Five Topics to Address for Every Marketing Plan

Yesterday I attended a new business meeting where a CEO and his team described all the media coverage they wanted. When I asked who his target audiences were, he replied, “Everyone.” It was unfortunately one of those moments that happen all too frequently in PR and marketing.

I immediately pushed back to help him understand that targeting everyone means an endless, untargeted budget. The smartest step would be to do the research and due diligence upfront to identify target customers, and then build a plan against those targets. This step is even more crucial for brands that believe that their products or services are intended for a large or even universal audience. If everyone is likely to engage with your business, which people with which characteristics or issues are more likely to engage with your company?

Growth is the engine of any business. Clinging to past success can lead to stagnation or worse, irrelevance, in a rapidly changing market. Leaders and their teams are constantly devising new customer acquisition strategies, scheming to dominate market share, exploring new methods of generating brand awareness, or engaging in any number of similar activities. Often, the quest for the next big thing moves at full speed, with companies rushing to outpace the competition.

Often, that’s exactly when they need to hit the pause button. Before you can see the results you desire, you need to do the research. Too often, our clients come to us looking for a strategy, and we ask questions to which they have no answers. Yet they spend money opening offices, hiring, designing logos and warranties, and racking up other expenses without the underlying customer or market data to guide those actions. And if you’re looking to bring in venture partners, you won’t make the first phone call if you don’t have a strategic, comprehensive, and thoughtful plan. If you haven’t taken the time to dig deep, how can you expect people to invest in what you do?

We work closely with our clients to help them find answers that make sense for their brands and their ultimate goals. Aligning their internal and external values, mission and core strengths with disruptive initiatives and enhanced product lines is crucial to getting the return on investment they expect.

Before embarking on a marketing plan, consider how you will address the following topics:

1. Discover the unknown

Whatever strategy you employ, extend your reach to new contacts. Returning to the same well for customers and partner contacts is not always possible. And you can’t keep pushing the same old product and the same strategies; you must guide the evolution of your product. It might look like features or services you can add to what’s already working, or innovative strategies for breaking into a new market.

2. Conclusion

Decide whether you’re looking to add customers, offer new products to existing customers, or both. What is the most attractive end-user segment for your business? On the other hand, what segment of your base inhibits business growth and reduces profitability? Your marketing strategy should build on key research and woo new end users who might need an entirely new approach to grab their attention. Be bold.

3. Crucial vs. Just Cool

It’s easy to get caught up in the big ideas that many brainstorms produce, but not all new ideas are necessarily suitable for a plan for the future. Take the initial idea one step further and determine if the new product or service adds value or fills an existing need in your market. Sometimes launching the next thing just adds noise to the market without any real benefit.

4. Partnership

Trying to be everything for all of your target end users can be risky and expensive. Look for channel partners who are achieving concrete goals for engagement and customer acquisition in desired spaces, and leverage their skills and success to create your own.

5. Perfect positioning

Once you’ve checked out your new product strategy, don’t go back to what you’ve always done. Marketing and sales should align with everything your channel partners and your research reveals. Put company resources in the right compartments to deliver the right message to your target market. To get the most out of your marketing spend, analyze the return your business is getting for your current marketing and sales structure, and be prepared to pivot if necessary.

Getting into a parallel market or introducing a new product or improvement takes an honest look at what you’re doing now, what you need to do for a successful launch, and how you’ll work in the space.