What is the process to an effective marketing plan?
I want to create an effective marketing plan. What steps, resources, topics, content, etc. should be included? Should there be a plan A and B in my action plan? I'm seeking advice on how to get started. Thanks in advance.
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Feb 24, 2015
To come up with an effective marketing plan, you need to have marketing goals aligned with the business goals. Get a clarity on the budgets you have at disposal and then draw up a realistic plan.
To reach your target audience there are different tactics, your budgets will determine where you put your monies.
The plan includes the marketing tactics and how each one will help address your marketing objective:
Public Relations
Social Media
Search Engine Optimization / Search Engine Marketing
E-Marketing
Collateral
Web Marketing
Promotional Events
Having identified the tactics, look at the daily/weekly/monthly activities you need to execute, and put a monthly calendar. Also know the skills and resources required to deliver each activity.
Keep reviewing the plan and do necessary course corrections, based on what's working and what's not
Regards
Feb 25, 2015
Hi Mohammad, You can go with strategic Marketing, sharing some frameworks of marketing, might these can help you to improve the process.
1. Know your customer (Market driven principles) 2. Do deeply market research.
3. Customer have the final say (Customer decision), 4. Commit to being first in the market you serve.
5. Deliver total quality to guarantee customer satisfaction, 6. Predict your experience in market.
Please modify accordingly to start whether it's short term strategy & Long term.
Focus on three things:
1. Segmentation 2. Targeting 3. Positioning
Feb 25, 2015
Vista and Ervin have given great ideas of how to structure. I would add that the marketing plan also supports the sales goal, and the two need to be in sync. The marketing strategy must also be built around new products in the pipeline as well and also include traditional channels such as print, and loyalty/promotional campaigns. The marketing plan needs to have flexibility to pivot if the results are not giving the return.
Feb 25, 2015
When defining a strategy it's always good to start with your objectives. Where do you want to get by implementing this marketing strategy? What is a good objective? It's one that contributes in pushing your business forward, in marketing case, brings about sales/deals/partnerships/etc. Objectives should be SMART (you Google this one, if yoi don't know it).
Once you have your objectives, you have to look at what you have. Those are your resources. Your people, your budget, your social media accounts, your PR and Advertising partnerships etc. (anything you can use to relay your message)
Choose your channels. What tools are you going to use to get your message to your audience? Where is your audience? What are their habits? These are the kind of questions that will let you clearly define your channels. Also, for each channel, outline the guidelines for communication, the tone of the "voice" (friendly, professional, warm).
It's now time to plan the activities that will allow you to reach your defined objectives through the channels you selected with the resources you have at hand. The more detailed the better. Put in numbers and deadlines. Arrange everything in a nice GANTT Chart.
A strategy is not to be taken as something set in stone. You review it as many times as needed, even during execution. If all hell breaks loose, you tweak your strategy accordingly. Always remember to keep your team in the loop with any changes on the strategy, so that they can act accordingly.
Having an A and B plan only makes sense when you want to take into account the outcome of an event (elections, sports match etc.) that might make you communicate differently, and I don't mean just from the content point of view. Generally it's best if you keep your strategy as a single one, no matter the outcome of any event (again not content), and have a, let's say, promo event if the home team won or lost the match or whatever happened...Good luck with your strategy!
Feb 26, 2015
Context matters greatly with planning. Some solid answers here about what precedes a marketing plan. Also essential is what follows the plan. Here's a brief video that provides the full context: http://on-purpose.com/purpose-business-plan/ Marketing plans in isolation too often whither because they don't have roots in strategy and growth throughout the rest of the business.
Be On-Purpose!
Kevin
Feb 27, 2015
Mohamed, it depends on the goal for the document. Is it to guide your team or to try to raise funds to support the project? The first one needs to be more tactic driven and focused on the channels of distribution. The second needs to be more strategic in nature and focused on the size of the market, the target consumer, how they are going to be reached and what the results will be if they purchase.
Feb 28, 2015
I don't think it can be quite as simple as your question alludes. By which I mean we would need to know more about what you are planning to market.
What is the product?
Who are the potential customers?
Where are the potential customers?
What type of location are you in?
What do you want to achieve by this marketing?
How much is your marketing budget?
What will success or failure look like?
What will the review process look like?
What is Plan B?
etc.
Mar 2, 2015
Hi, Not a direct answer to your question, but I would suggest that you look at GROW model for inspiration:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GROW_model
Also consider insights from applications of industry methodologies to marketing:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenniferrooney/2014/04/15/applying-agile-methodology-to-marketing-can-pay-dividends-survey/
What I am pointing at is developing an effective plan that not only is well supported but also innovative.