A quick trip to the mall this week reminded me how much I love this time of year. The Halloween decorations haven't even made it back into the basement yet and we're still a few weeks away from Thanksgiving. But the store displays decked out in red and green - and Santa Claus sitting atop his big red chair in the middle of the mall - provided the end-of-year reality check for me so early in November.

It's easy to be distracted by the hustle and bustle of the busy holiday season. And who wouldn't be? The upcoming holidays provide us valuable time to visit with family, be thankful for our blessings, shop 'til we drop, and act like kids again.

But back in the real world - the business world - we don't have time to be distracted. Many companies are already gearing up for 2004. And strategy will be the name of the game in the coming year. Marketing plans have made their comeback, not because they haven't been important over the past several years, but because many executives have been busy pushing tactics over strategy.

Perhaps you rewrote your business plan and redefined your marketing strategy early on in the new millennium. And since that time, you've been focused on the tactics - primarily, reaching out to prospects and customers in order to make ends meet during a downtrodden economy. If you're still in business, chances are that you've been successful with your marketing initiatives.

That's the good news. Here's the bad news …

Your old marketing strategies won't work in 2004. Competitive research is in. Shot-in-the-dark advertising is out. Public relations is in. Telemarketing is quite possibly on its way out for good. Competition is fiercer than ever. Differentiation is paramount.

The key to being successful in 2004 rests in having knowledge. And because there's so much knowledge to be had, how do you know what information is both essential and strategic?

Essential, strategic knowledge includes information about your target markets, existing and pending government regulations, the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors, and the marketing initiatives in use by your industry's market leaders. At its core, an effective marketing strategy is all about compiling and comprehending this information so you know who to market to, what to market, and how to market it better than your competitors.

A marketing plan is not difficult to write. But a good marketing plan should be difficult to research. Your research may be laid out in the form of a competitive analysis, market assessment, SWOT analysis, etc. This information is the foundation on which you begin to define and market your products or services. It's a safe bet that you're too close to this information to be able to fully recognize it and filter out the nonessential, non-strategic knowledge. Consider hiring a business and marketing planning consultant who can give you the unique advantage of an outside-in view.

It's important to understand that the true value of a marketing plan is not in its inscription or comprehension but rather in its execution. After you have compiled and comprehended your essential, strategic knowledge, you can (and should) redefine your products or services. Yes, redefine your products or services. I know you know what your products do or what services you provide, but it's time to create product and service descriptions that speak directly to your target markets - and ones that are in parallel with your research findings. In other words, what are the key messages that are important to your target markets?

The most successful companies in 2004 will be those who understand their target markets' needs and wants, and can aptly fulfill those needs and wants. The frontrunners will be those who know how to speak to - and win over - the empowered customer.

In a world where your potential customers are bombarded with billions of messages a week, how will your messages be heard? After the research and product or service redefinition phases are complete, you will then be able to don the creative hat to develop sales and marketing campaigns that will achieve results in the coming year.

It is only through research, message refinement and the development of integrated, unique sales and marketing campaigns that you can feel confident in the way you'll spend your valuable marketing dollars in 2004.

But don't wait until December 31st to begin your marketing planning. Get started today. Hopefully, while your competitors are distracted by turkey and jingle bells, you'll get a jump on winning over the empowered customer in the coming year.

Happy holidays!