Are you ready to take your brand to the next level to accomplish all your goals? It’s essential to have goals for your business, and it is equally crucial to have a marketing plan to achieve them. Use these four steps to kick-start your marketing plan.
Use GROWL’s 4 steps to start creating your stand-out marketing plan.
1 Conduct research
This multi-tiered section includes a couple of different research and analysis points. Begin by creating a SWOTT analysis to help you understand where your business stands internally and externally.
S – Look at your business’s internal strengths. What marketing efforts are going well, and what actions have been successful? Are there any data points to support this that would be beneficial to include?
W – Determine your internal marketing weaknesses. Are there any marketing efforts not producing results?
O – What opportunities are available for you to capitalize on externally? Using what you learned about your strengths and weaknesses, see how you can act on growth and improvement opportunities.
T – Understand external threats from competitors, regulations, and other entities that will impact your business. Foreseeing threats will help you prepare for challenges and change.
T – Be aware of the trends happening beyond your industry. This can include social media developments or world events. Watching trends will help you understand the market you are competing in and identify new ways to reach a new and engaged audience.
Next, research both your customers and your competitors. Try to get an inside look at your customers and understand their pain points and core needs by creating personas to help ensure your marketing efforts reach the right audience. When looking at your competitors, try to pinpoint what they do well and identify gaps your business can fill. Robust research builds the foundation of your marketing plan.
2 Set SMART goals
Once you’ve assessed your brand’s past and existing situation and identified your target audience, you can start setting SMART goals. The letters in SMART goals stand for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound. Building SMART goals outlines and clearly states what you are trying to accomplish, what time frame, and have an identifiable measurement metric. Be sure your goals are realistically attainable and relevant to your business vision and mission statement.
3 Develop your Strategy
Before you work on your SMART goals, look at the logistics and determine the steps you’ll need to take to see success. These should be outlined in your marketing plan, providing a guide.
First, you’ll need to know the marketing budget you are working with and then choose tactics to help you accomplish your goals. Potential marketing channels include paid ads, partnerships, content marketing, etc. Determine the budget you will need to implement your tactics and build your timeline. With all this information, you can determine how to allocate your budget appropriately throughout the year.
4 Finalize with an Executive Summary
While it comes first, save your marketing plan’s executive summary for last. This section should provide context to your marketing plan, including company goals, marketing triumphs, plans, and other relevant details. You can include your brand’s vision and mission statement as well. This will help ensure your marketing goals align with your overall company goals. Don’t overload this first section with too much information. Keep this section brief and lead with the most valuable information.
Need help creating and executing your marketing strategy? Contact the GROWL Team today.