Like a 23-year-old life coach, frameworks are most often a momentary salve for the anxieties of the desperate. Frameworks are not, in themselves, a slip ’n slide fast track to success.
Of course, sometimes it works out:
- If you’re once-in-a-generation lucky, you might stumble upon the right framework at the right time with the right team behind you and the right amount of energy to take it to completion. You may incorrectly attribute your success to the framework instead of realizing your good fortune in timing.
- If you already have strong critical thinking, strategy, and a solid work ethic in your bones, you may find success in the framework of your choice, but of course your success won’t be thanks to the framework.
Despite this initial biting review, frameworks do have a place in business and marketing.
This is not a review of common marketing frameworks or a listicle of The Top 10 Best Marketing Frameworks. Why? Because it’s not the framework that will ensure success, rather your ability to be consistent, diligent, and perceptive. Instead, this post covers the situations when you should reach for your favorite framework or try out a new one.
First, what exactly is a framework meant to accomplish?
A framework, at the risk of being obnoxiously literal, is just that: framing. Think of it as the framing of a new house. The foundation is set, the subfloor is in, and the walls are up, but it still isn’t a house. You need to add insulation, flooring, drywall, and more in order to make it into a usable dwelling place. And within each of those, there are seemingly infinite choices of material, finishes, and styles that will then be installed by a worker who may cut corners or, if you’re lucky, bring a high level of craftsmanship.
Frameworks, by nature, are incomplete and are not a plug-and-play solution. Good use of a framework will help you see things differently or expose problems that have been swept under the rug. Then the rest is up to you.
When to use a framework
There are a large number of frameworks in the world, so for the sake of this post, let’s divide them into two categories: short-term and long-term.
- Short-term frameworks will be the ones you turn to at times when you or your immediate team are in need of help.
- Long-term frameworks will be the ones that are meant to change your process and approach across your organization.
Short-term frameworks are helpful when…
You need help looking at things differently
At any time throughout your career (but especially when you’ve been in the same role at the same company for a period of time) things start to feel stale. You need help breaking out of the status quo. Inversion is a useful tool for this. James Clear gives the example of how inversion could be used in a marketing department, “…it might be useful to ask, ‘What would alienate our core customer?’ A different point of view can reveal surprising insights.”
You’re stuck and need ideas
Ah, yes, everyone’s favorite: brainstorming when your idea tank is empty or running on fumes. You have a couple of ideas going, but nothing sings. This is a great time to rummage around in your framework toolkit and grasp onto something like SCAMPER. Most often used in product development, it also works for marketing applications. First, pick your focus — maybe you’re working on campaign concepts for your company’s core service offering. Then follow the prompts and ask yourself related questions.
Substitute: What elements can you substitute or swap to improve the idea?
Combine: What happens if you combine two of your ideas into one?
Adapt: What fringe use-cases have you heard of your service being used for?
Modify: What could you emphasize to create a more interesting campaign idea?
Put to Another Use: What would happen if the service was applied to a different industry?
Eliminate: What happens if you remove part of the idea?
Reverse: How could you reorganize the narrative?
You need to be thorough yet efficient
Often this shows up as a resource that you’ve developed for yourself over time, like a to-do checklist or a list of steps that cobble together multiple frameworks. This is created so that you don’t forget important components along the way—even if you don’t need to use a particular tool or fulfill a certain step, you’re reminded of it and forced to consider if it applies. This ensures you don’t miss crucial information or tasks along the way and then lose time later when you go back to fix it.
Long-term frameworks are helpful when…
You need structure and/or consistency
Think of your 3- or 5-year strategic objectives. Which planning framework(s) does your company use? Maybe a SWOT analysis, balanced scorecard (BSC), objectives and key results (OKRs), or Porter’s five forces. These same tools can also be used at the team/department level to help you reinforce key concepts, processes, goals, and more. Whether you were involved with the strategic planning process or not, you can still leverage the same framework(s) to take it one level deeper and make the next steps even more practical and concrete for your team.
You need to make sense out of chaos
Perhaps you consistently run into the same problem or you’ve recently inherited a department that needs an overhaul. Frameworks can bring structure and organization to a scenario that is overwhelming and complex, making it difficult to know where to start. A Fishbone (or Ishikawa) Diagram is just one you can use to help you identify the reasons why—or the points at which—there are failures within a process. By using categories of People, Environment, Materials, Measurement (or Policies), Methods, and Equipment, list the main causes that may be producing the undesired effect. Then repeatedly ask yourself, “Why does this happen?” When complete, you should have a clear understanding of where the root causes are and can then turn your attention to fixing them.
Your leadership team and/or fellow departments don’t get marketing
Translating the marketing world into a language your peers and leadership team can understand (not just once, but continuously over time) is sometimes as simple as leveraging one of their own beloved frameworks. Ask your sales team what scoring structure they use. Could your work in marketing be viewed through that lens?
You’re looking for an edge
Maybe life is golden. You’re hitting your goals and then some, team members collaborate well, and your cross-functional peers are bought in. You start wondering, “What if…?” A lot can be learned from frameworks that were originally created in and for other industries or disciplines. Agile is, of course, a common example as project managers have adopted some of its core tenets for a myriad of project types (not just web/app/software development). The key here is: be open. If you want even more efficiency, research what the manufacturing pros are doing. If it’s more creativity you seek, ask what the true harbingers of innovation use.
Framework pitfalls to avoid
The value of frameworks is clear, but how do you know if your framework is helping or if it’s lipstick on a pig?
Simple: If the outputs from the framework aren’t measuring up after an appropriate amount of time, then it’s time to consider factors that may be tampering with your success. Before looking to the framework itself as the culprit, first consider these common pitfalls.
Mindlessly filling in them in without deeper thought
When you have a handful of favorite frameworks or you create your own, as mentioned above, there is a potential for stagnation. View it simply as a mindless form-fill and the beauty of the framework will shrivel. Not only that, but over-reliance on frameworks might even limit the ability to think creatively and to dream of the possibilities outside the established structure. This is especially true for short-term frameworks.
Thinking the next framework will be the one that saves the day
Woe to the marketer who views the current trendy framework as their all-paid ticket to nirvana! New, buzzworthy frameworks are fun and alluring. Afterall, the ideas you initially reap from them are invigorating! But if you only chase what is new and shiny without considering the actual applicability to your context or the work required to implement them, you are only wasting time and effort. The most successful frameworks are the ones that are seen through to completion.
Underestimating the cultural component
Implementing new long-term frameworks often requires significant cultural changes within an organization, which is time-consuming and challenging. Supposedly, when Chick Fil A decided to roll out the phrase “My pleasure” as a response used by their employees, it took seven years. I say supposedly because I once read it on LinkedIn and cannot find a source to back it up. But regardless, it’s a good example of what we all know to be true deep down: creating change is hard, even for companies that are organized.
Frameworks really, truly are a good resource, though
I like frameworks. I love them when they’re used appropriately. All I ask: please use them wisely.