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Typically, most people associate it with the promotion of products or services especially using advertising and branding. In a professional setting however, it has a much wider meaning. The classic way to analyse marketing is to divide the subject into four sections usually called  the four Ps'. <ul> <li> Product - What products to produce and sell and how they relate to what the customer wants. <li> Pricing - Establishing the right price for a product or service <li> Promotion - Getting the customer's attention and informing them about the product or service via advertising, publicity, branding etc. <li> Place - What kind of distribution channel should be used to get the product or service to the customer? </ul> <h2>Who is your market and who is your competition?</h2> Many businesses get excited about the introduction of great new fangled gadgets or thingamajigs that are supposed to be the next best thing since sliced bread. Good products are definitely an advantage but have you found corresponding markets? Introducing new products or services without identifying an available market segment is a gamble which will most times lose money. <br /><br />Ideally you're looking for a market segment that has needs that are being unmet. <ul> <li> Do market research to determine if there are segments of your market being underserved <li> Look to see if your competitors have areas they are not servicing adequately <li> Is there market segment large enough for you to make a profit? </ul> <h2>Know who your customers are</h2> Getting to know exactly who your customers are and what motivates them to buy is essential to creating a good marketing plan but above all you must find out what they want.<br /><br />Be sure you don't confuse wants with needs. People don't necessarily buy what they need but will nearly always buy what they want. Everyone knows we need to eat healthy food but many want the taste of the burger and chips. Everyone knows that cigarettes are really bad for you but smokers buy them anyway  because they want to smoke. <br /><br />It's a very simple concept. If you try to sell something that people don't want, they simply won't buy it. How does your target customer normally buy similar or related products? What are their primary motivations for buying?<br /><br /><h2>Choose a specific market segment</h2> One of the most common reasons for the failure of a marketing plan is that it is aimed at too broad an audience. There's a well know saying that states  if you say everyone is your customer, then nobody will actually be your customer'. <br /><br />If a friend asks you to go and see a new film you'll most likely want to know what kind it is. If they reply  it's a film for everybody' then they probably shouldn't be too surprised if you politely say no. If on the other hand you love humorous stories and they tell you it's a comedy starring one of your favourite actors then chances are you'll really want to go and see it. You've been targeted well!<br /><br />Remember, there's a serious amount of competition out there. Being specific about who your target audience is will greatly improve your chances of dominating your chosen niche. <br /><br /><h2>Develop a marketing message</h2> Actually, you should develop two types of marketing message. One that tells your customer what you do and another that is designed to persuade them to become your customer.<br /><br />The first message should be short and simple and answers the question  what do you do?' Again, be as specific and concise as you can. Think of it like a successful billboard advertisement. People driving past have only a few seconds or less to read and get the message. <br /><br />Your second message is your persuasion message. This is the message that forms the basic content of any marketing materials you produce. <ul> <li> It should explain your target customer's problem <li> Show that the problem is so important it has to be solved immediately  now! <li> Detail clearly why you are the only one that can solve their problem <li> Give examples of how you've already helped others with this problem <li> Give details of pricing and payment options </ul> <h2>Find the right marketing medium for your audience</h2> How you choose to communicate your marketing message is an essential component of your plan. Your objective is to find the medium that delivers your message to the largest number of people in your market segment for the lowest possible price.<br /><br />The choice is vast - TV, Radio, Golden pages, Magazines, Direct Mailing, E-mail Campaigns, etc. Research your options thoroughly and target as accurately as you can. There's little point advertising computer systems in a boating magazine just because the rates are low. Know who your customer's are and match your medium to your market segment as best you can.<br /><br /><h2>Set goals and track results</h2> By defining what you want to achieve you greatly improve your chances of success and make it possible to assess the effectiveness of your marketing activities.<br /><br />Break your financials down into separate categories and set specific targets for each. Set goals for sales revenue, gross profits and number of sales per sales person etc. Once these goals are set it is imperative to measure and track the results as regularly as possible. Keep daily sales records and create weekly, monthly and yearly result charts. The more granular the information you have the easier it will be to spot trends and problems and adjust accordingly.<br /><br />Remember to also track non financial information such as how many new clients are acquired, where they heard about you, how many products have been sold and so on. This information will help improve how accurately you target your message.<br /><br /><h2>Establish your marketing budget</h2> One method to help determine an appropriate budget is to find out the average marketing spend as a percentage of sales spent by similar businesses in your industry. Using this as a guideline you can determine whether your budget too high or too low compared to the industry average. <br /><br />If you have already been tracking your marketing related costs for the previous year you will have enough information to help you establish your next budget. Simply divide your sales and marketing costs for the previous year by the number of products you have sold or the number of new customers you have acquired. <br /><br /><h2>Resources</h2> If you're looking for more advice and inspiration a Sample Marketing Plan for a small online retailer is available from sample-plans.com. This document gives you an overview of the planning process and may be useful as a template to help you get started on a plan of your own. <br/> You can download your free copy from <a target="example" href="http://sample-plans.com/sample.htm">http://sample-plans.com/sample.htm</a><br /><br /></div></div> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td colspan=2 class="spacerTD"> &nbsp;</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td colspan=2 class="footerTD"> <table border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0> <tr valign="top"> <td style="padding-right: 6px; padding-top: 3px;"> <img src="userimgs/bits/bni/bnilogosml.gif" width=45 height=27 alt="BNI logo"></td> <td> <div id="theFooter" class="topFooter"><b>BNI Marketwest.</b> A member of Business Network International (BNI). <br/>Email: <a href='mailto:info@bnimarketwest.com'>info@bnimarketwest.com</a><br/></div> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> </div> </div> <script src='http://www.google-analytics.com/urchin.js' type='text/javascript'> </script> <script type='text/javascript'> _uacct = 'UA-241515-13'; urchinTracker(); </script><script src='http://www.google-analytics.com/urchin.js' type='text/javascript'> </script> <script type='text/javascript'> _uacct = 'UA-241515-13'; urchinTracker(); </script></body> </html>