CREATE A BASIC MARKETING PLAN ^ŝdž ĂƐLJ ^ƚĞƉƐ ƚŽ ^ƵĐĐĞƐƐ z EE/^ ^KDD Z addresses?
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. WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO TELL THEM? Write a marketing message directed specifically to your target customer. Focus on the benefits (not features) you offer. Concentrate on one thing: what’s in it for them!
Use the Six-Step Process Below to Create Your Basic Marketing Plan;
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.WHAT DO YOU SELL? Clearly define your product, including the features and benefits. Make a list of each product or service you offer, and under each one, list the corresponding benefits to the consumer.
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. TO WHOM DO YOU SELL? Create a detailed customer profile. If you market directly to consumers, list demographics: age, gender, lifestyle, location, preferences, interests, etc. Where do they go? What do they read? Listen to? Watch? If you market to businesses, describe your ideal business client, include the size of company, number of employees, gross sales, location, etc. What do they want? What concerns and challenges do they face, especially those your product
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: WHERE ARE YOU NOW? You need this as a benchmark for future tracking. Make a note of current marketing activities, the costs involved and, if possible, the revenue they generate.
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. WHERE DO YOU WANT TO BE AND WHEN? Visualize your business one, two and five years from now. What will it look like? Be specific. Consider what changes will need to take
place to achieve the future you want for this business.
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. HOW DO YOU PLAN TO GET THERE? Define specific, realistic marketing goals. Plan how you will measure the results. Decide which marketing strategies you will use, for example: networking, cold calling, mailings, advertising, website, emails, & promotional events. Select two or three you could use to jump-start your marketing. Brainstorm the best tactics for each of the strategies you’ve selected. For example, if you chose networking as a strategy, your tactics might be to attend certain events each week, revise your 30-second commercial and produce marketing materials to hand out. Assign time and dollar resources for each strategy you’ve chosen. Follow your plan, regularly review progress, track the results and modify where necessary. When something produces good results, stick with it. If it doesn’t work, stop or adapt it. By writing one step a day or one step each week, you’ll soon have a simple written marketing plan to guide you and ensure that you get the best return on your marketing dollar as you grow your company in the right direction.
All ůů WŝĐƚƵƌĞ ŽƵƌƚĞƐLJ ŽĨ ĞŶŶŝƐ ^ŽŵŵĞƌ Picture Courtesy of Dennis Sommer
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