The Places You Do Business

Introduction

Place refers to the locations, platforms, and channels where your products or services are available to customers. This includes physical locations, e-commerce sites, digital platforms, and distribution partners.

A mature marketing function ensures that each place aligns with the customer journey and operational efficiency. It's about being where your customers are, in ways that support their experience and your brand positioning.

Best practices include:

• Mapping every channel or outlet where customers access your offerings.
 
• Evaluating how each location supports customer experience and business goals.
 
• Ensuring consistency in service delivery across all places.
 
• Using data to refine placement strategy over time.
 
• Aligning physical and digital presence for seamless transitions.

Businesses that get 'place' right reduce friction for customers and maximize their visibility and reach.

Place of Doing Business Guide

Goal: Ensure all sales and service channels align with your brand and customer journey.

Step 1: Inventory Your Channels

• List every location or platform where customers can access your products/services.
  (e.g., physical stores, website, marketplaces, partner distributors)

Step 2: Evaluate Performance

• How does each channel contribute to revenue?
 
• Are there customer complaints or issues with certain channels?
 
• Is customer experience consistent across platforms?

Step 3: Analyze Customer Fit

• Are your customers using the channels you prioritize?
 
• What additional platforms or outlets should you explore?

Step 4: Improve Operational Alignment

• Are there operational inefficiencies due to where you're selling?
 
• Can you improve inventory, fulfillment, or response times?

Step 5: Refine Your Channel Strategy

• Identify underperforming channels to improve or retire.
 
• Identify high-performing channels to invest more in.
 
• Document your channel strategy and review it quarterly.

Your Maturity Score

Use the Maturity Model scale:
1 = No defined channels or inconsistent presence
2 = Basic setup but not evaluated
3 = Some alignment with customer journey
4 = Channels optimized for customer experience and business fit
5 = Channel strategy fully aligned, integrated, and monitored