The RACE framework
A winning formula for success in the digital world. Don’t get left behind.
R.A.C.E
The race framework is the result of a decade of experience in building and marketing businesses in the digital world. Developed by Craig Teague designed as a simple roadmap for successfully marketing and growing a company in the new era of digital business.
This overarching approach and following implementation strategy cuts through the noise and shows you not only what to focus on but also the how and why.
Arm yourself with the knowledge and skills to futureproof you and your business and captilise on the biggest transformational shift into a fully digital and AI leveraged world.
Let’s break it down
The above graphic illustrates the following point I want to make and then I break down the 4 main steps below. Business has a lot of parallels with racing, businesses compete with other businesses and there are winners and losers. The difference is in business the winners are those that can stay in the race the longest while at the same time building a following of fans and developing their race machine. Much like in a race the engineers design and build a vehicle to enter the race, as a business owner or marketer you need to design, build and develop your race machine. I continue the race and vehicle analogy later as it pairs well with the components and nuts and bolts of marketing. For now let’s just focus on the ‘Race’ and think of it like the marketplace and remember it’s about finding a race worth winning and one you can compete in.
1. Research
The first step is to be crystal clear about what problem you are solving and for who you are solving it for. This is basic market dynamics but often overlooked. You need to sell something people want that is to supply a demand. Thankfully in the digital world this is easy to figure out with a plethora of tools and data at your finger tips. Check out my one of the core concepts which is how to create a customer persona. Creating a customer persona allows you to clearly see who exactly you are serving and where to find them which leads you to then looking who else is serving this demographic though competitior analysis. This gives you the who, what, where and how. I have a list of highly recommended tools to go with each step of this framework. Sign of for free to access the toolkit.
2. Approach
Armed with data and clarity about the market and your ideal customers you then need to come up with a strategy. A strategy is nothing more than a list of priorities and actions steps to work on these priorities. The problem comes with what your priorities should be. This is where experience and expertise come in. You can use this framework to self assess your business and get clear action goals of what will move the needle. Once you know what your priorties are then you can then see what skills are required, you should aim at least initially to acquire these skills yourself or internally before outsourcing. This is one of the biggest mistakes businesses make which is giving control of your business to freelancers or agencies. Once you know your objectives and skills required you can then build your race vehicle. With the right vehicle being driven by the right person you can win.
Core Concepts:
– Get your R.A.C.E score here
– Jump the skills canyon
– Create the perfect business model
3. Create
We live in an attention economy and those that are winning the game now and in the future are those that can command and harness attention online. You need to build a media engine that cranks out high quality content such as videos, landing pages, graphics, blogs, articles, podcasts etc. These media assets need to packaged up in a way to position and sell through offers, funnels, organic social content and ad creatives. I have various key concepts that cover this stage of the cycle below.
Core Concepts:
– WTF is a sales funnel?
– How to create winning offers
– The customer interest spectrum
4. Execute
Most people skip to this step which is why most people don’t actually understand marketing and why most small businesses suck at marketing.
Once the market and customer is understood and you build a suitable machine to meet the demand and have created the required assets you then need to execude the plan with carefully crafted campaigns. These ‘special ops’ are what drives demand and consistently generate leads and sales in a sustainable way. The game is to run campaigns that you can measure and learn from so you can repeat the process and continually improve. Most small busineses never make it this far, this is where the pros hang out. Once you have made it this far you then repeat the cycle and keep doing laps until you reach the podium.
Core Concepts:
– Create a flood of sales with Special Ops
– The only 4 ways to market your products
– Social Media content engine
– Mission Control data-driven decisons
Implementation
Once you have understood the overarching approach the next step is to implement the strategy. Continuing with the race analogy the below concept breaks down each component of marketing and their interconnectedness by comparing the marketing to a vehicle component.
Each component of the vehicle is useless without the others, a motorcycle is no good without a rider or bike with no wheels is useless. Just like in business you could have the best product in the world but if nobody knows about it you can’t sell it. You could have the best paid ad strategy but if your website is too slow it doesn’t work. The game is to understand each component and make sure you have each in place and that it is in good working order, this is the first stage. Once everything is working and can be measured you can then look to make incremental improvements across the board.
This may seem overly simple and obvious but is often completely overlooked at people get lost in the technicalities and the latest trend or platform. The fundamentals never change. Imagine your business is a vehicle is it a well crafted masterpiece operating at a high level supported by talented engineers or is it a cobled-together moped with bits hanging off?
Build a winning marketing machine
Use the diagram below to understand each component of marketing and click each to get an overview and learn more. At the bottom of this page, you can do the Performance Score which will convert your business to a vehicle and give you a score for each component along with a detailed and tailored action plan and strategy PDF.
Product / Service
Tech, Systems & Assets
Funnels
Paid Ads
tool tip content
Talent / Skills
Data Dashboards
Artificial Intelligence
Direction / Strategy
tool tip content
Customer Service
tool tip content
Branding / Content
tool tip content
Adaptibility
Strategic Partnerships
Audience / Community
Wheels - Product
You need to have good product market fit much like you need to have tyres that are fit for the vehicle and terrain. A good product ecoystem allows your business to roll forward smoothly and gather momentum. A bad product is like a buckled wheel that only leads to problems. Learn how to create products that resonate with your audience.
Engine- Systems & Assets
At the heart of your business are your assets, your IP, your mission statement supported by a tech stack. You need good systems in place for your engine to run smoothly. Learn what successful businesses have under the hood and how to create assets that can be monetised and leveraged.
Pilot - Talent
A critical piece of the puzzle is the human element, you need people with the right skills to get any success. Not having the fundamental marketing skills and knowledge in house is like putting someone who’s never ridden a motorcycle in control of a 1000cc superbike, it can only go badly.
Fuel - Funnels
Leads and sales are the fuel for your business, run out of fuel and you go out of business. If you learn how to generate leads consistantly and you will never go out of business. You need a good offer, a sales funnel and then traffic. Learn an approach to generating a pipeline of money.
Fans- Audience
In a world where attention is everything your goal is to attract the right attention online and have a process of turning strangers into raving fans. Learn how to build a community of loyal customers and brand ambassadors. Build something looks awesome and does good for the world so people get behind it.
Dashboard - Data
Thanks to technology we have an abundance of data available to us that not too long ago business owners could only dream of. Make use of this data and track the right metrics to be clear about your progress. Much like your car dashboard that shows your fuel gauge, speedo, rev gauge and engine temperature they provide critical reel time information.
SatNav- Strategy
Steer your business in the right direction with clear goals and a clear strategy to achieve them. Clarity around your priorities is essential for success especially in a world full of distractions and information overload. Learn how to generate a clear strategy and be confident you are focusing in the right areas.
Bodywork - Content
Content is the currency of the internet and the content you produce is goodwill deposited into the marketplace. You should make content creation an integral part of your business and produce large amounts of good content including videos, podcasts, brochures, articles, guides, graphics and posts. It’s your bodywork it’s how the outside world perceive you, it’s your brand.
Turbo- Paid Ads
Paid ads has the potential to print mone but equally has the potential to burn it. Running successful ads is a skill learned through failing fast and having the foundations in place. It’s a turbo charger for your business but you want to ensure you are not turbo charging a poorly maintained engine attached to a bicycle.
Chain- Partnerships
Understanding leverage is key in marketing and one great example is partnering with other businesses who have a similar audience to you. You can craft deals that give you exposure to their audience and piggyback off their brand. This is especailly important when lauching a new company.
Gearbox - Adaptibility
We live in an exponential age where technology is consuming the world and now with AI robots taking over being able to adapt and pivot has never been more valuable. Giants will fall and people will get crushed by the tidal wave of change that is upon us. Don’t fuck this up.
Suspension- Customer Service
Good customer service is the suspension in your business when set up correctly is makes for a smooth ride. Customers expect answers to their queries within minutes and anything beyond that their likelihood of buying falls off a cliff. You work hard and spend good money to attract customers so why leave them hanging?
ECU- AI
Much like the ECU in your car that monitors and controls your engine in real time without your input. Artificial intelligence will do the same in business. AI will be the biggest and fastest transformational shift in human history and most people can’t see it coming. For the first time ever human beings can be scaled leveraging AI.
Tailored Growth Plan
Get a 25 page PDF Marketing Strategy and Growth Plan tailored to you.
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Packed full of actionable tasks to take your business to the next level. It also links to further resources so you can learn the skills and get to work straightaway.
Bonus: Get loads of suplmentary materials including:
The Social Media Playbook – Worth £49
Website Checklist – Worth £39
Paid Ads Masterclass – Worth £149
Marketing Fundamentals Course – Worth £499
