Integrating RACE with SOSTAC® for Smarter Marketing Plans

SOSTAC® is a well-known marketing planning system that helps businesses organise their strategies through clear stages, from analysing the situation to reviewing results. On the other hand, RACE is a digital marketing model focused on customer journeys.

But what if you mix SOSTAC® and RACE? Combining SOSTAC®'s thorough planning with RACE's customer-centred approach creates a powerful digital marketing plan. This blend helps marketers build smarter, goal-driven strategies that cover every step from planning to action and measurement.

This article dives into how to integrate RACE into each stage of SOSTAC®, showing practical ways to align customer journeys with marketing goals.

What Is PR Smith's SOSTAC®?

SOSTAC® is a marketing plan framework that guides businesses systematically, step by step. The name stands for Situation, Objectives, Strategy, Tactics, Action, and Control. It is designed to help create, carry out, and evaluate marketing plans, both online and offline.

PR Smith created SOSTAC® in the 1990s and later updated it for digital marketing in the early 2000s. He included it in his book Digital Marketing Excellence. He wanted a simple but complete method for planning marketing, going beyond just analysing to also covering practical steps for doing and measuring work.

This framework builds on tools like SWOT analysis but adds clear stages for action. Because of its easy structure and thorough approach, marketing teams worldwide still use SOSTAC® today.

SOSTAC® helps businesses stay agile to adapt quickly when markets or customer needs change. It also encourages data-driven decisions and improves alignment between departments, making sure everyone works toward the same goals and direction.

For B2B brands, SOSTAC® works especially well because it helps manage longer sales cycles and complex decision-making processes. It guides teams in setting clear objectives, crafting targeted strategies, and linking marketing activities to measurable business results.

If you want to dive deeper, we have a full article about PR Smith's SOSTAC® that explains each stage and everything in more detail.

Situation

Also called Situation Analysis, this answers the question: "Where are we now?"

This stage involves understanding a business's current position before developing new plans. It's a way to check what is working, what needs help, and where there are risks and opportunities for growth. Knowing this makes goals more realistic and strategies smarter.

Here are the key parts to review:

• Market Research & Data: This involves looking at facts and figures about your market. It helps spot trends, track changes, and see what customers want most.
• Customer Insights & Behaviour: Studying how people act and what they like gives clues for making decisions. Knowing why customers buy or ignore products is useful for every marketer.
• Competitor Analysis: This means checking what your competitors do well or not so well, so you can stand out.
• Digital Presence Review: Seeing how your business looks online is important. This includes websites, social media, and other digital profiles to check if they attract or lose visitors.
• SWOT Analysis: SWOT means strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Listing these helps everyone see risks and chances in their current state.

Objectives

This answers the question: "Where do we want to go?"

This stage is all about setting goals that the team will work towards. Good objectives guide the plan and help everyone know what's important. These goals should be clear and easy to measure so progress can be tracked.

Here are things to cover:

• 5 Ss: This includes Sell, Serve, Speak, Save, and Sizzle. Each 'S' focuses on a different part of the business, like selling more, helping customers, talking to people, saving money, or making things fun.
• SMART Goals: Goals should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Each goal is clear and doable, with a way to know when it's finished.
• Sales Targets & Market Share Goals: Setting numbers for sales or market share helps teams aim for something real. It's easy to see if these goals are met or need more work.
• Brand Awareness Metrics: This measures how many people know or notice your brand. It's useful for tracking the success of advertising and promotions.
• Customer Satisfaction KPIs: These are scores or feedback that show if customers are happy. High satisfaction means the business is doing something right.

Strategy

This answers the question: "How do we get there?"

This stage is all about setting the path to reach your business goals. It covers the big decisions, like which groups of people to focus on and how to make your brand stand out from the rest. A good strategy means you are working smarter, not just harder.

Here are the key points to think about:

• Target Market Segmentation: Divide your audience into different groups. Each group shares something in common, like age or interests, so you can reach them better.
• Positioning Statement: It's a short message that says how you want your brand to be seen.
• Value Proposition: This shows why people should choose your business over others. Talk about what makes you special or solves a problem for your audience in a short manner.
• Brand Message: This is the main idea you want people to remember about your business. It is how you communicate with customers and the image you create.
• Competitive Advantage: This is what sets your company apart from the competition. It could be price, quality, speed, or something else that sets you apart.

Tactics

This answers the question: "What specific actions will we take to achieve our strategy?"

This stage focuses on the specific steps you take to implement your strategy effectively. It's about the daily actions, choices, and plans that help grow your brand and achieve your goals. Tactics are where ideas turn into results.

Here are the important areas to focus on:

• Marketing Mix (4 Ps/7 Ps): This is Product, Price, Place and Promotion (add People, Process, and Physical Evidence to become 7 Ps). Combine the right elements to appeal to your customers.
• Channel Strategy: Pick which platforms to use, like social media, email, or shops, so your message gets to the right people.
• Content Plan: Planning what you say and share, whether it's blogs, videos, or posts, keeps your marketing fresh and interesting.
• Campaign Timeline: Choose when to run your marketing efforts. Having a timeline helps keep everyone on track and makes sure things happen on time.
• Budget Allocation: Decide how much money goes where to prevent overspending and ensure the most important tasks receive the necessary support.

Actions

This answers the question: "Who does what and when?" 

This stage turns tactics and strategy into real steps, so everyone knows their job and what needs doing next. Actions make them work in the real world and keep the team moving forward.

Here are the important pieces to organise:

• Team Responsibilities: Assign clear roles so each person knows what to do.
• Project Timeline: Make a schedule for each step. Timelines help teams see deadlines and work together better.
• Resource Requirements: Figure out which tools, money, and people are needed. It helps make sure nothing is missing when work starts.
• Implementation Steps: List all the main actions to follow. These are like instructions everyone can check to keep work running smoothly.
• Risk Management Plan: Think ahead about things that could go wrong before they happen. It's about having backup plans so challenges don't stop progress.

Control

This answers the question: "How do we track success?"

This stage is all about checking if the plan is working and fixing things if needed. It helps track if results match the goals and tells the team when to make changes. Control keeps the plan on track and helps improve future work.

Here's what you should cover:

• Performance Metrics: Use numbers like sales or website visits to measure success. These show if the business is moving in the right direction.
• Monitoring Tools: Set up ways to watch progress with tools or apps. It makes checking results quick and easy.
• Review Schedules: Plan when to check results and meet as a team. 
• Reporting Framework: Build reports to share updates and results with everyone.
• Adjustment Procedures: Be ready to tweak the plan. If something is off track, quick changes help get results back on track.

What Is The RACE Framework?

The RACE framework stands for Reach, Act, Convert, and Engage. It is a practical digital marketing model that guides B2B businesses through four key stages of the customer journey. RACE helps you attract strangers, turn them into visitors, convert them into paying customers, and keep them coming back rather than making one-time purchases.

Info came from the RACE Framework graphics of Smart Insights.

Dr. Dave Chaffey and the Smart Insights team created the RACE model in 2010. They designed it to give marketers a simple, clear structure for planning and carrying out digital strategies. Over time, they refined it by adding a Plan stage at the beginning, which in some cases became PRACE.

RACE focuses specifically on digital channels and customer touchpoints. It keeps the spotlight on measurable results and puts the customer at the centre of every stage. RACE works very well with customer journey mapping and fits perfectly with the SOSTAC® framework for thorough marketing planning and optimisation.

RACE includes providing a clear roadmap for digital marketing in B2B, focusing on actionable steps and tangible results. Plus, it aligns well with how modern customers actually buy today, making marketing more effective and efficient.

For B2B brands, RACE suits longer sales cycles. It helps organise content marketing to raise awareness, nurture leads with helpful information, support sales discussions, and maintain strong relationships after purchase through targeted communications.

If you want to dive deeper, we have a full article about the RACE Framework that explains each stage and everything in more detail.

Plan

Info came from the RACE Framework graphics of Smart Insights.

This stage is about laying the groundwork before running any digital marketing activities. It's where teams set their direction, decide what success looks like, and choose how to measure it. This makes sure the rest of the process follows a clear path, making all actions easier to track and manage.

In this stage, it's important to focus on how digital tools and channels can help reach business targets.

Here are some things and actions that happen at this stage:

• Digital transformation and KPI selection
• SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound)
• 5 S objectives (Sell, Serve, Speak, Save, and Sizzle)

Reach

Info came from the RACE Framework graphics of Smart Insights.

This stage is about getting in front of as many of the right people as possible. The focus is drawing visitors to your website or content hub. You spread the word through search engines, social media, and ads — anywhere your audience spends time online.

Publishing and promoting useful content is the stage's top priority. It helps to allow sharing, so your posts travel further with the help of other websites, social networks, and even influencers who can boost your message.

Key measures or KPIs for the Reach stage include:

• Unique visitors
• Traffic sources
• Cost Per Click (CPC)
• Impressions
• Followers/Fans
• Click-Through Rate (CTR)
• Cost Per Acquisition (CPA)

Key customer acquisition activities for the Reach stage:

• Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
• Pay-Per-Click advertising (PPC)
• Content marketing
• Social media marketing
• Influencer partnerships
• Video marketing
• Podcast advertising or appearances
• Display advertising

Act

Info came from the RACE Framework graphics of Smart Insights.

This stage is about turning website visitors into leads or prospects by encouraging some sort of interaction. This could be as simple as filling in a contact form, signing up to a newsletter, downloading a guide, or clicking to learn more.

To succeed at this stage, it's important to create customer journeys that are clear and inspiring. Everything you do should make it easy for visitors to engage and show an interest.

Key measures or KPIs for the Act stage include:

• Bounce rate
• Time on site
• Pages per visit
• Lead conversion rate
• Micro-conversions
• Blog/content engagement
• Return visitor rate

Key customer acquisition activities for the Act stage:

• Landing page
• Lead magnets
• Email capture forms
• Interactive tools
• Video demonstrations
• Free trials or samples
• Webinars or online events
• Social proof elements

Convert

Info came from the RACE Framework graphics of Smart Insights.

This stage is where all the hard work pays off. Here, the aim is to turn leads and website visitors into actual customers. You will guide them through the final steps.

To get more conversions, businesses work on making the buying process smooth and simple. The goal is always the same: make it as easy as possible for people to take that next step.

Key measures or KPIs for the Convert stage include:

• Conversion rate
• Average order value (AOV
• Cost per acquisition (CPA)
• Shopping cart abandonment rate
• Lead-to-customer conversion rate
• Revenue
• Conversion by traffic source

Key customer acquisition activities for the Convert stage:

• Optimised checkout process
• Retargeting campaigns
• Email nurture sequences
• Limited-time offers
• Customer reviews integration
• Abandoned cart recovery
• Sales team outreach
• Guarantee and return policies

Engage

Info came from the RACE Framework graphics of Smart Insights.

This stage is all about keeping current customers happy and encouraging them to come back again and again. This is where loyalty and advocacy grow — happy customers are more likely to recommend a brand, leave positive reviews, and buy again.

Key measures or KPIs for the Engage stage include:

• Customer retention rate
• Customer lifetime value (CLV)
• Repeat purchase rate
• Net Promoter Score (NPS)
• Customer satisfaction score (CSAT)
• Active subscription renewal rate
• Customer engagement score

Key customer acquisition activities for the Engage stage:

• Personalised email marketing
• Loyalty programmes
• Customer onboarding
• Post-purchase follow-up
• Exclusive content
• Community building
• Referral programmes
• Customer feedback loops
• Upselling and cross-selling

Integrating RACE into Each Stage of SOSTAC®

Bringing SOSTAC® and RACE together makes planning digital marketing much easier. Both frameworks are popular, proven, and very practical. SOSTAC® gives a clear structure, while RACE adds a customer journey focus. By combining the two, teams have a straightforward plan for creating, managing, and tracking marketing strategies from start to finish.

In this approach, RACE is blended into every stage of SOSTAC®. Each stage of SOSTAC® gets specific goals and KPIs from RACE.

For example, in 'Situation' or 'Situation Analysis', teams use RACE metrics to check how many people they currently reach, act, convert, and engage with. There's no separate 'Plan' because planning is already an integral part of the entire process, so it fits naturally instead of standing alone.

The Multichannel Marketing Plan Growth Wheel of Smart Insights. Image source: smartinsights.com

The Multichannel Marketing Growth Wheel by Smart Insights shows one way to join SOSTAC® and RACE. It's a handy framework made by their experts to help marketers see how both systems can support digital marketing campaigns across different channels. Their chart runs RACE through SOSTAC®, combining Tactics and Action.

In this article, we focus on incorporating the four main RACE stages — Reach, Act, Convert, and Engage — into every part of SOSTAC®. This means each stage is covered in detail and gets clear goals, KPIs, and customer journey steps, making the plan even more practical.

Smart Insights' wheel inspired this guide, but it doesn't aim to copy or imitate their work. Instead, it acts as an expansion and more convenient way to explain it to help marketers like us use RACE within the SOSTAC® stages to build, measure, and grow marketing strategies for any type of business.

The key activities you use remain those of the usual SOSTAC® framework. The main difference is that you refer to RACE at every stage to assess and align your marketing goals and actions with the customer journey, which makes your planning more focused on real customer behaviour and measurable results.

RACE-Aligned Situation

As mentioned, it is about understanding the current state of your business and market. You gather facts on your strengths, weaknesses, customers, and competitors. It involves analysing existing data like sales numbers, website visits, customer feedback, and digital performance.

You also review digital channels, such as your social media presence and search engine rankings, to assess how well your marketing is performing today.

Here's how we can think about the current Situation using RACE, focusing on today's metrics:

• Reach: Current number of unique visitors from SEO, paid ads, and other channels.
• Act: Rate of visitor interactions like content downloads or webinar registrations.
• Convert: Percentage of visitors who request demos or trials now.
• Engage: Level of email open rates, repeat visits, loyalty participation, and referrals.

B2B Example for Situation:

We will use this particular example to illustrate the entire framework.

For a B2B software company with a new project management tool, the Situation review shows that they currently get most website traffic from organic search. However, only about 3% of visitors request demos. Customer feedback reveals users want better onboarding support. Social media engagement is low, and repeat visits are moderate.

RACE-Aligned Situation for the Example:

• Reach: 15,000 monthly unique visitors, mainly from organic search.
• Act: 10% of visitors download content or register for webinars.
• Convert: 3% of visitors request demos.
• Engage: Email open rates at 25%, moderate repeat visits, and few referrals.

RACE-Aligned Objectives

Good objectives are specific, realistic, and aligned with the overall business ambition. 

The 5 Ss work alongside SMART objectives to create focused and practical goals. They help ensure that targets cover all key areas of marketing performance, from sales and service to communication and cost efficiency.

When we connect Objectives to RACE, think about measurable goals for different parts of the customer journey:

• Reach: Increase website visitors by targeting new audiences through SEO and paid ads.
• Act: Improve visitor engagement by growing content downloads and webinar signups.
• Convert: Raise demo requests or trial signups by simplifying forms and follow-ups.
• Engage: Boost repeat visits, email open rates, loyalty programme signups, and referrals.

B2B Example for Objectives:

The B2B software company from Situation wants to grow. They set targets to increase their organic traffic from 15,000 to 18,000 visitors monthly. They aim to increase webinar registrations by 30% and demo requests from 3% to 6%. Their focus is also on improving customer loyalty by doubling the referral programme participants.

RACE-Aligned Objectives for the Example:

• Reach: Boost monthly unique visitors from 15,000 to 18,000 within 6 months.
• Act: Increase content downloads and webinar signups by 30%.
• Convert: Double the demo request rate from 3% to 6%.
• Engage: Double referral programme participation and increase email open rates to 35%.

RACE-Aligned Strategy

Strategy is about deciding how to achieve the objectives set earlier. It focuses on the big picture and key choices like which customer groups to target and how to position your brand.

It's important to link this to the customer lifecycle and use insights from RACE to plan accordingly. Strategy determines the focus for attracting new visitors, engaging them, converting them into customers, and keeping them loyal over time.

Here's how strategy aligns with RACE stages within the marketing plan:

• Reach: Prioritise SEO and paid social ads aimed at attracting key target segments.
• Act: Plan to develop engaging content formats like blogs that are brand-aligned.
• Convert: Focus on optimising landing pages and CTAs to improve conversion rates.
• Engage: Build strategies for post-purchase communication such as loyalty programmes.

B2B Example for Strategy:

Using the project management software example, the company's strategy targets mid-sized businesses in tech and consulting. They position their product as an easy-to-use, collaborative platform.

For Reach, they plan SEO optimised blog posts and LinkedIn ads. For Act, they will create quizzes and webinars to educate leads. The Convert strategy includes user-friendly demo signup pages. For Engage, the plan involves onboarding emails and a loyalty rewards programme.

RACE Alignment of Strategy for the Example:

• Reach: Target tech and consulting sectors with tailored SEO content and LinkedIn ads.
• Act: Develop educational webinars and interactive quizzes focused on common productivity issues.
• Convert: Develop clear, user-friendly demo signup flows to increase visitor-to-lead conversion rates.
• Engage: Design onboarding email series and loyalty programmes to boost customer retention and referrals.

RACE-Aligned Tactics

While Strategy focuses on the 'what' and 'why', Tactics focus on the 'how' — the channels, content, and campaigns that bring the Strategy to life. This stage is about choosing the right mix of marketing activities and deciding when and where to run them for the best impact.

This includes things like content creation, advertising, social media posts, emails, and event planning. It's also where budget and resources get assigned to different tasks.

Here's how tactics connect to the RACE stages in your marketing plan:

• Reach: Publish SEO-optimised blog posts and run targeted PPC campaigns.
• Act: Create landing pages loaded with lead magnets and run monthly webinars.
• Convert: Implement demo request forms and send targeted email nurture sequences.
• Engage: Operate loyalty schemes and encourage referrals through rewards.

B2B Example for Tactics:

The software company will publish SEO-friendly blogs targeting productivity keywords and run LinkedIn ads for Reach. For Act, they'll build engaging webinars and downloadable guides. Convert tactics include simplified demo signup forms and email sequences to nurture leads. For Engage, personalised onboarding emails and a referral programme will help keep users active and loyal.

RACE-Aligned Tactics for the Example:

• Reach: Publish three (3) monthly blog posts, run LinkedIn PPC campaigns, and create short explainer videos.
• Act: Host monthly webinars and create downloadable productivity checklists.
• Convert: Simplify demo signup pages, set up automated email nurturing, and use retargeting ads.
• Engage: Send personalised onboarding emails and launch a referral rewards programme.

RACE-Aligned Actions

Once again, this stage will focus on turning tactics into clear tasks, assigning responsibilities, setting deadlines, and organising resources.

It includes managing teams, tracking progress, and removing obstacles so that campaigns can run smoothly.

Here's how Actions align with the RACE stages to keep everything organised:

• Reach: Assign content creators and ad managers for blogs and social campaigns.
• Act: Assign webinar hosts and designers for lead magnets creation and interactive tools.
• Convert: Assign sales and email teams for demo requests follow-ups and nurture sequences.
• Engage: Assign customer support for onboarding emails and referral programmes.

B2B Example for Actions:

The software company sets clear roles: the content team publishes blogs biweekly and manages LinkedIn ads for Reach. Marketing operations handle webinar logistics and create downloadable resources for Act. Sales reps promptly follow up on demo requests and manage nurture emails for Convert. Customer success staff run onboarding emails and manage the referral programme to engage customers.

RACE-Aligned Actions for the Example:

• Reach: Content team creates schedule and publishes blogs; ads team manages LinkedIn campaigns.
• Act: Webinar team plans sessions and works with designers on lead magnet graphics.
• Convert: Sales team tracks demo requests and sends follow-ups; marketing automations send nurture emails.
• Engage: Customer success team manages onboarding sequences and referral programme communication.

RACE-Aligned Control

You will track key metrics here regularly to determine if you're meeting your goals and identifying problems early. It also includes having clear reporting frameworks so everyone knows the current status and what to improve. When necessary, control allows you to tweak strategies, tactics, or actions to stay effective.

Here's how Control connects with RACE to measure and improve results:

• Reach: Monitor website traffic, unique visitors, and social media growth.
• Act: Track content downloads, webinar attendance, and lead engagement.
• Convert: Measure conversion rates, demo requests, and sales numbers.
• Engage: Analyse customer retention rates, referral activity, and email performance.

B2B Example for Control:

The software company uses Google Analytics to track monthly website traffic and social ad performance for Reach. They track webinar signup numbers and download counts for Act. Sales CRM reports demo requests and closing rates for Convert. Customer success dashboards show onboarding completion, retention rates, and referral growth for Engage.

RACE-Aligned Control for the Example:

• Reach: Unique visitors, bounce rate, social followers.
• Act: Webinar attendance, content downloads, average session duration.
• Convert: Demo request conversion rate, trial-to-paid conversion, revenue from demos.
• Engage: Customer retention, referral signups, email open and click rates.

Control-Situation Transition

Control acts as the vital link between one marketing cycle and the next. By monitoring performance through key metrics aligned with RACE, businesses gather the evidence needed to understand what worked and what didn't. These insights form the basis of the next Situation stage in SOSTAC® for the next campaign or timeframe, creating a continuous feedback loop.

When Control highlights successes or challenges — for example, a surge in website visitors or a drop in demo requests — it informs the new Situation Analysis. This fresh analysis reassesses the market and company status based on updated data, making sure future plans stay relevant and focused.

In this way, Control doesn't just measure results; it drives ongoing improvement and adaptation.

To put it simply, what you monitor and report during Control becomes the facts you review in Situation. The better this link, the smarter and more agile your marketing cycles become, ensuring strategies and actions match real-world changes over time.

Further Learning

Looking to learn more? I've collected some fantastic resources that go hand-in-hand with this topic if you want to dive deeper.

• sostac.org — SOSTAC® Official Website
• prsmith.org — PR Smith Official Website
• smartinsights.com — Smart Insights Official Website
• smartinsights.com — How to use the SOSTAC® planning model and the RACE Framework
• smartinsights.com — The Multichannel Marketing Plan Growth Wheel [Infographic]
• davechaffey.com — Dr. Dave Chaffey Official Website
• davechaffey.com — How do I integrate the SOSTAC® and RACE frameworks?
• youtube.com — Dr Dave - Dr Dave Chaffey Channel Video: "Integrating RACE and SOSTAC® planning frameworks"

Making Marketing Plans Work for You

Combining SOSTAC® and RACE gives marketers a clear, practical way to plan and carry out digital marketing. It helps teams focus on the right goals, reach the right people, and measure success effectively. Using both frameworks together makes marketing more organised and results-driven.

All credits to Dr. Dave Chaffey and PR Smith for their efforts in creating and continuously improving their frameworks. For any other details regarding them and their frameworks, please visit the Smart Insights and SOSTAC® websites for more information.

For personalised support in creating this kind of plan, book a free consultation with our marketing experts. We'll work together to design strategies that match your goals and build lasting connections with your audience.

Got a question in mind? Check out the FAQs below for quick answers!

Derek Buntin

Derek is the driving force behind Adonis Media, a growth agency dedicated to helping businesses achieve explosive revenue growth. With over 20 years of experience in the trenches, Derek takes a data-driven approach to growth and has guided countless clients towards success, crafting data-driven strategies and implementing cutting-edge tactics. Let's connect and discuss how Adonis Media can help your business thrive!