Reasons Why You Need Marketing Plan
Every small business should have a marketing plan, and why is that so important and what are the benefits you can read in following article.
When I first started University, our professor told us: ‘All they’ve taught you so far was thinking inside the box. The first step to your success is stepping out of that box and thinking of all wonders outside of it. Be open to new things and new knowledge’.
That’s what both life and successful businesses are about – expanding your horizons and learning new things and ways to become better.
Well, building a marketing plan for your business is just that – being ahead of your own thoughts and ideas, that is – bringing them to life owing to some smart moves.
Know this - with a well-developed marketing plan you can develop services and products in your business that meet the needs of your target market.
Good marketing helps your customers understand why your product or service is better than, or different from, the competition. Once you’ve built a good marketing plan you have given yourself an opportunity to reach your target audience and boost your customer base. This will ultimately increase your bottom line and position your business up there, with the big ones.
Another good reason for you to build a marketing plan is that it will help you set realistic, measurable and clear objectives not just for your business but for the funding partners and investors. Truth is, it is not easy to find people willing to trust your vision and invest in it. That’s why you need to have a good plan that will convince them you are the right person for their money.
Obviously, you will spend quite some time on research, so be prepared. Yet, it all pays off on the long run. And, don’t kid yourself into thinking marketing plans are just for big companies – they are equally important for both small and large business.
To become your customers or to even decide to buy anything from you, people need to know something about your brand, about what you are selling and why to choose you over competition. So, the key to any successful business is being aware that customer is your number one priority. Without customers, there is no marketing plan that will save your business. It’s a kind of a co-dependent thing – in order to attract (and retain) customers, your enterprise needs to understand the importance of marketing; in order for marketing to work, customers need to give their final judgment.
So, how will a marketing plan help your business and why do you need it?
A marketing plan will:
- Help you get a clear budget of your resources, therefore stirring your business in a proper direction
- Help you develop a plan on your business growth
- Help you include and understand potential factors that may affect your business/success
- Help you build a strategy that will agree with the current market you operate within
- Help the day-to-day running of your business
- Help motivate your team
- Help manage performance of your staff members and marketing efforts
Doing necessary research for your marketing plan will give you the possibility to:
- Position your brand along with the services and products in such a way the market experiences it differently to what the competition has to offer
- Set specific timelines and measurable goals for all marketing activities
- Identify your competitors; explore customers’ opinions on the competitors
- Identify your competitors' strengths and weaknesses
- Identify your target market and adjust your product/service to it
- Come up with a strategy to reach your target audience; this can be through channels and tools you use, messages, and other
Once you’ve finished your marketing plan, don’t just put it at a bottom of a drawer. It is a living document that should be used as a guide to a successful business career!
Author Credits ::
Damian Wolf is a writer and small business co-owner from Brisbane. When he’s not working on new promotional items for Cubic Promotions in Brisbane, or writing about small business topics, marketing opportunities or self improvement, Damian enjoys reading and playing tennis in his leisure time.