A new year gives us a chance to start reset and start again. If you feel that marketing your business is overwhelming then this is a great time to regroup.
Years ago, marketing was easy. You put together a brochure and an ad in the yellow pages. If you were one of the lucky ones with a big budget you might put an ad on TV or radio. But those days are long gone. Now there are websites, SEO, email marketing, social media, videos, brochures, newsletters, digital ads, etc. It can be overwhelming. So how do you begin to attack it?
First take a breath, step back and follow these steps….
- What are your goals?
Start with the end results. Where do you want to be at the end of 2020?
- What is your marketing budget?
Determine how much you want to spend this year to reach your goals. For most companies, 5-8% of revenue should be set aside for marketing.
- Plan Your Strategy
Marketing without strategy doesn’t work. You need to have a strategic plan. Who are your customers and where can you find them? You need to capture the lead, nurture them and turn them into customers. This plan becomes your strategy.
- The Tactics
How specifically will you capture and nurture those leads? Don’t plan to be everywhere. Instead pick the one or two where your customers are and commit to consistently showing up.
Will you do social media?
Whatever you do, set up a repeatable system so that can keep it manageable. But remember, the tactics you use should support your overall strategy.
- Analyze it
At the end of each month, review the analytics and make sure that what you’re doing is working. If not, then adjust. Don’t continue to waste time on things that don’t get you closer to your goals.
By putting a plan together and sticking to it, you can reduce the overwhelm of marketing. This will allow you to streamline what you’re doing and make it easy to work into your schedule.
About the author: Meg Huwar is a small business marketing expert and Principal of Brand Accelerator. She and her team work with companies who want to market their business but don’t have the time, knowledge or staff to do it themselves. Meg can be reached at mhuwar@thebrandaccelerator.com.