Just as annual health checkups, help spot health
problems before they become too serious, a marketing audit, the
equivalent of a 'physical' can help spot troubles before they turn into
a customer relations or financial upset. More than that, an audit can
also spot opportunities that a company may not have been aware off.

A marketing
audit is not new, but it is not that common even though it has been
around since the 1950s, when the shift began from production
orientation to customer focus. Philip Kotler best defines the practice.

Kotler said an audit is “a comprehensive, systematic,
independent and periodic examination of a company's marketing
environment, objectives, strategies and activities with a view to
determining problem areas and opportunities and recommending a plan of
action to improve performance.”

A marketing audit is not a review of your communications,
brand management or ad agency. Helpful as all of these may be, they are
vertical in approach. A marketing audit is horizontal and examines the
company's mission, its markets, customers, marketing plans,
co-ordination of the marketing mix, process for planning and its human
and information resources.

It looks at how well the present role of marketing is defined,
the level or co-operation between marketing and other functional areas.
What information is gathered and how good it is and whether it is used
effectively. It reviews the processes in place, such as market
planning, new product development and examines their effectiveness.

Marketing auditors also look at how well basic marketing
concepts are understood within a company and how that understanding is
translated into practice. When appropriate, they will also look at the
service delivery role of call centres.

Audits are not standardised like financial audits, but are
tailored as companies require. The scope of the audit should be defined
by how the results will be used. Methodology may consist of in-depth
interviews with company executives and managers and other stakeholders
as appropriate: suppliers, customers, board members, even analysts.

Initiatives are qualitatively scored against best practice and
the company's own stated goals. Recommendations are made where
appropriate to make the company more responsive to the target market.
Findings are in written form plus a presentation to key audiences. Some
companies do a workshop to determine how they will use the results to
drive changes.

Self audits can be done but they lack objectivity. Few managers
can afford the two to six weeks needed to conduct a thorough audit.
Using experienced marketers who conduct audits regularly and has a
range of experience working elsewhere means they can make a fair
assessment of the company's activities and recommend relevant and
commercial reaction.

Care must be taken to minimise anxiety among employees who
take part in the audit or whose work is under review. But we have found
that once we reassure them that all information collected is
confidential and that we do not use any names in our reporting, most
staff are happy to participate as it gives them a voice, at no risk to
themselves.

Some obviously find it harder than others but we have had
marketing directors who were delighted with the results because it
helped them get what they really needed in terms of resources and
understanding to be effective.

Times when an audit is useful? Before the annual marketing
planning process. Or, after a company merger or acquisition to identify
strengths and weaknesses, what synergies exist because of the merger
and which areas of the marketing function can be streamlined.

An audit is also valuable when there is a change in marketing
management, as it is an efficient way for a new manager to assemble an
objective view from which to make future decisions. Quite often an
audit is also a helpful review for relatively new companies.

Companies which are two to three years old, when the internal
energy that got the company off the ground has been used up, an
objective assessment will give direction to the start up team who may
now need to take a different approach.

If you want your marketing services to have new purpose and
you are in the process of appointing a new advertising, PR or design
agency, some of the findings of the audit could help in determining the
right future strategic direction for such activities.

Karen Flynn is director of Jump the Gap, a new consultancy specialising in marketing audits.