Create a marketing strategy with these 5 steps.

2. The starting point for any new
marketing plan is to look at what
has been done in the past – what
campaigns have been carried
out, what tools have been used
and over what period of time.
Analysis should be made of costs
involved against achievements in
order to determine the success
of earlier strategies. However,
such a review cannot be carried
out in isolation of the key target
– your consumer!

3. Often it’s hard for those involved in the
business to distance themselves
sufficiently to evaluate results of past
campaigns. With a dispassionate eye
carry out that exercise, determining the
successes of, and obstacles to, each
element of your marketing activity.
Following on from the Review process
in Evaluating, pin-point areas along the
Consumers’ Decision Journey where
interaction was lacking, points at which
a carefully targeted, specific message
could have captured and locked in the
consumer – automating processes and
personalising preferences, with a series
of on-going customer interactions.

4. So a number of questions should be addressed, including:
• Are you trying to increase spending from existing
customers?
• Are you aiming to reach a different demographic?
• Are you looking to expand into another market sector?
• Are you seeking to increase awareness in your company
name?
• What marketing tools and platforms are the best ‘fit’ for
your company image and brand?
These questions will allow a clear picture to emerge of the
way forward.
Typically to progress to the next stage, you would conduct a
SWOT analysis to assess where the business or brand
currently sits in its sector and look at ways to turn
weaknesses into strengths and threats into
opportunities. Many SWOT analyses are too generic –
ensure this is sector specific, ask yourself what are the
Critical Success Factors (CSFs) that are key to the buyers’
decision process.

5. Armed with the knowledge from the Evaluation exercise
and the specific goals set out as a result of the
Assessment stage, it’s time to Develop a detailed
marketing strategy. Consider all aspects of
marketing from print to digital and draw up a plan
that will be unique to your company and your
company’s needs.
At this stage you know where the company wants to get
to, and what has worked (and not worked!) in the
past. You know who your customers are and how
best to reach them. Write a detailed strategy with a
resume of your findings and focus on them.
Make sure your goals follow the SMART framework.
Also think about timings. If you’re in the horticultural
business, for example, you will require marketing
campaigns at different times (and in different ways)
from a jeweller. Also take into account the pressures
on your target market at certain times of the year
and work out the plan accordingly.

6. Any plan is only as good as its results.
Each area of your campaign will generate an
associated metric. If, during the Assess stage,
the need to increase brand awareness was
identified, in Developing your plan you should
use website updates, blogs, etc. The
effectiveness of such elements – the Yield – can
be measured by monitoring website traffic,
time on page, bounce rate or more using
Google Analytics or similar.
While the true measure of marketing effectiveness
is sales outcomes, an important key metric to
track when measuring the effectiveness of your
marketing campaign is the cost to acquire a
single new customer.
Regularly Review the direction of your marketing
strategy and adjust it, going forward. And thus
the cycle continues…