Can You Tell Strategy From Tactics?

In marketing circles we often talk about strategy and tactics. And many of us, even presidential candidates, can get the two confused. Let’s take a look at how to tell a strategy from its tactics.

A strategy is a long term plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal or set of objectives.

Tactics are the methods and resources deployed and directed to accomplish a strategy.

So you can see how one supports the other. I like to keep it simple, though. Here’s how I recommend keeping strategy and tactics straight:

Strategy = What & Why

Tactics = Who, Where, When and How

So, when you’re discussing a campaign – what you want to achieve and why you are trying to achieve it (e.g. “Building brand awareness to support increased recognition and purchase of our service”) is your Strategy. Everything else (e.g the tradeshow booth, the news releases, the tee shirts with a clever saying) are tactics.

Now, how simply can you state your company’s strategy?