Six steps to writing a marketing plan for your small business

Six steps to writing a marketing plan for your small business

There are a host of factors that will play a part in deciding if you small business will be a success or not.

But if you want to expand, one item you’ll almost certainly need is a small business marketing plan. 

Why do I need a marketing plan?

A marketing plan is important for any small business as it provides a clear roadmap for how to attract and retain customers. 

A solid plan will enable you to know where to focus your efforts, whether that's on social media, email campaigns, or content marketing. It will help you set achievable goals, measure progress, and make smarter decisions about how to spend your marketing budget. 

Step one: Know your target market

A good starting point is to think about your typical customer’s age, gender, location, interests and income level. These details will give you an insight into how they prefer to spend their money - and why. 

It is likely your customer base doesn’t fit into one single category, in which case you can use a technique called ‘audience segmentation’. This involves dividing your typical consumers into smaller groups with shared characteristics. 

If you don’t know where to start, there are a few different things you can try. For example, if you have a physical location, start taking note of who your typical customer is, their characteristics, and their lifestyle.

Step Two: Develop Your Unique Selling Point

Your Unique Selling Point or USP is the point of difference which can make you better than the next seller on the list, or ensure your product stands out.

Whatever it is that makes your business special, that’s your USP, and it should be front and centre in all your marketing efforts. 

Not sure what your USP is? There are a few basic questions that will help to frame it:

• What problem does my product or service solve?
• What benefits do customers get from using my product or service?
• How is my product or service different from what else is out there?
• What feedback have I received from customers about my product or service?
• What is the overall experience I want my customers to have when using my product or service?

Step three: Research your competition

A robust marketing strategy should feature proper competitor analysis, enabling you to promote yourself in a better way than they are. This involves taking note of the strategies they are pursuing and noting which platforms they are using to best effect.

For example, are they heavily active on Facebook? Do they invest a lot of time adding new content to their website? You might even consider signing up to their newsletter to see what kind of information and promotions they’re sending to customers. 

The key is not to copy your competition, but to recognise the tactics they are using which could also work for you. Then, you can add your own unique twist to make sure you stand out.

Step four: The importance of goal setting

When looking to set new goals, it can be useful to start by taking a moment to dream big. What would success look like for you – reaching a certain number of customers, hitting sales targets, or creating a new product?

You can then set about turning this vision into specific and measurable goals. Instead of just saying, “I want more customers,” aim for, “I want to increase my customer base by 25% in the next year.” 

The key is to break targets down into smaller, manageable steps. For example, if you want to increase your customer base, consider what actions you need to take to get there, from social media campaigns to offering promotions.

Step five: Select the right marketing channels

Taking the first four steps and gathering information will enable you to answer some vital questions, such as:

• Where are your target customers spending their time? 
• Are they scrolling through Instagram, checking their emails, or watching YouTube? 
• Do they spend most of their time offline, so physical out-of-home advertising is your best bet. 

The key is to meet those potential customers where they are most active and engaged. You might want to consider a variety of different mediums:

• Social Media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, or TikTok.
• Traditional advertising such as print ads or direct mail 
• Events and sponsorships like community events, trade shows, or industry conferences 
• Referral programmes and word-of-mouth. 
• Email marketing such as newsletters, offers or promotions.
• Content marketing such as blog posts, videos, podcasts, and infographics. 
• Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC) such as Google Ads or social media ads
• Influencer marketing such as sponsored posts, reviews, or giveaways

Step six: Budget your way to success 

A good rule of thumb for small businesses is to allocate around five to 10% of total revenue to marketing. If you're just starting out, this might be a smaller amount, but you can adjust accordingly as your business grows.

Depending on which marketing channels you have chosen, you can distribute your budget accordingly. For example, if social media advertising and email marketing are key strategies, then you should allocate a significant portion of your budget to those areas. 

You should factor in both fixed and variable costs. Fixed costs include items such as subscriptions for tools or platforms, while variable costs could involve pay-per-click advertising or content marketing. 

Naturally, you’ll need to keep a close eye on how your budget is spent. This can be done by using accounting software or spreadsheets to monitor your expenditure and compare it against the results you’re achieving.

Finally, keep an eye on how your marketing efforts are paying off, and be sure to adjust your strategy and budget accordingly.