The last few months of the year are generally the months when businesses work on strategic planning and budgeting for the upcoming calendar year. Planting seeds so to speak. And for many business owners and managers, the task can seem overwhelming!
Strategic Planning helps save money when you set solid goals and develop your plan with checklists for your target markets, brand messages and budget. By setting up these checklists, you have an easy decision making guide process to follow and you will be less likely to make impulsive decisions or follow paths that will draw you away from goal conversion.
The overall strategic plan is supported by sub-plans for each functional area. The strategic marketing plan will define how the marketing department will support the overall plan and aid in accomplishing the stated goals. These sub-plans cannot be created in silos, but rather all departments must coordinate their efforts to ensure the plans are integrated and working toward the same end. As an example, if the overall plan includes the introduction of a new product in 2011, marketing must work with operations to learn product features and the timetable for release so that it may create packaging, sales materials, update web content, plan advertising campaigns, etc. Marketing must also coordinate with finance to ensure that funds are available for these programs.
In its’ supporting role, the strategic marketing plan should include the following elements:
1. A clear definition of the target markets. These targets may be different by product or service and may be narrow or broad, depending on your needs. You may also define secondary and/or tertiary markets, if appropriate. Consider geography, demographics, preferences/”likes” and behavioral restrictions. The majority of marketing efforts should focus on this group (or groups) and use the appropriate messages and channels for the group. Generally, the more defined your target is, the higher the conversion rate will be.
2. A detailed list of action items to accomplish the plan.
3. Assign budget dollars to each task or set of tasks and assign a team member to be responsible for managing to the budget.
4. Resources and due dates must be assigned, and teams built to coordinate efforts.
5. Define measurement & review checkpoints to keep the project on track.
A strategic marketing plan is a living document, like a plant. Results should be reviewed on an ongoing basis and tasks, focus and budget adjusted to ensure goals are met. Integration and coordination are key to an effective plan. A well thought out strategic plan is an asset and should help you manage to the bottom line and grow your business.
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