1. Identifying Marketing Goals
Identify your goals. Do you need to generate more revenue? Are you
looking to create a greater awareness of your company and its offerings?
Identify your goal and then create actions that take you one step
closer to reaching your ultimate goal.
2. Budgeting
Before you can begin a marketing campaign and developing a plan,
you should know how much money you have to spend. If you don't
assign a budget to your plan, things could add up quicker than
you think and your marketing dollars could go to waste. Define
your marketing budget and then prioritize your actions.
3. Prioritizing
Prioritizing your actions and deciding where to spend your allocated
marketing dollars depends on your goal. You may want to emphasize
quality over quantity and hope to reach fewer top-paying clients,
or spend less on quality and go for mass reach, resulting in
greater numbers of low-paying clients. Another example is playing
for the short game or the long haul. If you are looking to
generate revenue immediately, you can prioritize your actions
based on their sales cycle. What is the quickest most effective
marketing strategy that will result in sales today? You know
your needs best. Do a needs assessment and prioritize your
actions based on those needs and your budget.
3. Identifying & Targeting Your Customers
Before you can target your customers, you have to know who they
are. Who needs your products and services? What are the demographics
of your audience? How do they make a decision to purchase?
Is anyone else involved in the decision process?
Knowing your customers' needs and motivating factors for buying
will make it easier for you to know how to market and sell to
them. Emphasize the benefits your product/service offers to your
customers. Can you save them time? Can your product help make
their life easier and less stressful? What needs do your customers
have that your product can fill?
4. Understanding Your Competition
Knowing who your competitors are and how their offering is different
from yours will also help you to target your customers. Look
at your competitors' advertisements and how they're pitching
to your prospects. What void have they neglected? What can
you offer that they can't? Why should customers choose you
over your competitors? Tell them.
5. Measuring Effectiveness
A marketing plan is nothing if it isn't effective! Learn from
the results. | 
What's
in a Marketing Plan?