Have you started planning your marketing strategy and programs for next year? You’ll want to get going if you haven’t so you start 2012 in a strong competitive position, with plans in place and budgets approved — not scrambling to make decisions and feeling behind from the beginning.

The Marketing Maven at Global Spec, who specializes in marketing for the industrial sector, offers a two-part series to help you evaluate your current marketing efforts, focus on your objectives for 2012, and choose the right programs to achieve your goals.

The first article offers strategies for gathering information and getting an early start on formulating next year's marketing plans. The five key strategies the Marketing Maven emphasizes:

• Start by analyzing the past
• Engage your sales team
• Study industry trends
• Understand your company’s business plan
• Make a wish list

This month, the Marketing Maven offers five marketing ideas that will help position you to achieve your goals.

• Align marketing with customer behavior
• Implement measurable marketing
• Invest in emerging marketing channels
• Create marketing plans for different budget levels
• Reach out to media partners today

To help you accomplish the above, she also provides Seven Digital Trends Industrial Marketers Should Know, and if your goal is to reach new markets, she provides some advice for that as well.