Marketing frameworks: The invisible force behind the top performers

Latest frameworks beyond the funnel & AIDA model

Unleash the full potential of your marketing strategy: In this guide, we dive into the world of marketing frameworks and show you how to use them with the latest tools and targeted AI prompts. Based on the experience of hundreds of consulting projects, you will receive practical tips for direct application. Get ready to outperform your competition with these frameworks and tools!

Download the latest presentation (Marketing Masterclass: 15 Marketing Tools + Sales & AI Prompting Frameworks in 30 minutes) & helpful templates from the Digital Bash Marketing Tool Day here.

Marketing frameworks are like a treasure map for your strategy. They help you to structure and simplify complex marketing strategies and shed light on your market and target group. They help you to find out where you stand and how you can focus your marketing even more sharply and effectively. The experts from the GROW team are convinced that with frameworks you are relying on proven methods that really work!

4 facts about marketing frameworks

• Marketing frameworks date back to 1898, when the foundation stone was laid for the AIDA model – a marketing framework that is still widely used today and that you have probably used before, right?

• Frameworks that have become outdated, such as the 4-P model, have been continuously expanded (now the 7-P model) – this helps you to revise your own strategy in line with the times

• Completely new frameworks combine old rules with new AI possibilities and data analyses.

• Many new frameworks specifically take into account the changes in user behaviour brought about by the internet and mobile devices – and this is exactly what we focus on!

A marketing framework is like a navigation device that shows you the way through the world of marketing. It provides you with the central theme of how you can get your brand’s messages across effectively. It brings order to creative chaos and helps to provide each team member with a clear schedule. Frameworks synchronise the wheels in the marketing gears and bring ever-increasing efficiency and effectiveness to your advertising and marketing measures.

Further development: from the old AIDA framework to the latest AI framework

The history of marketing frameworks goes back to 1898 – where Elmo Lewis first described the AIDA model in his business. In a later report on advertising, he described three of the principles that form the basis of the AIDA model, which explains how advertising can have the right effect.

In 1960, E. Jerome McCarthy created a marketing framework that is also known worldwide: he proposed to divide the possibilities of marketing into 4 classic instruments – the so-called ‘Four P’s’ consisting of price, product, place and promotion.

Since then, thousands of new frameworks have been developed and researched. In particular, the changes in people’s purchasing decision behaviour brought about by the Internet are increasingly becoming the focus of attention. In addition to marketing faculties at universities, many management consultancies have also developed their own marketing frameworks, such as the BCG matrix developed by the Boston Consulting Group, which can also be applied to brands.

In the following, we will introduce you to newer frameworks and reveal the practical tools you can use for your marketing. You will also receive suitable prompts for each framework to help you apply the method correctly.

Latest strategy & digital marketing frameworks

Every day, we as potential customers are approached in the wrong channel with inappropriate formats. This is because many companies are still neglecting the fact that the internet and new technology are also changing our purchasing decision processes. That’s why we won’t go into detail here about the old strategy frameworks such as AIDA, the 4P model or the super widespread funnel model. Instead, you will learn about exciting new alternatives that will help you at a strategic and operational marketing level.

The STEPPS framework – ideal for social media and co.

Jonah Berger’s STEPPS model is a cool tool for understanding why some ideas spread like wildfire. It’s about how to create content so that people can’t help but share it. Here are the crisp points of the model:

You can use these 6 steps to check whether there is potential for improvement in all your marketing messages.

Application areas of the STEPPS framework

Ideal for social media campaigns, content marketing and anywhere you want your message to spread like wildfire.

Prompts to help you apply the method:

In the prompts, add words such as target group, offer or product with precise descriptions for your market, industry and target customers. Or add the following note to the respective prompt suggestions: ‘If you are missing information for a good answer, please ask me questions.’

Phase in the Sheesh model

The SHEESH Framework – Ideal for Insta, TikTok & YouTube Shorts

You probably know that once you start with Instagram, TikTok or YouTube shorts, there’s no stopping you. Just one more clip… But now the last one. Oh, one more video…and another hour has passed…

Placing (advertising) messages at this high consumption frequency needs to be learnt. This is exactly where the Sheesh formula comes into play – it forces you to always keep the following points in mind when planning shorts, TikToks or story content. This framework is particularly suitable for organic video content.

• Scrollstopper: Use an unusual preview image or video entry to ensure that users can’t help but want to continue watching your content. Clarity, simplicity, a combination of visual stimuli and strong statements using typography can be the key to success here. All that matters is an idea that leads to a scroll stop in the context of all the other content because it stands out.

• Humour: Once the first step has been taken, a pinch of humour helps enormously! Whether absurd, ironic or just plain weird: anything that makes the viewer smile is allowed. So dare to cross boundaries and think less about the factual logic of your advertising and more about the joy of the viewer. Because happy users will actually look at your content!

• Uniqueness: Goes hand in hand with the first point – because it’s about breaking out of the standards and offering something unusual. And coming up with just such an idea is not that easy – fortunately, Chat GPT also helps you to develop unusual script approaches for TikTok and co.

• Entertainment: What distinguishes users of social media platforms from those who use a search engine? That’s right, people who use social media are generally looking for entertainment. It is therefore essential to include the right amount of entertainment – this is where storytelling scripts help you to create a suitable (short) story that is sufficiently entertaining.

• Surprise: You’re almost there – and if there’s a sudden twist or surprise in your TikToks, you’ve done everything right and you’re sure to get lots of views + feedback!

• Handwriting: The last point is to develop a personal signature. In other words, something that ensures that your clips have a recognisable value that cannot be found anywhere else.

You can use these 6 steps to check whether there is potential for improvement in all your marketing messages.

Application areas of the SHEESH Framework

The Sheesh formula proves to be an innovative framework specifically designed to stand out in the endless flood of content on platforms like TikTok and YouTube Shorts. This method is particularly beneficial for businesses and content creators looking to create organic video content with the aim of standing out in the crowd and building a loyal audience.

Prompts to help you apply the method:

Be sure to add precise details about your target groups, the things that characterize your brand and tonality to the initial prompt suggestions below. If you lack knowledge here, add the following note at the end of your prompt: First ask me a few questions to develop a prompt that promises maximum success.

Phase in the STEPPS model

Forrester’s 5 i model – the alternative to the marketing funnel

The Forrester 5 i model puts the customer at the center of all marketing considerations and helps you to build a close relationship with your customers by focusing on five key phases:

1. Involvement (catching the customer’s eye so that the brand is consciously perceived),
2. Interaction (interaction and points of contact: Which interaction can be encouraged in which channel?),
3. Intimacy (the emotional closeness between customer and brand: how do we build this up?)
4. Influence (the factors influencing the purchase decision – such as buying motives) and
5. Individualization (the personalization of the customer approach).

These phases offer the opportunity to refine your marketing strategies and develop a deep relationship with your customers. Think of the Forrester 5 i model as a relationship guide between you and your customers. It shows you how to build a strong bond with your customers through five key stages – Involvement, Interaction, Intimacy, Influence and Individualization. Away from the old marketing funnel and into a world where you accompany your customers throughout their journey.

Scope of the Forrester 5i Framework

• Perfect for digital campaigns that focus on long-term relationships.
• Ideal for brands that really want to understand their customers and address them individually.

Prompts to help you apply the method:

Be sure to add precise details about your target groups, the things that characterize your brand and tonality to the initial prompt suggestions below. If you lack knowledge here, add the following note at the end of your prompt: First ask me a few questions to develop a prompt that promises maximum success.

Phase in the Forrester 5 i-model

The ICE-score model – helps to prioritise measures

The ICE-score model is a rating system that helps you prioritise ideas and marketing measures. “ICE” stands for

1. Impact – an example could be how much SEO optimisation improves the visibility of your website in search engine results and what effect this has on your sales development.
2. Confidence – this is about the probability of success of the measure – e.g. an email marketing campaign, based on previous campaign results. So how sure are you that the impact will actually materialise?
3. Ease – can refer to how easy it is to implement an action – e.g. launching a pay-per-click campaign in Google Ads, compared to the complexity of creating a viral social media campaign.

Each of these factors is evaluated and combined to determine an overall score that helps you decide which marketing initiatives could have the greatest impact, how confident you are about the success of these initiatives and how easy they would be to implement. It’s a useful framework for allocating resources effectively and ensuring that the marketing team focuses on the most promising projects.

Scope of application of ICE scoring

Ideal for deciding what to do first if there are too many construction sites. It is suitable for all marketing decisions, from social media and email campaigns to SEO, and helps teams to tackle one thing at a time in a sensible order.

Prompts to help you apply the method:

Be sure to add precise details of the individual marketing measures and ideas to the initial prompt suggestions below. The more precisely you describe what you intend to do in the prompt, the better the AI can help you. If you lack knowledge here, add the following note to the end of your prompt: First ask me a few questions to develop a prompt that promises maximum success.

Phase in the ICE-score model

Think of the RACE method as a four-round game that’s all about boosting your sales. Curious how it works? Well, here we go:

1. First of all, it’s about getting there: This is where it all starts, because you determine what your specific marketing goal is. Do you want to retain customers, boost brand content or achieve reach? That’s exactly what you define here. Example: How cool would it be if everyone who searches for something related to your product area on Google comes across you? That’s your exemplary goal in this round. More Google visibility and more clicks on sales-relevant search queries!
2. Act: You and your team now know what your goal is – very good! Now you need to think about what action you want users to take. Should they rate your brand, click on a banner ad, add something to their shopping basket? Maybe you can get them to click deep into your shop because you simply have irresistible content. How can you do that? Perhaps with a crisp design or stories that captivate? You think about that in this phase.
3. Convert: Now it’s getting serious. People are interested, but how do you turn them into buyers? Perhaps with a limited-time offer or a discount for new customers? This is where clever tricks are needed to give people the final push. In the Convert phase, you put together ideas that turn prospects into enthusiastic customers.
4. Binding: Strike: You’ve won a new customer! But now you have to keep at it. How do you ensure that they don’t just buy from you once, but become fans for life?

Scope of application of the RACE-framework

RACE is like a universal tool. Whether you are a small start-up or a large company, online or offline, you can always play this game to boost your sales.

Prompts to help you apply the method:

Be sure to add precise details of the individual marketing measures and ideas to the prompt suggestions. The more precisely you describe what you intend to do in the prompt, the better the AI can help you. If you lack knowledge here, add the following note to the end of your prompt: First ask me a few questions to develop a prompt that promises maximum success.

Phase in the RACE framework

The Flywheel-Framework: Focus on customer orientation

The Flywheel model is a customer-centric digital marketing strategy framework. The goal of all the features in the Flywheel model is to optimise the customer journey by removing ‘friction’ that slows down the buying process.

Think of the Flywheel model as a big wheel that takes your customers on a super journey without them getting “stuck” at any point. The whole model revolves around your customers having a smoothie-like experience with your brand, with no bumpy interruptions.

Here are the three phases of your customer journey in the Flywheel:

1. Attract: Your goal is to make people curious. Show them what you have, be it through cool posts on social media or fancy adverts. You want them to think: “Hey, that looks interesting!
2. Binding: Now that you’ve got their attention, it’s time to make friends. Let them know what you have to offer and show them that you’ve got what it takes. It’s about making them feel comfortable with you and thinking: “This is exactly what I need!”
3. Inspire: Here’s your chance to turn them into real fans. Support them, make them feel special and make sure they think of you with a smile. If they’re happy, they’ll spread the word – and that’s how the wheel really gets rolling.

Area of application of the Flywheel-Model

Whether you run a start-up or an established company, online or offline, the Flywheel model always fits. It keeps your business running and your customers happy.

Prompts to help you apply the method:

Be sure to add precise details of the individual marketing measures and ideas to the prompt suggestions. The more precisely you describe what you intend to do in the prompt, the better the AI can help you. If you lack knowledge here, add the following note to the end of your prompt: First ask me a few questions to develop a prompt that promises maximum success.

Phase in the Flywheel – Modell

SEE-THINK-DO-CARE Framework – developed with Google

The See-Think-Do-Care framework is a digital marketing strategy framework that divides the customer journey into three phases: See, Think and Do.

1. The “See” phase is about attracting the attention of future customers. Where and how exactly does the customer find out about you and your offer for the first time?
2. In the “Think” phase, the aim is to get prospective customers to think about making a purchase – so this is where things really get down to business. You ask yourself how you can turn your visitors’ curiosity into genuine interest.
3. Finally, the “Do” phase aims to get customers to buy – the moment it all comes down to. Your visitors are ready to become your customers. It’s the icing on the cake of your efforts and shows that all the hard work is paying off.
4. The care phase aims to look after the acquired customer in the best possible way. The customer should be satisfied with the purchase decision and continue to be delighted with suitable service offers after the purchase, thus becoming an advocate and fan of the brand!

By utilising the See-Think-Do-Care framework, you can not only increase the visibility and engagement of your brand, but also increase your sales. It is important to be aware of the challenges and continuously adapt the model to your specific needs and market conditions.

Areas of application of the See-Think-Do-Care-Framework

1. Content-Marketing: Design content that is precisely tailored to the needs of your users in the various phases.
2. Social Media Marketing: Use different strategies for the different phases to address your target group on platforms such as Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn.
3. E-Commerce: Optimise your online shop by improving the user experience from discovery to purchase.
4. Customer loyalty: Develop strategies to retain existing customers and turn them into brand ambassadors.

By utilising the See-Think-Do-Care framework, you can not only increase the visibility and engagement of your brand, but also increase your sales. It is important to be aware of the challenges and continuously adapt the model to your specific needs and market conditions.

Prompts to help you apply the method:

Be sure to add precise details of the individual marketing measures and ideas to the prompt suggestions. The more precisely you describe what you intend to do in the prompt, the better the AI can help you. If you lack knowledge here, add the following note to the end of your prompt: First ask me a few questions to develop a prompt that promises maximum success.

Phase in the See-Think-Do-Care framework

The Pirate Metrics / AAARR model: from acquisition to customer retention

Pirate Metrics goes even further than the AIDA, Funnel or SEE-THINK-DO framework. It makes it easy for you to check the customer journey from the first encounter to the loyal fan – from the first hello to the happy regular customer who diligently recommends you to others. Dave McClure invented it so that start-ups can quickly see where things are still stuck. In five stages, it goes from lead acquisition to customer recommendation:

• the acquisition of a lead,
• the activation of the lead,
• the loyalty of the customer,
• the return you earn and
• the recommendation made by the customer

So first it’s about getting to know people – that’s where you check where and how people become aware of you. Then, when activating, you look at how you can turn interest into genuine enthusiasm. With retention, you keep your customers interested and see how often they come back. In the revenue part, you see whether the whole thing pays off. And the referral part is about whether your customers recommend you to others. Great for anyone who wants to understand their customers from A to Z!

Areas of application of the Pirate Metrics model

• Perfect for start-ups and established companies
• Can be used everywhere, from online stores to service providers

Prompts to help you apply the method:

Be sure to add precise details of the individual marketing measures and ideas to the prompt suggestions. The more precisely you describe what you intend to do in the prompt, the better the AI can help you. If you lack knowledge here, add the following note to the end of your prompt: First ask me a few questions to develop a prompt that promises maximum success.

The classic for the Internet – the funnel framework

Since the marketing funnel has already been explained so overused, we will refrain from extensive descriptions here – because the GROW experts always aim to provide you with a view beyond the horizon and surprise you – how about a non-binding conversation with Marcel – our GROW specialist, who can provide the right answers for almost every marketing, brand and e-commerce question?

So – test GROW and take the next step – contact us!