White Paper. How to Develop a Small-Business Marketing Plan. Cole. How to Develop a small-business marketing plan

Transcription

1 White Paper How to Develop a Small-Business Marketing Plan 1

2 How to Develop a Small-Business Marketing Plan Contents Introduction 3 Long-term Goals 3 Focus on Your Customer 4 Plan an Advertising Strategy 4 Track Results 5 2

3 Steps to Maximize Online Exposure Introduction As a small-business owner, you have a lot of plans for your company s future. However, you may need a little help bringing those plans to fruition. After all, you started your business because you are passionate and welleducated about your chosen field. And while you have the skills to turn out a fine product or provide a necessary service, you may not be an expert in marketing. Marketing is an essential part of any small-business plan, but it doesn t need to feel overwhelming if this is your first foray into this aspect of business. Putting a marketing plan together can be simple and serve as a roadmap even for the uninitiated as long as you get the best possible help and make the right first steps. So, where do you start? Long-term Goals Whether your business is just getting on its feet or it s been around for awhile, it s important to think long term in order to craft the best possible marketing plan. Looking at the big picture will give you an idea of the best first steps to take. To get started, ask yourself the following questions: Where do you want your business to be in the next 12 months? What about five years? A decade from now? For example, if you recently opened a small coffee shop, perhaps you want to hit a certain profit margin this time next year and open a second location five years from now. Regardless of how you plan to measure your growth - maybe you d just like to move into a larger office space in a couple of years or bring on another employee it s important to keep your eyes on the prize, so to speak. Being specific about the direction you want your small-business to move in will help you zero in on what s really important and lay out the steps that will lead you to accomplishing that goal. 3

4 Focus on Your Customer It hardly needs to be said that your company is nothing without its customers. Whether that customer base includes Fortune 500 companies, parents of newborns or college students, you need to be sure your product or service is always tailored to their needs. Start by looking at the basics: Is your product the best it can be right now? Just as importantly, is it set at a price that will both turn a profit and feel reasonable and fair to your customers? When you think about your main customer base, try to imagine who your ideal customer would be. Start by considering demographics, including age, gender, marital status, income, home worth, length of residence and the neighborhood they live in. These factors will help you zero in on your ideal customer and who is going to be buying your product. From there, you can figure out how to best reach those prospects. Plan an Advertising Strategy Today, there are more avenues than ever that allow you to pinpoint precisely who you would like to reach. Here are a few you can consider: Print and telemarketing Whether it s direct mail, a local newspaper, a magazine or fliers that you distribute around your area, print is one of the go-to forms of advertising for many businesses. Telemarketing is another great avenue that allows you to contact your customers directly. Consider whether the demographic you are aiming for still reads the paper daily or has abandoned it for other forms of media. As with all types of ads, it may be worth your while to work with a copywriter, graphic designer or both to make your promotions professional and attractive. Television and radio While you probably won t be buying advertising time during the Super Bowl any time soon, you may be surprised by how affordable a basic 30-second commercial spot can be. Tailor the time your ads run in conjunction with the schedule of your demographics. Radio is another great option for advertising, and it tends to be more affordable and requires less production to create a commercial spot. Obviously, you lose the visual aspect of television advertising, but you can usually make up for that in frequency. 4

5 Online There s no doubt that advertising online is the hot new trend, and for good reason. You can often choose exactly who will see your ads whether that s married women between 45 and 65 or male college students in your immediate area. You can also choose from a variety of platforms like social media, landing pages or banner ads on websites your customers frequent. Other forms Don t underestimate outside-the-box thinking. Consider billboards, trade shows, setting up booths at conferences or local events, or sponsoring Little League teams in your area as a means to get your company and product name out there. Now that you ve explored your options and narrowed down those that are in your price range, put yourself in your customers shoes and think about the best way to get your products or services in front of them. For example, if you re courting a younger market, ads in the local paper may not be the best route. On the flip side, posting on Twitter might not reach retirees as effectively. Track Results Those new to marketing campaigns often miss one important detail that can make a world of difference: tracking returns on investment. After all, the goal of your marketing campaign isn t just to spread the word about your products, but to increase the profitability of your business. With that in mind, keeping track of the results of your campaign is an essential step toward ensuring the success of your business while spending your advertising dollars in the most effective way possible. Increase the profitability of your business. That means you need to track how people are finding out about your product. There are a variety of ways you can accomplish this goal. The primary step to take is keeping track of your sales and correlating them with your various marketing campaigns. You may notice a spike in sales right after a mailer or your ads are released on the radio or in the newspaper, which is an indication that you re on the right track with that advertising. On the other hand, flat numbers or spikes that don t appear to be correlated with any particular campaign mean you may need to rework your ad campaign methods. 5

6 Remember that old adage Don t throw good money after bad? In this case, it means that even if you ve spent lots of money on producing a fancy landing page or commercial and getting prime-time television spots, if it isn t translating into growth for your company, it s time to find another method instead of continuing to waste money airing it. If you re advertising online, you can use programs like Google Analytics that track data to tell you which ads are redirecting to your website most frequently. You can even establish what time of day people are more likely to search for your product. Try taking a few basic lessons in Google Analytics or other search engine optimization systems. They will help you incorporate keywords into your website and create online advertisements that will drive more customers to your website. Of course, low-tech methods can be just as effective. Whether you re selling products online or in a store, you can always add a How did you hear about us? feature on your website or on a postcard at checkout. While these responses won t necessarily give you a complete picture of how your ad campaign is working, it will certainly be another piece of the puzzle. What works for you today may not work a year from now, so constantly revisit your campaign to see if everything is still generating the results you re aiming for. It s not enough to just have this data; you have to make it work for you. Sit down and see what means of advertising appear to be most effective and focus on those. Ads that aren t converting to sales should be abandoned. Even if you re only spending a few dollars a week on an online ad, if it s not generating business, drop it and funnel that money elsewhere. You should also avoid letting your marketing campaign stagnate. What works for you today may not work a year from now, so constantly revisit your campaign to see if everything is still generating the results you re aiming for. As your business grows or markets shift, make sure you are constantly growing and changing with them. Think of it this way: Ten years ago, no one was advertising on Facebook, and Twitter didn t even exist. Now, they re the two leading social media platforms 6

7 and often serve as the primary method of advertising for fledgling companies. What will marketing look like in another 10 years? Even if this is your first foray into marketing, the skills you ve used to get your small-business off the ground will serve you well in this next venture. That said, no one expects you to be a marketing expert right off the bat, so don t be afraid to ask for help from the right places. Ready for the next step? Download our FREE Marketing Playbook for Small-Business Owners: colecommunity.com/marketing-playbooks Lakeside Plaza Omaha, NE Phone: colecommunity.com 7