Marketing plan how long

And can you do it in a few days? A week? A month? To give a frame of reference, at Simple Machines, our typical discovery process takes on average about a month and usually comes in at between 90 — hours, including project management and client meetings. This question has also been posed on Quora with respondents reporting anywhere from three hours to six months, but the four-to-six week range is a common answer. Back to our own discovery timeline, keep in mind this is a very in-depth process that includes everything from:.

While we generally follow the same process to ensure a strong strategic foundation is place, not every business requires the exact same planning services. This includes understanding, your five C s-;the consumer, channel, company, competition, and climate-;deeply enough that when you finish, you should understand your point of difference in the market and where your opportunities lie," Roberts says. This should inform how you set your objectives. Once you have your vision and a better sense of the opportunities and threats facing your business, you can begin establishing S.

The key is to be realistic and specific, but also set a limited number of marketing goals related to what you think is your target market. Dig Deeper: Creating a Vision Statement Writing a Marketing Plan: Do your Research Many businesses fail to use research to shape their plans by conducting market research and market analysis , says Albritton. Marketing plans that do not consider such research, however, will almost certainly waste money. The goal is simply to better understand who and where you customers are - something known as market segmentation.

One of your primary goals in conducting research is to set focus areas, which are the discipline in your plan, says Albritton.

Conducting research these days, though, does not have to be expensive. Anyone can access a wealth of information online from sources such as trade associations, media organizations, chambers of commerce, and other business groups. In addition, customer focus groups or roundtables can be a valuable - and relatively inexpensive - form of research. This is the point where you begin to address questions such as:. Strategies should be also broad enough to capture several specific tactics, says Roberts, such as "Build Brand Awareness" or "Deliver Unmatched Customer Service.

Start by thinking about what you should do first to achieve the best results. That may be as simple as putting together a very good presentation. The seven marketing plan components listed above are tried and tested steps toward success. Marketing statistics are a great way to show your strategies are based on solid research. Whenever possible, use data from your own past marketing efforts. Compile these eight components using a marketing plan template. You know you need to create a marketing plan, but what does that really mean?

What are the major components of a successful marketing plan? Sales Goals Including your current sales goals will put your marketing activities in the context of the ultimate measure of success: sales. Marketing Goals Based on your sales goal, what kind of marketing benchmarks do you need to achieve? Content Strategy to Meet Your Goals When you create a detailed marketing plan, your focus should be on the cornerstone of great marketing: content.

Plan Your Content Gather your team and brainstorm content topics based on your personas and how you're looking to benefit them: What are their pain points?

Start Writing Craft a set of social media activities and content pieces that drive your ideal customers to your website. Benchmarks for success How will you measure your success in reaching your goals?

Is your social media follower count growing? Are you reaching your target market of ideal customers? Are your customers satisfied? This can be tracked through surveys and reviews. Other metrics to track: Employee satisfaction Happy employees will want to go the extra mile to exceed goals!

Where will your business be in five years? How about in 10 or even 30 years? What initiatives are you going to put in place to reach your goals further down the road? Growing your business takes time and you need to have a plan for every step or milestone along the way. Search Engine Optimization SEO : SEO is a long-term play that can take several months, but it is crucial for success because organic search engine traffic has been found to be the best source of B2B leads.

Knowing your audience and optimizing your website for keywords and phrases that potential customers would use in their online search is critical to being found on the Internet.

SEO is an ongoing process and to do it effectively takes time. Businesses should consider engaging experts they can trust to keep their website optimized. PR teams often accomplish goals by strategically sharing information with relevant media outlets. A well-executed PR strategy builds over months, not days, and takes time to succeed. Publishing and Promoting Content: Developing a stream of fresh, relevant content like newsletters, tips or blog posts will result in quality traffic to your website, but will also place you among the top thought leaders in your field.

Content that is posted, updated and archived on a regular basis will provide you great ammunition for long-term nurture campaigns and encourage visitors to return. Social Media: As a collection of communication channels, social networks can be used to achieve both short-term and long-term strategies. In a short-term context, you can use it to monitor and manage your online reputation.

In a long-term context, you can use social media to promote content, support lead generation activities, and engage in online communities. Engaging in social media is necessary and important because social networks are increasingly considered one of the top channels for generating brand awareness.