Whether you have a business in its initial stages and want to discover how to grow, you are a manager
and you still don’t know how Marketing generates results or you are part of a work team and you are
not very clear about what your purpose is in the organization, the solution may be the same: create a
good Marketing Plan .
This document is the guide that drives Marketing towards the results you want. Based on data and
analysis, the Marketing Plan is where the team’s common goals and the path to achieve them are
documented.
The Marketing Plan is like a map where the destination of the trip and the best route to
get there are defined!
However, like any plan, it only makes sense if you get the ideas off the page and execute them,
meaning it only works if you put it into practice to attract more customers, generate
more sales and grow the business .
In this article, we will talk about how to create a Marketing Plan, from ideation to implementation, to
provide effective results for your business and not just get stuck in the world of ideas.
Today you will learn:
- What is a Marketing Plan?
- Why make a Marketing Plan?
- How to develop a Marketing Plan?
- What type of Marketing Plan to choose?
- What are the stages of the Marketing Plan?
- What are the best marketing strategies for your plan?
- Putting the Marketing Plan into Practice
Are you ready?
Keep reading!
What is a Marketing Plan?
The Marketing Plan is the telegram number list document that summarizes the
planning of the Marketing strategies for a given period, including objectives, indicators,
analysis, among other important information to guide the company.
The plan can be designed for the Marketing area as a whole, but it can also be applied to specific
campaigns —Buen Fin, for example—, strategies —Content Marketing or Relationship Marketing
— and products or services offered by the brand.
The plan is an important marketing management tool . This document guides the strategies and
actions of the area so that it efficiently meets its objectives and contributes to the growth of the company.
As a marketing management tool, the plan is also linked to business management. It is part of the
company’s tactical planning, which connects strategic planning (broader, long-term) with the
operational definitions of each area (more specific, short-term).
But there are no rules about the time frame, content or depth of the Marketing Plan. The most
important thing is that this document is adapted to the reality of each company in order to
achieve its Marketing objectives and is not left forgotten in a drawer.
Why make a Marketing Plan?
Many companies start their businesses right-click on the connection used and select without fully understanding the importance of Marketing. But as soon as they start their operations, they realize that it is necessary to promote products, attract customers and create a relationship with them.
So, they start acting reactively:
- create a Facebook page;
- they print some brochures;
- they make business cards.
Ok, these are important steps to activate Marketing, but did you realize that there is no strategy behind these actions?
Another very common situation is when there is a Marketing Plan, but only in the manager’s head . The rest of the team simply executes, without knowing where the company wants to go or understanding what they are doing.
In both cases, the chances of not having effective results are high . This is where the importance of the Marketing Plan comes in, which defines a common path for Marketing to achieve relevant results in a defined period.
Instead of isolated ideas, Marketing begins to offer clear direction on the objectives to be pursued, the indicators to be monitored and the strategies to be developed . In this way, it is able to collaborate with the broader objectives of the company’s strategic planning.
But the Marketing Plan is not just for CEOs, CMOs or managers. The document should be a guide for the entire team, who will understand their responsibilities and how their work can contribute to Marketing and the company in pursuing its goals.
How to develop a Marketing Plan?
Have you ever heard any of business sale lead these phrases from a company manager?
- “I came so far without a plan!”
- “I need to survive today, I don’t have time to plan.”
- “I want to be open to whatever may arise in the future.”
These are typical phrases from those who do not understand the value of planning. And they also show why so many companies get lost along the way.
The first step in developing a Marketing Plan is to understand its relevance to the business and dedicate efforts to make it happen.
To do so, the plan is likely to face some resistance, as shown in the sentences above:
Therefore, there is no Marketing Plan without market research . It is the analysis of the company itself and of its environment that supports decisions so that they are more precise. Otherwise, strategies may fail when they reach the market.
Knowing the business reality is also important to align the Marketing Plan with the company’s strategic planning, especially the mission, vision, values and long-term objectives . This is essential to develop an effective plan that really serves the business.
In this planning process, it is also important to involve employees . They are the ones who live the day-to-day and know the reality of their roles.
What type of Marketing Plan to choose?
Now, let’s start detailing how to build your company’s Marketing Plan. First, let’s see what types of plans you can develop:
Phased Marketing Plan
Marketing planning can be divided into different management levels to be more efficient, as is the case with general company planning.
They can be divided into strategic, tactical and operational planning , which are documented, respectively, in:
- Strategic Marketing Plan.
- Tactical Marketing Plan.
- Operational Marketing Plan.
The Strategic Marketing Plan is the most comprehensive. It usually describes long-term objectives and strategies in a broad manner without defining action plans .
The Tactical Marketing Plan then details the actions defined in the strategic planning.
If Content Marketing was defined as one of the strategic pillars, for example, the tactical plan will detail this strategy, with medium-term objectives, channels, budgets, among other definitions.
Finally, the Operational Marketing Plan contains the day-to-day definitions of each strategy and details the short-term objectives, tasks, those responsible, schedules and other more specific definitions of the action plans.
Therefore, keep in mind that plans at different levels are linked to each other so that the broader objectives of strategic marketing planning are achieved.
Otherwise, the plan is diluted from a tactical and operational point of view and becomes unenforceable.