5 Step Plan

Ask any marketing professional for advice and they will say that you need a Marketing Plan in place for your business. This acts as your ‘Bible’ with regards to what activity to do, when, how and why. A good Marketing Plan should be a detailed account of your whole business. From background to target market, USP to communications strategy and everything in between. If you do not have the budget for a professional marketeer here are my 5 easy steps on how to write a marketing plan.

1. Prepare Your Marketing Plan

Start by setting out your business in detail, from the business background to the products and services you supply. Run through all the touch points with a short paragraph from target market to USP, Pricing & Positioning, Communications Strategy to Conversion Strategy. This forms the Executive Summery that gives any reader a short, sharp overview and history to date of the business.

2. Focus

Start to drill down on specifics and focus on where you want your business to go. What are your business objectives? Set out short, medium and long term goals to achieve. Who is your target market(s)? What does your dream client look like and what is your Unique Selling Point (USP)? Think about why would someone chose to buy from you over and above your competitors?

3. Get Set, Review

List out all of the on and offline activity you currently have running and you have done in the past. List results, No. of followers, No. of reviews etc. to get a feeling for where you see the most interactions and new business come from. Use this information to help shape the creative ideas and strategic planning areas.

4. Go Deep & Think Hard

Now it is time to list out all of the areas of the marketing mix that your business could use. Make sure that they are suitable areas that touch your target market. There’s no point starting a TikTok account if you are selling SAGA Cruises. Think about all of the opportunities to sell, Distribution Plan, Conversion Strategy, Referral Strategy, Upsell Strategy etc. How can you use your network to get recommendations? Use your past clients for case studies, 3rd parties for linked campaigns, offers and discounts or loyalty campaigns.

5. Money Matters

The most important part of the Marketing Plan are the KPIs, or as near to this as you can get. How much is your marketing costing you and how much revenue is it generating? The Financial Projections section is at the end of the plan and should be updated as and when data permits. Going forward this section should shape the investment for the following years plan.

And in Summary

Every marketing plan needs to be regularly reviewed and updated. Results of campaigns need to be recorded and objectives updated as they are achieved. On average a monthly marketing review for the forthcoming months should be held with a quarterly strategic marketing plan review. Only then can you really see the results of the plan and start to accurately plan for the future.

Finally, if you would rather have a marketing professional write a solid strategic plan for your business then The Marketing Assistant is for you. Prices start from £950 www.themarketingassistant.co.uk