Marketing plans accumulate habits: long standing media placements, the boosted post, the trade event and the search campaign that no one has questioned for years. The answer is not to chase every new platform. It is to test whether each channel still reaches a valuable customer at a useful moment and produces evidence worth the cost.
Editorial note: All figures and scenarios are illustrative. This article does not concern or make claims about any particular publisher, publication or current dispute.
Customer behaviour changes faster than media plans
Ofcom reports that UK adults spend an average of four and a half hours online each day, with most online time on smartphones. Google Search reached 82% of online adults in May 2025; Google Maps reached 77% of adult smartphone users. AI-supported search summaries and chat tools are also changing how people gather answers.
That does not make every traditional channel obsolete. It means customer discovery is more fragmented and observable. A media plan built around historic assumptions rather than present behaviour needs review.
Run the “where are they now?” audit
| Question | Evidence | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| How does the need begin? | Search queries, interviews, sales calls | Capture intent or create demand |
| Where is the shortlist formed? | Customer conversations, analytics, reviews | Strengthen discovery surfaces |
| What reduces risk? | Lost-deal reasons, support questions | Add proof and clearer answers |
| What creates action? | Conversion and sales data | Remove journey friction |
| Which spend has no learning? | Annual cost and attribution gaps | Instrument, test, reduce or stop |
Do not confuse new with effective
A fashionable channel may attract attention without reaching buyers. An established publication may still have a trusted niche. Search can capture demand but cannot create unlimited demand. Social can demonstrate a proposition but may not close a complex sale alone. Email can compound value only when the audience and permission are real.
Give every channel a role: create awareness, capture active demand, build consideration, convert, retain or learn. Challenge channels that survive only because “we always do it”.
Use a portfolio, not a platform religion
- Owned: website, content and email relationships.
- Demand capture: Search, Maps and relevant directories.
- Demand creation: social, video, PR, partnerships and selective print.
- Conversion: landing pages, booking, sales follow-up and remarketing.
- Evidence: Analytics, Search Console, platform data and CRM outcomes.
The portfolio should share one proposition and measurement language. Casale’s 90-day marketing planning framework turns the review into a manageable cycle rather than a once-a-year document.
A no-drama reallocation method
- Protect channels with clear commercial evidence.
- Instrument valuable channels with weak measurement.
- Ring-fence a test budget for credible alternatives.
- Set a decision date and success threshold.
- Move budget in stages rather than by fashion.
- Record what was learned, including failed assumptions.
Frequently asked questions
How often should a channel plan be reviewed?
Monitor important indicators weekly or monthly, review allocation at least quarterly and revisit the underlying customer journey when the market, offer or evidence changes.
Should unmeasurable channels be stopped?
Not automatically. Improve measurement first and judge strategic role. If a material spend has neither evidence nor a credible learning plan, reducing or testing alternatives is reasonable.
Does customer research need to be expensive?
No. Structured sales interviews, enquiry-source capture, lost-deal reviews, search data and support questions can reveal useful patterns before commissioning larger research.
Keep the plan attached to reality
This is a cornerstone in Casale’s Marketing to Cornwall series. Read why advertising to everyone in Cornwall weakens relevance, explore our fractional marketing leadership or ask us to challenge the inherited plan.
Sources and review note: Ofcom Online Nation 2025; Google Analytics and Search Console guidance; ICO direct-marketing guidance. Reviewed 15 August 2026.