How You Can Attract Customers and Beat The Competition with a Winning Marketing Plan
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
It's no great secret that planning is the first key to success in any business venture. A sound marketing plan helps you define who you are and how you differ from the competition. It outlines both the benefits your product offers and exactly how you will better your competitors.
It could be said that the marketing plan is to business as the navigational chart is to sailing. No sailor worth his salt would set sail without first charting a course and similarly, no entrepreneur should embark on a business venture without a well-planned marketing strategy. It is the most fundamental and important of business tools, yet starting up a business without a written marketing plan remains the single greatest mistake made by most entrepreneurs.
Find The Time To Plan
Time, or the lack of it, is the most common reason given for not devising a marketing strategy. While it's true that to come up with a properly constructed plan you'll need time to step back from the daily grind, in the long term, you'll reap the benefits. Devising a plan is a time-consuming, intense, intellectual exercise involving thought, debate, discussion and analysis, but it's also time well invested.
Another reason cited for the absence of a long-term business scheme is the lack of knowledge needed to undertake such a planning session. Unfortunately, there aren't many “how to” courses that can help in a practical way. It all comes down to brainwork, and lots of it.
Keep in mind that setting out anywhere without knowing where you're going or how you're going to get there is a mistake for which you will almost certainly pay later. What's more, with a winning marketing plan you'll be in control of your business in a way that no “sailing-by-the-seat-of-your-pants” version of marketing could ever achieve. Time and effort invested now will pay off handsomely in the future.
Include The Critical Elements
There are several critical elements contained in a winning marketing plan. You must identify your potential customer and learn what it is they want. Know that, as a rule, clients will choose product benefits over product features. Try looking through their eyes. Compare the benefits of your product or service to those of your competition and determine which of yours are unique. At this point, you should be able to match your benefits to clients and produce a marketing menu that clearly outlines what you have to offer and to whom you are offering it.
Once you have determined the special character of your business, you can locate the niche that only you are able to serve. Rather than challenging competitors directly, you can now stake out your own territory, positioning your product or service to deliver their unique benefits and meet the unfulfilled need you have identified. This strategic positioning may also force your competitors to redefine themselves or it could eliminate them altogether.
The advertising tools, techniques and strategies you will use to attract new customers are also a vitally important part of your marketing plan. An effective advertising strategy starts with a thorough knowledge of the competition and your position relative to the competition, and uses this knowledge to differentiate your company in the marketplace.
A successful strategy will then employ a variety of tools and techniques to communicate this unique position, your core messaging, and will deliver these to your target markets. Depending on budget, these can range from hiring an ad agency to sending out a simple flyer. Whatever strategy you choose, stick with your timetable and give it time to work.
Put It In Writing
Once you have worked through your marketing plan, get it down on paper. Writing it makes your commitment tangible and consolidates your strategy. With a written context for your business calendar, you'll be less easily diverted or discouraged by the inevitable minor setbacks and failures. A concrete marketing plan helps you to see “the big picture” and stay with it.
Your formal marketing plan should start with clear goals to which you have made an emotional commitment. These must be simply stated and easily memorable, such as, “I want an extra $100,000 in revenue this year.” A series of numerically based objectives will follow, objectives that clearly delineate the plan for achieving the stated goals.
Commit To An Action Plan
You have established your goals, listed your objectives and located your niche vis-à-vis the competition in the marketplace. You know your benefits, your potential clients and how you are going to reach them. It's time to put your hard work into effect by setting up a timetable for action. Think one year at a time, with a month-by-month implementation schedule to ensure you stick to your course in a timely and systematic manner.
Your plan of action should be concise and to the point. Exactly how and when will the information you have organized and compiled be brought to bear on the market status quo? Plot it out in specific detail, clearly indicating tools, techniques and strategies to be used to realize each objective. Delegate responsibilities for each task and outline tactics for each stage of your plan. Finally, your plan for marketing success must have a firm date for completion.
Budget For Success
At this point, it's time to address the second “how” of your plan. How much money will you allocate to marketing your business?
As a rule of thumb, if your traditional, “old economy” business is in growth mode, you should devote six to eight per cent of sales to your marketing budget. In the maintenance mode, four to five per cent will suffice, while a business in a declining mode should consider a reduction to zero to two per cent for this period.
In the high tech, e-business sector, the old rules fall by the wayside, but here, think more than ten per cent. Whatever your business, don't be afraid to spend dollars where appropriate. Create and follow a budget that makes sense and will achieve your business goal.
A Winning Marketing Plan Will Leave Your Competition in Your Wake
Your winning marketing plan is now complete. As a business owner, you know who you are and what distinctive position in the marketplace is yours. You have identified a previously unfulfilled customer need, established your unique benefits and strategically situated your business and your advertising to deliver your unique message.
Your marketing plan further ensures that you have the resources to do what it takes to succeed in the marketplace. Thanks to a winning marketing plan, your business knows what benefits it has to offer, who wants them and where, when and how to deliver. Your marketing plan is well-charted course for the smooth sailing of your business in the year ahead, a course that will leave the competition in your wake.
Steve Klein is President of Marketing Breakthroughs Inc., a breakthrough marketing, branding, and communications company specializing in helping businesses grow. He can be reached at 613-721-3335 or steve@marketingbreakthroughs.com.
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