Putting together a marketing plan is deemed a basic skill, but what goes into it? Maxine-Laurie Marshall investigates
The humble marketing plan: definitely not the most exciting part of the job. In fact Allister Frost, managing consultant at Wild Orange Media, admits: “It’s a boring part of marketing if I’m honest, but it is a skill without which you’ll struggle to meet your objectives.” And that’s the problem with most things at work that you don’t like doing, they are usually vital and will make your life easier (timesheets are exempt from this, however. Their only purpose is to irritate you and catch you out on a Friday afternoon when you realise you haven’t done them – for two months).
It’s fair to assume most people will be able to see the benefits of planning, but what’s involved? Is it spending an afternoon working out where to divide your budget
for the next quarter? Not if you want a decent marketing plan, no. A good marketing plan will give you and your team direction. As Frost says: “It sets the tone for everything you’re trying to do, it’s a constant reference point all the way through the marketing cycle and allows you to go back to those principles to check you are being successful.”
Pre-planning
However, in order to put together a successful plan you must include people outside the marketing department. Alana Griffiths, marketing strategy director at Mason Zimbler, rightly points out the aim for many marketing plans is to generate sales qualified leads. She says: “Collaboration with the sales team is the cornerstone of robust planning.”
Frost agrees, noting that other departments will not be writing the plan but should be consulted to help validate facts. “If you don’t have that buy in from the wider organisation it might be difficult to execute the plan down the line. There are teams such as sales, procurement, operations and logistics, they are the people you need to get on board so they feel comfortable with the plan. There is no point you saying you’re going to do this big marketing push in November and double the sales if the factory can’t make it. The purpose is to extract their expertise, but to get buy in to make sure they are with you.”
Planning
Once you’ve pinpointed the people you need to get onside, you need to set about beginning your plan. A plan can be divided into two parts: a strategic marketing plan and a tactical marketing plan. The strategy is the big picture aims and objectives and the tactical plan is how to get there. You cannot begin to develop a tactical plan without first having a strategy.
As marketing objectives are intrinsically linked to the overall business objectives, it makes sense to begin your strategy there. Victoria Ash, partner at RCR, suggests beginning by asking: “‘Why’: Why are we doing marketing? How does it support the vision for the business?” Answering this question will keep those other internal teams mentioned earlier bought into
your plan.
Once objectives have been set, it’s time to move on to the tactical planning. Frost recommends moving on to an auditing phase where you analyse the situation and gain a confident understanding of your and your competitor’s abilities. He recommends using something like the SWOT or Michael Porter’s analysis. During this stage in particular marketers should be thinking about their customers. Jeremy Waite, head of digital strategy at Salesforce, advises marketers include customer behaviour analysis in to the plan. He says: “Rendering test-and-learn campaigns is a thing of the past. It is now much easier to predict success and make a relevant plan based on social behaviour and intent.” So ensure you are taking your customers’ actions into account when you begin your analysis.
You are then able to move on to the ‘how’ part of the plan. You should now be in a position to allocate resources and responsibilities. Ash says: “Nothing beats a timeline of key activities at this point in the plan.”
‘Doing’ is always more exciting than simply thinking and planning so it’s no surprise to hear Frost say companies
usually just jump into the last step: “What I often see is the whole stage of setting your goals, analysing the market, and setting the strategy is glossed over and it’s straight into execution without knowing why you’re acting.”
Forward planning
Usually when putting a plan together people begin with the best intentions and are enthusiastic for the first couple of weeks. Think back to January and the big plans you made about your diet, that book you wanted to write or that project you vowed to get off the ground. If the plan is too big or the end game is too far away you could lose enthusiasm and lose your way. Don’t let the same happen with your marketing plan. Frost warns: “A three-year or five-year plan is generally a waste of time because you cannot predict that far ahead.” Instead advice centers around drawing up a plan for a three- to six-month period.
If, like Griffiths, you would rather plan a little further ahead and stick with a yearly plan that’s in line with your company’s financial year, heed her advice: “It’s also important to ensure the plan can work fluidly in response to inevitable changes and surprises, both within your business, your prospects’ businesses and the wider industry. On the whole, around 65 per cent of your activity can be planned. For the rest, you need to live in the moment.”
Being fluid with your plan is vital as unforeseen changes occur daily, but don’t take that flexibility too far and forget your plan all together and act on an adhoc basis. Ensure you keep checking your plan and use it to measure your progress and ensure you’re still heading in the right direction. Ultimately that’s what a marketing plan is, your direction.
Frost makes the point by saying: “I remember being on a job interview more than 20 years ago, someone said: ‘what’s more important, drive or direction?’ I thought it was a tough question but remember replying: ‘I think direction because if you know where you want to get to you’ve got more of a chance of getting there, if you’ve only got drive there’s a possibility you could drive yourself in the wrong direction’. If you don’t know where you’re going to get to, you’re not going to get there.”
Definitions
The words ‘marketing plan’ and ‘marketing strategy’ are often used interchangeably and therefore incorrectly. It’s easy to imagine why the two often get confused when the dictionary defines the word ‘strategy’ by using the word ‘plan’. The dictionary definition of a strategy is: ‘A plan, method, or series of maneuvers or stratagems for obtaining a specific goal.’
So to ensure you and your colleagues are working from the same definition, see below.
Strategy:
This is the big picture and long term aim. This is where you set out your goals for marketing. Per Holmlund, PR manager at Projectplace, says: “Strategy is the long term and the way forward. It should be valid over several years.”
Plan:
This is the document that outlines how the strategic aims will be reached. Holmlund advises: “The plan’s aim is to specify the strategy into tactics you can actually deliver.”
