Fetch Communications

If you’re not seeing the marketing results you’re hoping for, it’s time to conduct a gap analysis on your marketing operations. The process helps identify the difference between where your marketing is now and where you want it to be, and it can uncover inefficiencies, missed opportunities, or misalignments with business goals.

It should offer you a clearer picture of gaps you need to address in order to achieve your desired future state — a highly productive, skilled, efficient, strategic and effective marketing operation. 

Here’s a step-by-step guide to conducting a marketing operations gap analysis

1. Assess Your Current State

Clarify what successful marketing operations look like for your organization. Ask:

• What are our marketing goals? (e.g., lead generation, brand awareness, customer retention)

• What KPIs matter most? (e.g., cost per lead, campaign ROI, conversion rate)

• What tools, processes, and talent do we ideally need?

Tip: Use SMART goals—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound.

2. Define Your Goals and Ideal State

Take inventory of your existing marketing operations. Review:

• Tools & Technology: CRM, marketing automation, analytics platforms—are they integrated and used effectively?

• Processes: Campaign planning, content workflows, approvals, reporting.

• People & Skills: Does your team have the right capabilities (e.g., data analytics, content creation, paid media)?

• Performance Metrics: How are current campaigns and channels performing?

3. Identify the Gaps

Compare the ideal state to your current state. Look for:

• Process inefficiencies (e.g., delays in content production)

• Tech underutilization (e.g., marketing automation not set up correctly)

• Skill shortages (e.g., lack of data literacy or SEO expertise)

• Missing metrics or reporting blind spots

• Misalignment with sales, brand strategy, or customer journey

4. Analyze the Root Causes

Ask why each gap exists. Go deeper than surface-level symptoms.

Examples:

• Is reporting weak because of fragmented data?

• Are email campaigns underperforming due to poor segmentation?

• Is time being lost due to too many manual processes?

5. Prioritize Gaps Based on Impact

Not all gaps are equal. Rank them based on:

• Dependencies (e.g., need for new tools or hires)

• Business impact (e.g., revenue loss, brand risk)

• Ease of resolution (e.g., quick fixes vs. structural change)

6. Develop an Action Plan

Create a roadmap to bridge the gaps. Include:

• Success criteria

• Specific initiatives (e.g., “Implement a lead scoring model”)

• Owners and deadlines

• Required resources (tech, budget, training)

Gap analysis complete! Well done. You should now have the answers to questions such as: 

• Where and why is your marketing ROI not optimal? 
• Does lack of target audience knowledge indicate a need to focus on customer research and data analytics?
• Are there capacity and/or skills gaps you must fill to meet your marketing content production quality standards and goals? 
• Do you require better planning and understanding of evergreen content, repurposing, and multi-format content strategies? 
• Do you need better performance measurement and knowledge of metrics and data analytics? 
• Is it time to reassess your strategy and bring in a consultant to help you identify and address gaps and guide growth? 

If you have come to the conclusion that you need a consultant, we’re here to help. We can also step in and facilitate the Gap Analysis Process for you and save you time. Don’t hesitate to reach out via the contact form on the bottom of our homepage.

Did we miss anything that you think is important? Feel free to comment below, we’d love to hear your thoughts!