Make My Marketing Work New Book Reveal

May 8, 2010

It’s finally here!  The first copies of our new book, Make My Marketing Work: How to Win Customers & Make More Money have arrived!

Watch as I open the package and get to touch and feel the book for the very first time!

A huge THANK YOU to David Hancock and Rick Frishman and the entire team at Morgan James Publishing for all their hard work on getting this book from concept to reality.

Get Your SIGNED, Pre-Release Copy Today for $20 Including S&H

Marketing Plan Basics: Situation Analysis

September 24, 2009

To write a truly effective marketing plan for your business, you must have the basics in place first.  One of the most basic, yet often overlooked elements of a marketing plan is the situation analysis.

This situation analysis will provide the context for the proposed plan of action and must be fact-based, not theoretical.  This analysis will include basic market and product information, as well as current and anticipated market conditions, the implications they hold and any major opportunities or risks that may be forthcoming.

Your situation analysis will include the following sub-sections:

• Business/Product Review
• Market Analysis
• Competitive Overview
• Consumer Profile
• Distribution

Let’s look at each section in a little more detail.

Business/Product Review

Questions to ask and answer include: What product service am I offering? How does this meet the needs of the market? Do I have a core product with secondary or supporting products or a complete product line?

The key in this section of your marketing plan’s situation analysis is to clearly define exactly what your business offers and what value you provide to your customers.

Market Analysis

What factors will affect your ability to become and remain profitable in the current marketplace?  What is the size of your potential consumer market? Are there internal or external factors that affect your business’ performance? What sociological or economic factors may affect your customer’s ability to do business with you?

Competitive Overview

Who are your main competitors?  What approach are they taking to reach the same consumer profile as you?  What advantages do they have over you?  What weaknesses exist that you may be able to exploit?

Also consider what secondary competitors exist – those businesses competing for the same budget allocation, regardless of their specific product or service offering.

Consumer Profile

Who is your primary target market?  Who is your secondary target market?  What demographic (attributes & characteristics) and psychographic (preferences & biases) similarities exist that could help or hinder your ability to market effectively? What is the potential size of your market?

Distribution

How will you get your product to market?  Do you require distributors or other intermediaries or will you sell direct to the consumer?  In either case, what factors could impede your ability to deliver your product to market?

Although the situation analysis may seem complicated and involved, it is one of the most important marketing plan basics you will need to include in order to effectively develop a marketing strategy and tactical programs.

Got Marketing Questions?  Get YOUR most pressing marketing question answered free each month by submitting it today at http://www.MyMarketingQuestion.com.

Paul Keetch is co-author of the Make My Marketing Work home study system.  If you want to create your customized strategic marketing plan in as little as 10 days, visit http://www.MakeMyMarketingWork.com today!

Marketing Plan Basics: The Purpose & Mission Of Your Business

September 23, 2009

If you’re currently in business for yourself or are considering starting a new business, marketing is a skill you absolutely must master, if you hope to be successful.  Although marketing can be a daunting prospect for many entrepreneurs, mastering the basics of writing a marketing plan can be easy and fun – and it can provide you with the foundation you need to successfully grow your business.  Let’s get started by defining the purpose and mission of your business.

The purpose and mission of your business is one of the marketing plan basics because these details will inform the rest of your marketing plan, as well as the team who will eventually be responsible for implementing your plan.

It should be said here that as the owner of your company, you should be intricately involved in the development of your overall marketing strategy and its implementation.  It is your primary job to ensure that you are effectively reaching your target audience with your marketing message.

The Purpose

The purpose statement details the objective (or objectives) you wish to achieve with the implementation of your marketing plan.  You may be introducing a brand new product or service to a market you already serve, re-introducing an existing product that has been improved or re-engineered, or taking an existing product or service into a new market.

In short, the purpose outlines exactly what it is that you hope to accomplish by implementing the plan.

The Mission Statement

In your mission statement you will want to identify the primary reasons that your company exists in the market in the first place.  This section often consists of several short, carefully worded statements that address some or all of the following questions:

• Why is the company in business?
• What market pain or problem does our product or service address?
• What markets do we serve?  Why do we serve these markets in particular?
• What are the main features, advantages and benefits we offer our customers?
• What is our general philosophy for doing business?
• What is our primary point of differentiation from our main competitors?

Being able to clearly convey the purpose and mission of your business is critical to ensuring your team is able to execute successfully on your vision, winning more customers in the process.

When you’ve mastered the marketing plan basics outlined in this and other articles, you’ll be well ahead of many of your competitors in knowing how to communicate effectively with your target audience and motivate them to take action and become your lifelong customer.

Got Marketing Questions?  Visit www.MyMarketingQuestion.com and submit YOUR most pressing marketing question for our next FREE marketing  Q&A.

Paul Keetch is co-author of the Make My Marketing Work home study system.  If you want to create your customized strategic marketing plan in as little as 10 days, visit http://www.MakeMyMarketingWork.com today!