7 Questions To Ask Before Writing Your Next Marketing Plan

By Sandy Barris
President of Business Marketing Services and CEO of FastMarketingPlan.com

Have you ever wondered how to streamline creating a marketing plan? I can show you seven simple things to ask to help speed up creating your next marketing plan.

The first question to ask is, “Do I really need a marketing plan.”
You may not. Because if everything you are doing to bring in all the business you want is working, don’t change a thing. Even if you or your staff are bored with it. Let it keep profiting until it stops profiting.

Next ask, “What do I want a marketing plan to do for me and my business.” Many marketing plans are written as part of a business plan. Also, marketing plans are written when looking for new or more funding. Most marketing plans are created as a road map, a guide to the next 12-18 months of marketing campaigns.

Now, “What is your Unique Selling Proposition (USP)?” Answer in a compelling way, why anyone would choose your products, services or ideas over all the other choices they have, including doing nothing.

Of course, you are making an “Irresistible Offer” every time you are in front of someone. Business and marketing are all about offers. You give me this and I’ll give you that.

Keep in mind that without an offer, no business transpires. Think of the many times you have seen an advertisement or marketing message and couldn’t figure out what was being offered. Don’t make this critical mistake. State exactly what you will be offering in your marketing plan.

OK, “Where is your ideal future client or customer?” Not just anyone, but who is the ideal fit for your products, services or ideas.

Where can you find enough of your ideal future clients to be profitable? When you do find them, how much do you know about their hopes, aspirations, desires, fears, problems, etc? Take off your shoes and walk in your future clients’ shoes for a week and see, hear and feel what they see hear and feel. Then and only then, will you know their real problems.

I’m sure you’ve decided on which, if any, of the many of the different “marketing media options you’ll want to test.”

Options like direct response mailing campaigns, yellow page ads or email marketing. How about tele-marketing, newspaper display ads or Webinars? Networking, social media marketing or pay-per-click marketing? We could go on and on and on, but you get the idea. Where are you going to spend your marketing budget?

Finally, as long as you are going after new clients, “How are you capturing their personal information?” I don’t mean their shoe size, waist size or height (but you may need them depending on what you are selling). Are you asking for their name, email address and snail mail address? If not, how will you communicate with them in the future?

Now grab a piece of paper and start answering these questions. Doing so will focus your marketing plan and anyone reading it will know exactly the what, where, when, who and how you are planning to market your business.

Ok, I admit it; there are more then 7 questions to answer. You should have seen the ones I edited out. I’ve saved them for another article in the near future, so keep checking back.

Sandy Barris, has been called a tough Detroit marketer who helps you explain what you’ve got to offer, why someone should care, the “Reasons Why” they will benefit, and what proven marketing strategies and tactics to use to sell more of your products, services and ideas.

Sandy is also the proud creator of http://www.FastMarketingPlan.com a faster easier way to create your next marketing plan and marketing calendar.

Sandy publishes a wide variety of tidbits about marketing and marketing plans on a frequent basis at: http://www.SandyBarris.com and http://www.FastMarketingPlan.com and can reached by calling 248-335-8080.