How to Create a Marketing Plan for Smooth Sailing on the Sea of Success
Three Steps – Select 5 Tactics; Implement the Plan; Assess Results
Revenue, money, sales, moola. That’s what marketing creates. Revenue puts the wind in your sail! As a business owner it is your job to make sure you have cash flow and sufficient profit to pay the bills. A well designed marketing plan will help you get this. What I want for you after reading this article is to obtain a constant flow of cash from your marketing plan so that you can sail the sea of success in a yacht, not a dingy.
In order to have cash flow, you need a marketing plan.
I view Sales and Marketing as a sandwich. Marketing should “butter up” your prospects so that you have no problem closing the sale. Your product or service is the “meat” in the middle of the sandwich. It’s up to you to create the right marketing plan to position your product or service appropriately and encourage your prospects to eat the sandwich.
The Marketing Plan Objectives are:
How do you use marketing to stand out in a crowded marketplace???
How are you going to position yourself so that you are DIFFERENT?I’ll give you the easy answer: Become an Expert in Your Field and use your marketing to showcase your expertise. Follow this three step template to see how.
Step I. Select FIVE (5) Marketing Tactics – What five marketing tactics do you want to employ? They should be varied and encompass areas that will promote your expertise. If you need a list of marketing activities to spark your creativity, consider my Two Page Mini Business Plan™ which includes a 6 page Marketing Activities Idea Bank.
Example of 5 Marketing Tactics for an independent Financial Advisor:
1. Strategic Alliances - Seek out a select number of strategic alliances with Lawyers and Accountants. Benefits: Widen your circle of influence. Drive qualified prospects to your practice.
2. Article Writing – Write one article per month on various investment topics and post on your website. Benefits: solidify expertise in your own mind; Become a press magnet; Position yourself as an expert; Draw internet traffic.
3. Networking – Find up to three venues to network and gain exposure to new prospects. Benefits: gets you out of the office and helps you to further define your 30 second commercial.
4. Public Speaking – People admire public speakers and view them as experts. Benefits: decrease the time it takes to explode your profitability by widening the number of prospects you get your name in front of at one time. Allows you to use subjects you have written about in item #2.
5. Press Releases - Tie in with articles and send as you post new articles on your website. Benefits: the press will become accustomed to receiving your releases and will view you as a credible industry source.Step II. Schedule Each Tactic on your Calendar - Marketing only works when it is consistent. This is because marketing activities will take 90 to 180 days to show results. The seeds you plant today are growing, so don’t expect immediate results. You can’t meet with a strategic partner once and have it be worthwhile. You must follow up and nurture consistently. You can’t write one article and then say it doesn’t work. You can’t give one speech and lament lackluster results. Plan your tactics, add to your calendar and do it.
Step III. Assess Results After Six to Twelve Months – Create a spreadsheet in excel. On the horizontal section label each row with a marketing tactic. On the vertical section create a column for Cost, Revenue, % Return on Investment, What you get out of the tactic other than revenue, What you dislike, and time commitment rated from 1-10. Assess where you got results and consider what you get out of each tactic other than revenue. Tweak and start all over again.
By taking the time to create a marketing plan that includes activities that will build your business into a powerful entity and you will:
- Increase exposure, with clients and with prospects
- Become recognized as an expert in a specific area
- Create a flow of qualified prospects sailing in your direction
- Take more risks, get out of your comfort zone (and out of the office), and grow your business
Hang in There!
All too often I see business owners give up on marketing far too soon. It’s unrealistic to expect immediate results from your marketing, yet in our fast-paced, immediate-gratification world this is what we look for. Make a plan, take it slowly, and keep on doing it!!I wish you smooth sailing ahead!
©Copyright 2008- Suzanne Muusers - All Rights Reserved
© Copyright 2008- Suzanne Muusers - All Rights Reserved No reprint rights are included with this article.
About the author
Suzanne Muusers is a Business Coach and Marketing Queen based in Scottsdale, Arizona. She is a credentialed member of the International Coach Federation and has owned or managed a business every year since 1981. Suzanne helps entrepreneurs and independent financial advisors build wealth through marketing and branding strategies.
Read marketing tips and how to's on Suzanne's Blog – The Prosperous Entrepreneur
Copyright© 2008, Suzanne Muusers | All Rights Reserved|
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