Is it the death of the marketing plan?
Is it the death of the marketing plan?
It used to be easier. Car dealers knew that TV and newspaper ads worked. Grocery stores placed full page coupons in the local paper. But there are too many messaging channels today for those old-fashioned approaches to work. (Or at least to work on their own without supporting tactics like public relations or internet.) And so we constantly search for the next ONE thing that will work to bring in more business. And we often do that without a plan, and without a strong notion of where to find our customers and sell to them.
These days by the time it’s written a formal marketing plan will be out of date. It seems like by the time we figure out what to do, our competitor has already beat us to it, or done us one better. Or perhaps we have a fine tuned marketing plan that makes a lot of sense, written by a smart consultant who really knows our business. How often do we actually use it?
I think we need to consider marketing as though it were an economics problem. In economics, data is sliced and diced many different ways, but the primary divider is macro and micro. In other words, one is a 10,000 foot level and the other is the “lift the hood check out the date on the valve” level.
Once a quarter, look at your marketing as it ties into your business from a macro level. For example, ask yourself if the combination of marketing tactics you’re using are bringing in more business overall. Is any one tactic working better than others? Are you measuring results against realistic objectives? (Realistic objectives break down the steps leading to the all-hallowed “more revenue.) Every three months give your marketing efforts a report card, adjust and move forward with confidence. That’s macro marketing.
Micro marketing looks at it from the bottom up. Take suggested tactics – and these could be ones that are working for a competitor, ones you’ve read about, or anything – and test them. NOT with “did they bring in more business” but with realistic measurements. For example, if it’s an online campaign, measure the conversion to your website. If it’s an ad, measure the hits on your website or the volume of calls. Better yet, measure your salesperson’s conversions…are they getting better response to their cold calls? Have customers heard of them when they call, when they hadn’t before? Come up with the measurements that lead to more business.
Micro marketing is about breaking it down…figuring out all the steps that lead up to more business. You need to know how to measure if each marketing technique to taking you further down the road. Because today, it’s not one technique that’s going to work. It’s the synergy of those tactics that brings in more business. And you can review that by looking at it from a macro level, on a regular basis. I recommend 90 days or so.
Forget about a marketing plan. Think like Alan Greenspan and take a look at your own little “economy” from a macro perspective regularly. And micro adjustments? I’m sorry, but today the guys getting it done are doing this constantly, weekly if not daily. Figure out how to make marketing a priority. You can’t afford not to.
Bonnie Harris is the president of Wax Marketing, a marketing and PR agency for small business. She also operates waxcoach.com, a DIY marketing and PR site for entrepreneurs.. Bonnie can be reached at bonnie@waxcoach.com.
Is it the death of the marketing plan - To learn more about this author, visit Bonnie 's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 |
Free Download - Getting started with PR |
I don’t know about you, but I rarely come across small businesses that have a concrete marketing plan in place. For that matter, I don’t know many medium sized ones that follow theirs to the letter either. Usually, it’s one of those things where people know they “need” one, but don’t have the time. Or they pay someone else to write it and end up getting back a cleverly worded regurgitation of what they already know. And still the question remains….what do I do to market my business?
It used to be easier. Car dealers knew that TV and newspaper ads worked. Grocery stores placed full page coupons in the local paper. But there are too many messaging channels today for those old-fashioned approaches to work. (Or at least to work on their own without supporting tactics like public relations or internet.) And so we constantly search for the next ONE thing that will work to bring in more business. And we often do that without a plan, and without a strong notion of where to find our customers and sell to them.
These days by the time it’s written a formal marketing plan will be out of date. It seems like by the time we figure out what to do, our competitor has already beat us to it, or done us one better. Or perhaps we have a fine tuned marketing plan that makes a lot of sense, written by a smart consultant who really knows our business. How often do we actually use it?
I think we need to consider marketing as though it were an economics problem. In economics, data is sliced and diced many different ways, but the primary divider is macro and micro. In other words, one is a 10,000 foot level and the other is the “lift the hood check out the date on the valve” level.
Once a quarter, look at your marketing as it ties into your business from a macro level. For example, ask yourself if the combination of marketing tactics you’re using are bringing in more business overall. Is any one tactic working better than others? Are you measuring results against realistic objectives? (Realistic objectives break down the steps leading to the all-hallowed “more revenue.) Every three months give your marketing efforts a report card, adjust and move forward with confidence. That’s macro marketing.
Micro marketing looks at it from the bottom up. Take suggested tactics – and these could be ones that are working for a competitor, ones you’ve read about, or anything – and test them. NOT with “did they bring in more business” but with realistic measurements. For example, if it’s an online campaign, measure the conversion to your website. If it’s an ad, measure the hits on your website or the volume of calls. Better yet, measure your salesperson’s conversions…are they getting better response to their cold calls? Have customers heard of them when they call, when they hadn’t before? Come up with the measurements that lead to more business.
Micro marketing is about breaking it down…figuring out all the steps that lead up to more business. You need to know how to measure if each marketing technique to taking you further down the road. Because today, it’s not one technique that’s going to work. It’s the synergy of those tactics that brings in more business. And you can review that by looking at it from a macro level, on a regular basis. I recommend 90 days or so.
Forget about a marketing plan. Think like Alan Greenspan and take a look at your own little “economy” from a macro perspective regularly. And micro adjustments? I’m sorry, but today the guys getting it done are doing this constantly, weekly if not daily. Figure out how to make marketing a priority. You can’t afford not to.
Bonnie Harris is the president of Wax Marketing, a marketing and PR agency for small business. She also operates waxcoach.com, a DIY marketing and PR site for entrepreneurs.. Bonnie can be reached at bonnie@waxcoach.com.
Is it the death of the marketing plan - To learn more about this author, visit Bonnie 's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 | |
 |
No article feedback found. |
| |
Leave Your Feedback |
 | |
| |||
Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
|||
David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
|||
Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
|||
John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
|||
Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. We specialize in internet consulting & internet marketing. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
|||
Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
|||
Joe DagerJoe Dager is President of Business901, a progressive coaching company providing no-nonsense direction in areas such as Lean Six Sigma Marketing and organized referral marketing. What others say: In the past 20 years, Joe and I have collaborated on many difficult issues. Joe’s ability to combine his expertise with “out of the box” thinking is unsurpassed. He has always delivered quickly, cost effectively and with ingenuity. A brilliant mind that is always a pleasure to work with.” - James R. If you want to learn more about Business901, start a conversation with us. We can be found @ Web/Blog: Business901.com Web/Blog: FundingYourNonprofit.com LinkedIn Profile Follow me on Twitter - Visit Joe Dager's Website |
|||
Jay Kubassek(Jay's Full Bio: EvanCarmichael.com/jaykubassek) In five years, Canadian-born entrepreneur Jay Kubassek went from selling mufflers at a Midas franchise to revolutionizing Internet marketing with the 2004 launch of CarbonCopyPRO, a online marketing education company, now worth over $20 million with customers in over 160 countries.
As an independent film producer, his upstart film fund Aliquot Films is currently producing a films with Spike Lee and Abel Fererra (starring Ethan Hawke and Dennis Hopper.)
Jay's entrepreneurial spirit is irrepressible. He’s the owner of five companies, a professional speaker and trainer, international real estate developer/investor, extreme sport enthusiast and emerging philanthropist. Jay resides in NYC with his wife Jamie, son Milo and dog Cooper. Visit Jay's official website: www.JayKubassek.com - Visit Jay Kubassek's Website |
|||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. | |||
 | |
|  |
Subscribe to Bonnie's articles
 | |
|
|  |
 | |
|
| |
 | |||||||
|
 | ||
 |
||
|
||
 |
||
|
| ||
 |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
|
|
 |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
|
|
 |
"Learn straight from Evan how you can Make a Full Time Income (And More) from a Website"
Click Here To Learn More |
|
|
|
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
|
|
 Basic SEO Guide Closed Door Sales Make It Happen Article Marketing Find It. Use It. |
|
 | ||
 |
The Top 10 Guy Kawasaki Posts
Best Posts for Entrepreneurs | |
 |
Fortune Hunters
CBC Entrepreneur TV | |
| ||
 | ||||
| ||||
|
| ||||
| ||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
Email us your ideas on how to make our website more valuable! Thank you Sharon from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for your suggestions to make the newsletter look like the website and profile younger entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez and Sean Combs!
|
|
|
