Marketing is one of the pillars that makes a business intact. It is in this department where the process of promotion or advertising of a certain product or service is being organized. The said process outlines the department’s proposal on strategy, budget, timeline, and their implementation. Today, small businesses’ marketing plan contents often include social media, which is one of the current set of platforms for target market engagements. In another aspect, there are a lot of digital marketing companies that offer ready-made templates for this kind of plan. Recently, the word processing software Microsoft Word is already extending its services to providing a format for such a plan. Check out our set of examples and read our highly-relevant article below to know more.

15+ Microsoft Word Marketing Plan Examples

1. Tactical Marketing Plan

2. Segmentation Marketing Plan

3. Personal Marketing Plan

4. Conference Marketing Plan

5. Blog Marketing Plan

6. Digital Marketing Plan

7. Simple Marketing Plan

8.  Marketing Launch Plan

9. Business Marketing Plan

10. Marketing Plan for Innovators

11. Sample Marketing Plan

12. Marketing Planning and Problem Solving

13. Sample Marketing Management Plan Example

14. Strategic and Marketing Planning Example

15. Product Marketing Plan Example

16. Content Marketing Plan Example

What Is a Marketing Plan?

A marketing plan is an outline of activities that involve the promotion of a brand, product, service, or event. Randy Duermyer of The Balance wrote in his May 2019 article that the plan should be updated periodically to ensure the effectiveness of the business marketing strategies being set forth to reach the evolving market. This is why many businesses would create either a monthly marketing plan or an annual marketing plan. Aside from outlining the activities, it also helps identify the right market for your product or service line. Hence, the marketing plan plays a very vital role in any business.

Social Media

Social media is a platform for virtual communities where people can share their interests and ideas. The two most enjoyed features of this platform are their built-in applications for communication and networking. Because of these, it wasn’t long after the number of people engaged in it increased to millions, which is enough to grab the businessmen’s attention. As the number grows everyday, advertisers find social media as a good venue to put their sales and marketing strategy. A little later, entrepreneurs began making it a cheap alternative to introducing, marketing, and selling their products and services.

How To Create a Marketing Plan

When creating a marketing plan, there are a lot of things you need to do and put into account. You also have to understand that this type of process document needs some knowledge about technical writing. With those being said, we understand that this task may seem daunting to you. But there is no need to worry! Through our outline that we have specially prepared for you, rest assured that you can make a standardized marketing plan!

1. State Your Goals

Kick-off your marketing plan by setting your corporate goals, particularly on the aspect of marketing. By sharing your short-term and long-term goals, you give the stakeholders and the workforce ideas on what to expect for the rest of the process document. Doing so also keeps the involved professionals to stay on track and knowledgeable of the reasons why their tasks have to be done. For most marketing plans, it serves as a good opening statement.

2. Gather Necessary Information

Once you have your goals set, gather all the necessary information by conducting various researches and analysis. They may include the SWOT analysis and marketing analysis. The SWOT analysis can help you discover the internal strengths and weaknesses of your company in terms of marketing, as well as the external opportunities and threats. In this section, you will also find out the current marketing trends that will boost your company’s advantages and get rid of the disadvantages.

3. Set Marketing Strategies

There are many types of marketing. They are set depending on what result you will be getting on your analysis. With the internet’s breakthroughs, the preferences in the marketing approach of many entrepreneurs can be easily predicted. The prominent types consist of influencer marketing, email marketing, buzz marketing, video marketing, social media marketing, content marketing, search engine marketing, and digital marketing. Noticeably, these modern types are mostly engaged in the cloud. However, traditional marketing isn’t completely out of the scene. There are still a few businesses that invest in outdoor advertising.

4. Include Activity Timeline

The marketing strategies that have been set will remain as they are unless acted upon. So, always include in your marketing plan the actions that will make those strategies into reality. As you do so, make sure to lay them with their corresponding schedules. With a timeline, employees will get a little bit of pressure to get their tasks done on time.

5. Prepare Budget Proposal

All those activities are going to be expensive. But, don’t fret. Through budgeting, your company will be well-aware of how much money to put into your marketing efforts. Just a heads up, the proprietors, board of directors, and other management heads are very careful in dispensing company money. This is why you have to be fair in making an estimation for your budget proposal.

FAQs:

The market is the lifeblood of any business. It consists of people that put money into a certain product or service, making them entitled to be called consumers, customers, or clients. Through the riches they exchange for the products and services, the manufacturers, retailers, and service providers are given the ability to generate profits. Needless to say, marketing must be among the top priorities of a business. Prominent digital marketing strategist Pam Moore once said, “You can never go wrong by investing in communities and the human beings within them.”