Need Marketing Direction? Make a Plan!

The New Year is almost upon us! What good things are you expecting in 2023? What are your marketing priorities? Where are you looking to make the most profound investments? Aren’t sure? It’s time to create a marketing plan! Here are five actionable steps you can take. 

1. Write a business summary.
   Before creating a marketing plan, you need a firm grasp of your overall business. Write a business summary that includes critical information about your company: what you do, what makes you unique, and what makes you successful.
2. Identify your marketing goals.
   What are your marketing goals for the coming year? Do you want to add a new marketing channel? Expand into new markets? Deepen your knowledge of your customers? Once you know where you are going, you can start developing a plan.
3. Select your target markets.
   Analyze your customer base and refine your understanding as much as possible. What do your best customers look like? Where do you find them? How do they behave?
4. Pick your channels.
   With a clear understanding of your customer base and marketing goals, ask yourself which channels will most effectively reach them. The options are exploding—exciting new direct mail formats, easier ways to send personalized and triggered postcards and emails, and exciting print-to-mobile tools. Identify which channels your audience is most likely to respond to.
5. Set your goals.
   With all of this in front of you, start planning different campaigns to achieve those goals. Take a long-term perspective, and don’t try to achieve them simultaneously. Are you looking to deepen engagement? Create a drip campaign that includes direct mail, email, and social media. Want to boost sales? Take small steps that build on one another to give you the best chance of success.
6. Set a realistic budget.
   What are your estimated expenses to reach your goals? Come up with a breakdown of these expenses over the next 12 months. This could include data analysis, production and mailing, and design costs. Assess your strategies based on what you have to spend.
7. Set a timeline.
   Set a realistic timeline for each campaign. Work backward from when the campaign will launch and build in some buffer (because things never go exactly as expected). Creating small, achievable mini-goals will help keep you motivated and moving in the right direction. 

Getting started with creating a marketing plan is easy. Use one of the many free online templates or contact one of our business development experts to guide you. Whichever route you take, the most crucial step is just getting started!