Knowing where you are now in your business is important to understand where you want to be next year this time. The best way to do this is to write down where you are now and where you want to be in 12 months. That’s your WHAT. The bit in the middle is your HOW. How you get to your goal is up to you and there is no one-size-fits-all approach. In this article, we explain how you can create your bespoke digital marketing plan.
Why should you have a digital marketing plan?
A marketing plan can help you track your progress. During your initial planning, you need to define WHAT you want to achieve with your marketing, WHO your target audience, your key performance indicators (KPI’s) and your BUDGET. Knowing what you want ensures that you can create social media posts, emails and advertising campaigns to help you achieve these goals.
Defining your business objectives and goals
The first step in putting together your digital marketing plan is to define your business goals and objectives. Not knowing these will leave you with a very bland looking plan and no direction. Ask yourself what it is you want to do with your business. Where do you want it to go? What is the core purpose of your business?
One way to help you achieve this is by using the SMART framework:
Specific: Clear and well-defined goals.
Measurable: Make sure you can track progress (what data will you use to measure your progress).
Achievable: Goals should be challenging but realistic given your resources.
Relevant: The goals should directly support your marketing objectives.
Time-bound: Set realistic deadlines or timeframes for achieving each goal.
Market research to understand your industry trends and competitors
Conducting market research can come in many forms and this is known as ‘secondary data’. This can be present in industry reports, statistics, market research firms and trade publications. These sources can really help you identify the current trends, customer behaviours and emerging technologies in your business sector. It can also help you see any economic or social changes that may affect your business.
You could conduct a competitive analysis of your key competitors. Work out, firstly, who they might be (local businesses that offer the same or similar product/service). Look at what they are offering, what their pricing is like, how they are marketing themselves, offers and any customer feedback. This is not so you can do what they are doing but to get a feel for how they are doing what they do and to see if you can differentiate from them and create your own unique selling point (USP). You can see if there are any gaps in the market you can fill or untapped opportunities.
DON’T start before knowing this…
Your budget
Having a budget is essential! Start by working out how much of the budget you are going to use for marketing. Keep in mind that social media, content creation, email marketing and paid searches can come with varying costs so try and choose which will give you a better return. Not all social media is free if you want to generate leads, so be aware.
Resources
This includes both the financial investment and the tools, skills and knowledge you or members of your team have. You could invest in marketing automation tools (this can help you identify your audience, design the right content for your business and campaign and automatically trigger actions based on customer behaviour).
Time investment
Marketing takes time to plan and implement. Any marketing campaign can take time to produce results, big or small. Paid ads can drive traffic to your business quickly whereas social media campaigns can take longer to get going and produce any business. Ensure you are taking time in your working week to monitor the campaigns to see how they are doing and to tweak where needed. Planning is key and is something that we always advise.
Do you know your unique selling proposition (USP)
So often when I speak to businesses and ask what they do but after speaking to them I still can’t turn around and tell someone else. This is normally if the business owner is not clear on what the unique selling proposition is or they are struggling to communicate that point.
Try to define a clear message of what your business does and refer to your own values and why you started your business. It should resonate with your customers' needs, evoke trust and clearly reflect what sets you apart from others. This is what your USP is.
Why should customers choose you over others? What makes you unique? What can you deliver that others cannot? Is it high-end customer service, smooth processes or great user experiences? Combining your message and USP should help shape how customers view your brand and hopefully influence their buying decisions.
Consistency, Consistency, Consistency = Success
Consistency is vital to the success of any digital marketing strategy because it helps build a strong brand identity. When the look, feel and tone of voice are consistent across all digital marketing channels, it ensures that your audience experiences a cohesive message regardless of where they engage with your brand.
Consistency also includes logos and colour schemes. These should be the same on websites, social media platforms and any campaigns including paper forms. Eagle-eyed customers will see any mistakes and will use this in their choice. If they have a variety of businesses to choose from and yours shows any errors or lack of engagement then they are more than likely to go elsewhere.
Over time, this consistent brand experience fosters loyalty, strengthens brand reputation and enhances customer trust, ultimately driving business growth and success.
Which marketing channels should I use?
You can choose any marketing channel. You can combine them and change them depending on the season. There is no right or wrong or best one. The one that works for you is the best one for your business.
Here is a list of marketing channels to help you discover what will work for your business:
Traditional Marketing Channels:
Television advertising
Radio advertising
Print advertising (newspapers, magazines)
Direct mail marketing (flyers, brochures, catalogues)
Outdoor advertising (billboards, posters)
Digital Marketing Channels:
Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Social Media Marketing (SMM)
Email Marketing
Content Marketing
Affiliate Marketing
Influencer Marketing
Display Advertising
Mobile Marketing (SMS marketing, in-app advertising)
Video Marketing (YouTube, social media)
Offline Marketing Channels:
Events and Sponsorships
Trade Shows and Exhibitions
Public Relations (PR)
Word-of-Mouth Marketing
Referral Programs
Online Marketing Channels:
Website and Landing Pages
Social Media Platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest)
Search Engines (Google, Bing, Yahoo)
Online Marketplaces (Amazon, eBay)
Online Communities and Forums
Podcasts and Webinars
Virtual Events and Conferences
Owned, Earned, and Paid Media Channels:
Owned Media: Channels that your brand controls, such as website, blog and social media profiles
Earned Media: Channels where customers or other entities mention or promote the brand voluntarily, such as online reviews, social media shares and press coverage
Paid Media: Channels where the brand pays to promote its content or message, such as paid advertising on search engines or social media platforms
Direct and Indirect Marketing Channels:
Direct Marketing: Channels where the brand communicates directly with the target audience, such as email marketing, direct mail and telemarketing
Indirect Marketing: Channels where the brand reaches the target audience indirectly through intermediaries or third parties, such as retailers, distributors and affiliates.
The key to marketing success is to be consistent and not be afraid to change. Marketing can be scary but pick one thing that you feel comfortable with and start doing that. As you get better and more comfortable your marketing strategy will grow with you.
For free cheatsheets and support join the Your Marketing Growth Hub for FREE
Comments