Defining and articulating goals so they can be achieved

The success of a business venture is partly a function of the clarity and thoroughness of its plans. A marketing plan allows for intelligent budgeting of available resources by evaluating opportunities and assigning priority to them. They become a map of activity.

This begins with a dialogue to help define your offering and your objectives, evaluate your competition, and analyze your ideal client and their objectives. If your client has customers, you may need to consider this group as well. It may also be that your website serves to bind your staff together and needs to consider them as part of the audience. 

Once these varied needs are defined, articulated, and clearly understood, there is a research phase. This involves discussions with staff, online review of relevant partner and competitor websites, marketing and advertising materials, and social media.

This results in a written profile of your needs and objectives that would cover:

• The scope of your services;
• The positioning of your message
• The vehicles that deliver your message most effectively
• A rough plan for a marketing program
  • Print
  • Social media
  • Newsletters
  • Networking
  • Various other activities specific to the client/industry
  • May include sample messaging, for social media, email, or internal communications.