Creating a marketing campaign that actually achieves your goals is more complicated than many people realize. And unfortunately, the amount of effort or money you put into a promotional action doesn’t translate into proportionate numbers. If you’ve been feeling like you’re bouncing between ideas without being sure of your impact or consistency, you’ll need a strategic marketing plan.
You may argue that you already have a marketing plan, but if it’s not working for you, it’s time to create a new one. Establishing one with clear goals, audience personas, and comprehensive strategies will help you set a straightforward path to achieving the targets you want. However, if you don’t already have a marketing plan, you’ve probably heard of marketing misconceptions that have made you hesitate towards working on a strategy that your organization needs to succeed.
Here are five marketing plan misconceptions that are preventing you from succeeding:
It’s Too Time Consuming
A solid foundation take time to build, and that also applies to a solid marketing plan. You might think that you’ll be stuck in the vicious cycle of spending your time planning on a campaign that ends up not working, but coming up with a flexible yet strategic plan will help you stay on track. It will also stop you from being reactionary to put out any fires quickly, which, in itself, is incredibly tedious and time-consuming.
Coming up with a strategic market plan doesn’t mean you have to hunker down for hours and whittle it down to perfection. Start by thinking about your current marketing setup and your goals in the big picture, then break it down into chunks. Outline what you need to plan, or use a free funnel mapping tool to help you get the ball rolling. It’s essential to be realistic about the time you need to accomplish each step, so approach it as a mini-project and work on it every day. That way, you can continue performing your regular tasks while working on a marketing plan that’s more likely to work.
It’s Too Costly
Although most people shy away from making buying decisions due to cost, it’s worth the investment if it helps improve your business in the way you need. Although businesses with smaller budgets may balk at the resources needed to create a robust marketing plan, the truth is that without it, you’re wasting money. Without proper guidance and planning, you’re probably funneling your hard-earned cash into platforms and channels that aren’t delivering results or lead you to take actions that don’t get you closer to your end goals.
By putting your time, money, and effort into creating a detailed marketing plan, you’ll gain much-needed clarity into what you need to accomplish your objectives, who you’re trying to reach, and the market analysis you need to make. You’ll also realize the best approach to promote your brand to your target audience, ensuring that you’re finding innovative ways to convert your audience into paying, loyal members of your customer base.
It Requires You to Know Everything
Another misconception that may have discouraged you from creating a marketing plan is that you need to have all the right answers immediately. Although drafting your comprehensive blueprints will help you look for the answers to specific questions, it can also allow you to test your guesses and figure out what works.
Working on a marketing plan isn’t something you should do by yourself, so ask for help when you can. Apart from using funnel mapping software, ask your team to get together and discuss your goals and objectives. It may be a challenging discussion, but utilizing the sharp minds in your company will help you overcome the obstacle of coming up with a plan that produces the results you want.
It’s Too Rigid and Constricting
On the other hand, some people believe that marketing plans restrict their growth or leave little to no freedom to explore and realize their creative potential. In reality, having focus and direction will allow you to channel your ideas into endeavors that will translate into success. It will also keep you from moving around aimlessly without context, helping you save time.
A plan also gives your marketing team a point of reference, which they can take in relevant directions. Although many companies have claimed to come up with their viral campaigns on a whim, that’s what they want everyone else to think; they’ve certainly put a lot of thought and resources into executing their vision. Keep in mind that it takes a lot of planning to appear effortless.
That isn’t to say that creative minds can’t come together and come up with a brilliant campaign right away, but having a marketing plan steers you in a much-needed direction. With that said, make sure your blueprint is flexible enough to allow you to experiment but ensuring it’s aligned with your goals. If this is too daunting, you can start with a short-term marketing plan and gradually work your way up.
It’s Not Worth the Effort Because It’s Too Difficult
When creating a solid marketing plan, remember that the task of creating this doesn’t rely solely on your shoulders—you have a whole team that can help you! Working with them, along with using team collaboration software, will help you realize all the benefits it has to offer, and you’ll see that producing a marketing plan is all worth the effort.
However, if you don’t have a team, you can work with a consultant and use an all in one marketing platform to construct actionable plans and carry them out from one place. It won’t be a fast and easy process, and it might not be the cheapest endeavor, but the value a marketing plan can offer your business will manifest itself over time. At the end of the day, you’ll be glad you did it.
Conclusion
Having a marketing plan is crucial to your success. Without it, you’ll be throwing money aimlessly at campaigns that aren’t generating your desired results. Now that you know the truth behind these five misconceptions, you’ll have what you need to start the exciting process of creating a marketing plan.
Market Plan is an all in one marketing platform with a funnel mapping tool that allows your company to execute, project, and optimize your marketing strategy from one place. You can map campaigns, collaborate with your team, run projections, and access real-time analytics.