In the olden days of marketing, we talked about positioning statements, the “4 Ps,” marketing plans, branding, etc. Some pundits and bloggers might claim that these concepts and practices are obsolete and have been replaced with content marketing, social media, marketing automation, SEO, SEM, and so on. I suggest these so-called “old-style,” obsolete concepts, strategies, and tactics are more important than ever. As professional marketers, I suggest we go back to the future and embrace the fundamentals before we begin to use the modern tools like content marketing.
Implementing content marketing tactics (or social media tactics, or any communication practice, for that matter) without first preparing a strategic marketing plan is like building a house with no blueprint. Adding rooms (marketing tactics) on a whim without an understanding of how each room supports the overall structure (business goals), the purpose of each room (objectives), and how you will decide if the room is successful (measurement) is a recipe for disaster at worst, and for sub-par performance even in the best-case scenario.
We, as professional marketers, are all excited about content marketing. We are itching to create great content we know will launch our business into the next great growth trajectory. This momentum and the enthusiasm are great. However, before you get started with creating content or launching any type of marketing activity, it is critically important to have completed your strategic marketing plan.
Why, you may ask, must I take precious time and utilize my already stretched resources to write down marketing plans? Isn’t that a bit old fashioned?
True, it may be old fashioned; but at the same time, it’s more important than ever in this modern marketing age. Marketing plans, 4 Ps, positioning, etc., have likely been around for thousands of years in one form or another. The reason these concepts have endured is because they fundamentally support an exchange.
In spite of our modern marketing technology, the basics of business have not changed since the dawn of the first civilization in Mesopotamia. We are still exchanging products or services for some type of consideration. Whether we were a merchant pedaling our wares in the Middle Ages or we are selling access to software as a service (SaaS) today, there is little difference in how the exchange process works on a fundamental level. Success has always depended on awareness of the offering and establishment of value in the minds of prospective buyers. In other words, it depends on marketing (assuming the sales function is a subset of a broad definition of marketing).
Consider the four major parts of a good marketing plan, as discussed below. This discussion is not meant to be comprehensive education about how to create a marketing plan; it is a starter discussion to show how important it is to have a properly documented marketing plan in place, and a simple framework of the components you need to make it successful.
Definition of a marketing plan
According to The Marketing Plan Handbook, by Marian Burk Wood (which I highly recommend you read), marketing plans are comprehensive documents that summarize marketplace knowledge and the strategies and steps to be taken in achieving the objectives set by marketing managers for a particular period.
What a marketing plan is not
A marketing plan is not a spreadsheet of activities. It’s not an editorial calendar. It’s not a list of campaigns. It’s not a budget or set of goals. It’s not something you think you have in your head.
Below are the four essential topics that must be covered in your marketing plans before you proceed with any specific marketing activities, including content marketing, social media, email promotion, websites, or any other “next big thing” emerging on the marketing landscape:
Assess the current situation:
Determine what resources you have available.
Analyze and summarize your market space(s).
Analyze your company’s internal strengths and weaknesses.
Analyze external opportunities and threats.
Assess the competition and competitive environment.
Assess the macro environment in terms of social, economic, political, and technological opportunities and challenges.
Identify critical issues to be addressed in your marketing activities.
Develop your marketing strategy, including:
Your business mission and vision
Your overarching business objectives
Your marketing objectives
A description of your target market and customers (i.e., buyer personas)
Your unique positioning statement
Your unique value proposition
Craft your marketing program, by outlining:
Your product messaging
Your pricing strategy
The channels you will communicate across
Your promotion plans
Determine your controls, benchmarks, and measurement processes, including:
Budgets and resources
Critical success factors
Key performance indicators
Your preferred technology solutions and platforms
It is interesting to note that content marketing could fall under No. 3, as a means of promotion, though it may also (and probably should) fall under No. 2 as the foundation to the overall marketing strategy.
Many marketers and firms will claim they have the marketing plans in their head, or within the tribal knowledge of the organization. This is simply not good enough. Many firms will have several disparate pieces of a marketing plan spread throughout the organization (i.e., with the sales department, product managers, marketing department, executive leadership team, strategic business planners, etc.). But in order for marketing to be successful, your organization must create and own a proper marketing plan, first and foremost.
One of the tangible benefits of documenting a strategic marketing plan is that it drives collaboration among all stakeholders, which helps align the various functions. In addition, the process of writing the plan helps position the marketing department (and its personnel) as legitimate business partners — as opposed to being perceived as a service center that simply reacts to one request after another.
It may be the case where a firm requires multiple marketing plans for multiple units, such as business units, geographic regions, product groups, or other classifications depending on your firm’s business plan.
One last point: Creating marketing plans is not just an exercise to be done once and then put on the virtual shelf. These are living, dynamic documents that should be referred to on a regular basis and updated as conditions or situations change.
I leave you with a challenge: See if you can find a written marketing plan at your organization. If you find one that is current, dynamic, and is being used as a daily reference upon which to base marketing decisions, bravo! But if you can’t find it, or if you hear people tell you it is all in their head, step back and begin to craft a strategic plan before you do anything else.
To learn more about the fundamentals of developing your marketing plan to support content, or any other initiative, read CMI’s how-to guide on planning.
Cover image via LivingDesignHome.com
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