Stop throwing marketing spaghetti at the wall.
You’ve probably heard me mention ‘marketing spaghetti’ a fair bit. It’s one of my go-to ways to explain what happens when marketing isn’t strategic.
Throwing spaghetti at the wall might seem like a fun idea, but in marketing, it just leads to wasted effort, messy results, and a whole lot of frustration.
So, let’s look at why this approach doesn’t work and how you can clean up your marketing to get results and avoid the marketing spaghetti mess.
What is marketing spaghetti?
Marketing spaghetti is what happens when you throw every possible idea, tactic, or channel into the mix without a clear strategy and plan.
It’s a scattergun approach where you try a bit of everything and hope that something sticks.
Social media posts, digital ads, content creation, email campaigns – it all gets thrown at the wall with no real thought about how it fits together or aligns with your goals.
The problem? Most of it falls flat. And without understanding what works or why, you end up with wasted time, money, and effort.
Marketing spaghetti might feel productive because you’re busy, but busy doesn’t always mean effective.
Why marketing spaghetti doesn’t work
The thing about marketing spaghetti is it feels like you’re doing something, anything, to get results. You’re busy, you’re ticking off tasks, and you’re throwing ideas out there. But here’s the problem: it’s not intentional, it’s not focused, and it’s not sustainable – it’s all guesswork.
When you’re throwing ideas at the wall without purpose, you’re relying on luck rather than intention, aka strategy. This approach might lead to occasional success, but most of the time, it results in:
- Inconsistent messaging: When your marketing is all over the place, your ideal clients get mixed signals. One day you’re saying one thing, the next it’s something else. People end up confused about what you actually do. Or worse, they don’t trust you to do it.
- Wasted resources: All those hours, dollars, and effort go into marketing activities that don’t hit the mark. It’s frustrating to look back and realise that what you’ve been working so hard on hasn’t delivered the result you’re looking for.
- Missed opportunities: When you’re too busy doing everything, you don’t have the time to focus on what’s actually working. The marketing that is working gets lost because you’re spread too thin to notice it.
And, even when something does work, you’re left wondering why.
- Was it the timing?
- The message?
- The platform?
And without knowing the answer, you can’t build on that success.
On the flip side, the things that don’t work (the posts, ads, or campaigns that fall flat) become lessons you can’t learn from because you’re too busy moving on to the next random idea. It’s a vicious cycle of activity without progress.
Marketing spaghetti creates an illusion of productivity, but it’s not sustainable or effective. Instead of achieving meaningful results, you’re left with a messy pile of efforts that don’t add up to much.
What happens when marketing spaghetti sticks
When something works in your marketing, it can feel like a win—and it is, sort of. But if you don’t know why it worked, you’re flying blind. Maybe a post got good engagement, or an ad performed better than usual, but without digging into the details, it’s just a guessing game. You might get it right again, but there’s every chance you won’t.
What’s even trickier is that success without understanding can create bad habits. You might start relying on the same tactic over and over, thinking it’s the golden ticket, only to realise later that it was more about timing or luck than anything else. It’s like running in circles, hoping the same results will magically repeat themselves.
And let’s be honest, the most frustrating part is when you don’t feel in control of the outcome. Success is great, but if it feels like it’s happening to you instead of because of you, it’s hard to build confidence in your marketing.
Understanding why something works is what lets you build on it, improve it, and turn it into a repeatable process. That’s where the real magic happens and it’s a lot better than hoping for the best.
And the spaghetti on the floor
And then there’s the spaghetti on the floor. That’s the stuff that doesn’t land: the social media posts that don’t connect, the ads that don’t convert, the campaigns that don’t resonate. It’s frustrating because, even though you’ve put in the effort, it feels like you’re throwing time and money straight into the bin.
The problem with the spaghetti on the floor isn’t just that it didn’t work. It leaves you with no answers. Without understanding why these efforts failed, it’s impossible to fix them.
Another thing to think about is how this can affect your confidence. When too much spaghetti ends up on the floor, it can feel like nothing is working. You start second-guessing your choices, pulling back on ideas that might actually have potential, or worse, giving up altogether. It’s hard to keep momentum going when all you can see is the mess.
Every bit of spaghetti on the floor is a missed opportunity to learn. Even the stuff that doesn’t work can teach you something valuable about your ideal clients, your messaging, or the platforms you’re using.
The key is to pause and figure out what happened. By taking a moment to reflect, you can turn those failed attempts into insights that guide your next steps.
How to stop throwing marketing spaghetti
So how do you stop wasting spaghetti? It starts with focus and intention. Here are three steps to help you:
1. Set clear goals
What are you trying to achieve? Whether it’s building your brand, engaging your ideal clients, or driving sales, knowing your goals gives you a clear direction.
2. Understand your ideal clients
Who are they? What do they care about? Where do they spend their time? This will help you craft your marketing messages and choose the marketing channels that resonate with the people you actually want to reach.
When you know your ideal clients, you’re not just hoping something will stick, you’re intentionally creating content they care about.
3. Measure and refine
And don’t forget to measure what you’re doing.
Look at what’s working and what isn’t. Adjust as you go.
Because when you know what works, you’re no longer throwing spaghetti at the wall. You’re serving up a dish that people actually want.
The benefits of ditching the spaghetti method
When you move away from the ‘marketing spaghetti’ approach, you’ll notice some big differences:
- More effective campaigns: Your efforts are focused, so they have a bigger impact.
- Less wasted money: Every dollar is spent with purpose.
- Better insights: You’ll understand why things work or don’t, so you can keep improving.
- Stronger connections: Your ideal clients feel like you understand them because your messaging hits the mark.
No more marketing spaghetti
Marketing doesn’t have to be messy or wasteful. With the right focus, you can make every effort count. That means more results, less frustration, and no spaghetti on the floor.
If you’re ready to stop throwing marketing spaghetti, let’s talk. I’m here to help you turn your marketing into something that sticks – for all the right reasons.
