“Fail to plan…plan to fail”

How long do you plan on keeping your business? Ten years? 50 years? 150 years? Regardless of the duration, in order to help insure your company's durability, it must have a marketing plan. Any architect, contractor, or handyman will tell you that outside of the actual materials, the most important component you need when building anything is a blueprint. After all, you wouldn't build something as special as…say…your dream house without the proper plans? Building a business is no different. In most cases you are taking a variety of resources and building something that you hope will stand the test of time. Building a business without a marketing plan would be equivalent to building your dream home on swampland…you can do it, but it will be expensive, messy and odds are it will still topple over.

As I mentioned in my earlier newsletters (for a quick perusal of my prior newsletters, just click here), running your marketing is similar to treating it like an investment. Just like having an investment strategy is important for your portfolio, creating the right marketing plan is paramount for the life of your business. Consider this; studies have shown that 7 out of 10 business owners do not have a marketing plan. Meanwhile, 8 out of 10 businesses do not last more than 5 years…coincidence? I think not.

Would you believe that many small business owners put more thought and planning into their wedding and vacation itineraries than their own marketing plan?

If you build it…it (and by ‘it' I mean profits) will come

Why is creating a marketing plan so important? Think of a football coach who every year receives raw materials in the form of new players, staff, a new schedule and unforeseen circumstances such as injuries and major changes to his roster . However it is up to the coach to build a concise plan of attack each and every week, using his teams' strengths while minimizing their weaknesses.

Creating a marketing plan is beneficial in that it includes such topics as:

•  Target Markets

•  Market Needs

•  Sales Prospects

•  Business and Marketing Goals

•  marketing budgets

•  Strategies and Tactics

•  Market Trends

•  Competition

•  Plus many others…

A solid marketing plan compels you to:

Focus on the immediate, the intermediate and long term: Most companies are looking to either build their business so they may sell it, will it to their respective families, or to continue to build it into something greater. A thorough yet concise marketing plan will keep you on track with your goals regardless if you are planning for next season, next year or the next decade.

Clarify your company's distinctiveness: A well thought out marketing plan will assist you in developing your brand identity, the focus of your company's entire infrastructure. An effective brand will create a unique identity that will differentiate your company from the competition.

Become proactive: If only I had a dollar for every company who approaches their marketing in a reactive “We have to respond to (our competitors, the economic climate, growing or shrinking trends, etc.)” manner. A quality marketing plan keeps the decision makers in control of present and future situations that will affect their company rather than just simply responding to situations after they happen, opening the door for your competition to have the upper hand.

Make more vigilant decisions: We have a tendency of making decisions that, in hindsight, were done in haste or motivated by emotion but were not in the company's best interest. A marketing plan will keep decision makers on an even keel.

Maximize your company's business dollar: A great benefit of a quality marketing plan is it permits us to choose which marketing strategies and tactics are best utilized and when. This allows us to negotiate advertising in the future and prepare for its inevitable launch without succumbing to a haphazard and thus potentially expensive advertising spending spree.

Keep in mind that your marketing plan is not intended to be on display. It is designed for your eyes and the eyes of your decision makers. Don't fall into the trap of creating an extravagant, ostentatious plan for the sole purpose of showing it off only to ignore its contents. Keep your marketing plan compelling and thorough, but manageable.

By putting together and implementing a viable marketing plan, you will be ahead of a vast majority of your competitors which will be beneficial for your short term, intermediate and long term success.