Many companies that decide to do marketing launch isolated initiatives, without first creating a coordinated and integrated plan. The result is almost always less than expected, if not catastrophic, leading to wasted time, resources and money.
Investing in marketing requires a detailed study that minimizes risk and enhances success. This is certainly not a simple task, but it is not impossible either. Here's how to do it in 3 steps.
1. Know the starting point and idealize the arrival point
What do you want to achieve with your marketing and communication actions? Increase your visibility? Get more leads? Improve your image in the market? Stand out in your field of activity? Launch new trends? Evangelize a certain concept? Be recognized as an “authority” in a specific area? The more specific you are, and the more aligned with your business objectives, the better.
To know the starting point, it is important to include the SWOT analysis , in which the company's strengths and weaknesses are identified (internal level), as well as the market opportunities and threats (external level); the positioning (who it is, how it is seen in the market, what the competition is, what partners it has), the target (who it is, how it is characterized, what its profile is) and the offer (how it responds to the target's “pains”, what added value it brings).
To idealize the arrival point, it is important to define the strategic objectives in terms of commercial activity, partnerships, solutions, business and team, external communication and internal communication.
Based on the existing “reality” and the projected “dream”, actions are then defined that will allow highlighting strengths, minimizing weaknesses, taking advantage of opportunities, overcoming threats, focusing on offers that bring more value to the company and the target, making the image in the market match the way the company wants to be seen, being the lever of the business, and involving the entire team in the company’s success.
2. Determine, schedule and budget the actions
What is the budget for investing in marketing? The company thailand number for whatsapp must allocate a budget for marketing in the same way that it does to expand its technology park or increase its workforce.
With the overall number in mind, identify the different actions that, when integrated and coordinated, are worth much more as a whole than the sum of their parts. For each of them, define the target, the objective of its implementation, the distribution/dissemination channels, the form, the evaluation, the responsibilities, the deadlines and the costs. At the end, include an Excel spreadsheet with the calendar and the annual budget.
For example, let’s imagine an IT company that has difficulty communicating what added value it brings to the market, what that (apparently complex) solution actually does for the business. One of the actions to respond to this “weak point” is to create Success Stories and apply them to both inbound and outbound marketing initiatives . In short, we have:
Target – Who is the recipient, for whom the Success Story is going to be written (CIOs in the insurance sector, Production Managers in the industrial sector…)
Objective – What is the aim of the Success Story (To promote the offer through a practical example of implementation, to make the target understand the true capabilities of the offer by identifying with challenges similar to their own…)
Disclosure – How the target audience reaches the Success Story (Website, social networks, events, meetings, lead nurturing campaigns/permissive emails, Pay-per-Click ads, media (from the adaptation to Press Release ); Blog (from the adaptation to article)…)
Form – How the Success Story materializes (Document usually two pages long, consisting of title, summary, challenge, solution, results, testimony, “key numbers”, paragraph about the company and the client, contacts and incentive to action – for example, QR Code for landing page with trial version of the product presented in the Success Story)
Evaluation – How is the success or failure of creating and promoting the Success Story measured (Interest shown by the target audience in requesting more information, a meeting, a demo…; clicks and interaction on the website and social networks; access to the landing page from the QR Code and Pay-per-Click ads… – in everything that is digital, Google Analytics is a valuable tool and SEO Techniques are a valuable help
Responsibilities – Who does what in terms of design, content, approval, distribution…
Timing – When is preparation and dissemination scheduled?
Costs – What are the costs involved in terms of printing at the printer, PPC ads and others?
3. Adjust, improve and adapt the Marketing Plan throughout the year
The Marketing Plan is a living document, not a static one. If the business changes, if circumstances change, if the market changes, if an action does not have the expected effect, the Marketing Plan must also change! See what has the most effect, what brings in the most leads, what contributes the most to the desired image and reinforce these areas to the detriment of what does not work so well. And communicate continuously with management, the sales department and those on the ground to understand what they feel, what inputs they collect, what problems exist, what needs to be improved, etc. Marketing cannot close itself off within four walls; it must be the lever of the business and the right hand of everyone who represents the company.
Furthermore, the Marketing Plan forces us to think beyond the obvious, to obtain a broader vision of the company, to structure ideas, to work as a team and to be able to articulate initiatives. But remember, whatever the action, content is king and must always be focused on the value for the customer and not on a pure “aggressive” sale.