Build Digital Marketing Foundations Not Campaigns
This article was published on February 5, 2026
Categorized in: Digital Marketing
Too often, we see organizations treating digital marketing as if it is made of separate entities. They translate their goals to campaigns, which may work well in the short term. but does little for the long term. While campaigns are important, this thinking is a bit backwards. Campaigns are only truly effective if they are anchored in the long term.
The solution, then, is to focus on building your foundations first. This is the key to both long and short term success. Foundational digital marketing is anchored in the present while having an eye to the future. It creates the backbone that makes everything else more effective.
Foundations Create Long Term Growth
When composing a digital marketing strategy, it is important to do so with both the present and the future in mind. This is why it is so important to create the foundations first before even worrying about the campaigns. The nature of a campaign that it is short-term in nature and designed to yield short term results that are directly tied to a specific call to action or goal. The foundational thinking creates sustained results over time.
The end result is the foundations are what created the long term growth and visibility. When the digital marketing strategy is created with a focus on building the fundamentals, or the foundations, every activity that you do will be focused on long term growth and will all impact each other. “Campaigns” thinking is isolated.
Create Digital Marketing Around What Buyers Expect
One big mistake we see is when organizations treat digital marketing in a way that places the focus on them. The problem is that this only tells part of the story. Sure, organizations want to achieve their goals. Yes, marketing can help them do that. But this leaves out a vital component – the audience. You need to connect with your audience and make that a priority, which will help them eventually become buyers.
So, what do these potential and future buyers expect from your marketing? Everything you do needs to be done to please them. When they’re happy, that’s when they convert from a passerby to a lead, and then from a lead to a paying customer. Give them what they want. This is best achieved by creating the foundation first.
You Need Both Foundations and Campaigns
Honestly, it isn’t a matter of foundations OR campaigns. You actually need both to create lasting, long term results. The foundational digital marketing could take months to start yielding results, but a campaign could take days. So, you really do need to have both in the mix. It’s just not a good idea to set up a campaign before you develop the strategy and at least get setting up the foundations underway. Working a campaign will hit much better if it’s strategically aligned and part of the big picture.
When it comes to digital marketing, the best way to do it is to hit it from all directions. Start with strategic development, then build your foundation and at least get that started. Then, you can start to build out campaigns that yield results while waiting for the foundations to develop.
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About the Author: Brick Marketing President, Nick Stamoulis
Nick Stamoulis is President of Brick Marketing and has over 25 years of digital marketing experience. He works directly with clients on strategy and implementation, helping solve complex challenges through SEO, AI Search Optimziation (GEO), content marketing, social media, PPC, and conversion optimization. Nick Stamoulis has worked with over 500 companies across virtually every B2B industry and also provides digital marketing consulting and training classes, helping companies improve performance and achieve the digital marketing outcomes they are looking for.
