures that fresh, effective techniques consistently support business goals. Businesses that embrace this iterative approach are most likely to achieve ongoing business growth Atlanta aspires to.