Small Business Marketing >> Your Plan

Small Business Marketing Plans

Putting a small business marketing plan on paper will help you in many ways. For one thing, it forces you to think about all aspects of your marketing program, from budget to execution. It also helps you stay on track and monitor results along the way.

In this section of Small Business Ideas we will discuss the various components of a marketing plan and how you can create the type of plan that supports your company's goals.

Key Concepts of a Marketing Plan

It's nearly impossible to create a "one size fits all" plan for small business marketing program. Your company is unique in many ways, so you must consider your strengths and weaknesses when deciding how you want to promote your business.

With that said, there are some concepts of a successful marketing plan that apply in all cases. So let's talk about each one in turn:

1. Marketing Costs & Budget

How much can you afford to spend on your small business marketing program? This is a key question you must answer before you can move on to any other aspect of your marketing plan.

At this stage, you are not trying to determine how much your marketing is going to cost. You won't know that until later on, when you decide on the techniques you will use. For now, you are just trying to determine what you can afford to spend on marketing each month, after all of your other expenses have been covered (payroll, supplies, facilities, etc.).

Some small business owners go about this process in reverse, which is a mistake. They will start by shopping for marketing tools and services, and then try to set their budget around these things. This is a good way to overspend on your promotional efforts.

So when you create a marketing plan for your business, start with a monthly budget number in mind. Then put that number on paper. You can always revise it later on, as needed. But you need to know what you can afford before moving on to other elements of your small business marketing plan ... and speaking of those other elements, let's move on to item #2:

2. The Immediacy Factor

Do you need your marketing program to start generating sales right away? Or do you have other sales channels in place already? In other words, does the very survival of your small business depend on the marketing campaign you are about to launch?

This is something to consider early on, because it will help you determine (A) the types of marketing techniques to focus on and (B) how to budget accordingly.

For example, let's consider the differences between search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) marketing. Both of these techniques can help you increase the traffic to your small business website, which in turn means more inquiries and sales. But SEO is a long-term strategy that won't deliver results right away, while PPC can put you on the first page of major search engines by tomorrow.

This is a prime example of the immediacy factor, as it relates to your small business marketing plan and campaign. If you currently have a steady stream of business coming in, and you're just looking for additional traffic streams, then you can probably afford to put more time and money into search engine optimization / SEO. On the other hand, if you don't have any other marketing / sales channels in place and need immediate results from your marketing efforts, then pay-per-click would be the better search engine technique.

This shows how immediacy can influence your small business marketing plan, and this same concept can be applied to any other promotion channel you're considering. Before putting a particular technique onto your plan, ask yourself the important questions: "Does this deliver the kind of results I need to keep my business going? Is this is a long-term or short-term strategy?"

3. Audience Research & Understanding

So far in this lesson, we have focused mainly on your small business marketing budget and the immediacy factor (how quickly you need results). Now we need to discuss one of the most important elements of your marketing plan — the audience you are trying to read.

The more you can learn about your intended audience, the easier it will be to shape your marketing message around them. Are you engaging in consumer or B2B marketing? How much money does your ideal prospect make? What do they want from a product or service like yours? What challenges do they face, and how does your product help them overcome those challenges?

When you create a small business marketing plan, you need to know who you are speaking to. I recommend that you get your team together and develop an audience profile sheet that fleshes out these critical details about your prospective customers. This will help you in many ways, but in particular it helps you (A) choose the right marketing channels and (B) create the right message and pitch. And speaking of marketing channels...

4. Marketing Techniques & Methods

If you tackle these items in the order I've presented them, you should have no trouble choosing the best marketing techniques for your small business promotional campaign. Should you focus on Internet visibility? Direct mail? Tradeshows? Networking? Once you've created a budget for yourself, answered the immediacy question, and researched your target audience, you'll be able to choose the best marketing channels to support your goals.

Conclusion

A small business marketing plan is an essential item to have in place before you start promoting your products or services. It forces you to answer some tough questions, and it helps you choose the best techniques to reach your intended audience while staying under budget. It will require some time and energy on your part, and you might get frustrated along the way, but the results are worth the effort.