Photo Credit: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-using-ballpoint-pen-374820/
Ladies and Gents… it’s time. Sure, we’re actively executing on our 2018 marketing plans, and there are still plenty of wins to be collected this calendar year, but many of 2019’s most successful campaigns will be born now. It’s time for marketing planning. A marketing plan is essential to the success of your business. New technologies emerge every day, and marketing strategies adapt to try and keep up with the different ways customers shop and look for specific services. Change can happen at any time, and the more you plan ahead, the better equipped you’ll be. In this post, we will outline some key areas you need to visit in order to set your business up for succession in 2019.
Evaluate and Learn From 2018
The year is not over yet, but you’ve got plenty of data to work with. Look at the first three quarters of 2018 and ask yourself: What went wrong? What went right? What could have been better?
When creating a marketing plan, it’s crucial to understand your strengths, weaknesses, and unique value proposition. As consumer buying behavior changes, so should your marketing strategy. Where are you now vs. where you want to be?
Revisit Your Audience
Brainstorming new campaigns is the fun part, but before we dream big, we must ground ourselves in the people who matter most: our audience, our consumers, the people to whom our communications (ideally) speak. Have your buyer personas changed in the past year? Have their needs shifted? Are they facing new challenges? Do they have different goals?
Perhaps your own industry has seen some change. Does this affect your competitive landscape or the messages your ideal customers might be hearing from your competitors? All important questions to dive into as you create your marketing plan to maximize success.
Outline Your Tools For Success
Seek out tools that help streamline your process and contribute to your goals. From downloadable infographics and bold language pages to engagement-boosting social media ads; identifying which gizmos and gadgets will best fuel your success is critical in a marketing plan. Here are some helpful tools that we have used to help activate strategy and measure success:
Document Your Goals
Don’t just name your goals; document them. This is a PLAN, after all. Write them in a place you can easily re-visit, talk about them internally, and set up the accountability mechanisms necessary to keep them on the front burner all year long. Don’t bury them, for goodness sakes.
Think of goals as the essential building blocks that, once met, add up to a successfully achieved result. Break down your 2019 goals into concrete objectives. These objectives will make clear where you need to invest your time and energy in 2019, and which channels make sense for you to focus on.
“A goal without a plan is just a wish. To launch 2019 off right, start building your annual marketing plan now.”
At Charley Grey, we want our clients to succeed. A big part of that success is having a strong presence on the web. Building a strong presence isn’t easy – but our process is, and it can serve as a strong piece of your 2019 marketing plan. Let us take you out for coffee and discuss: (317) 207-2015.