Amelia Barr once said "It is always the simple that produces the marvellous". That made me wonder whether we really do try to make things more complicated than they are.

Now, I'm not suggesting that marketing has to be dumbed down to work, but I am challenging you to make sure that what you do is clear and easy to understand by your audience. Simple sanity checks by people around you can often point out things you've got too close to see.

I could, yet again, talk about making sure that you understand what your audience wants before you go full-steam ahead with your next campaign. But I have done talked about marketing basics before! Instead, I want you to really think about whether you are making things easy for your clients and customers. Think about your purchasing process for example - is it as simple as it could be? Have you added anything that is unnecessary that could be a barrier to completing a purchase?

And what about your content? is it full of flowery words and expressions, which means that your message is lost? Have you made sure you understand the rules of writing for the web (old as they may be!) to ensure that your website is a pleasure to read by its intended audience?

I'm a real fan of the "simple stupid" rule, and I often challenge our own plans to make sure we really are keeping our marketing as clean and easy to understand as possible. Why don't you start from now with that in mind?