How to implement a killer marketing plan

If you are going to implement a great marketing plan, you have to include strategy in the plan.Too often, marketing plans consist of an overview of where the company is at and where the company plans to go.This is great but it isn't a plan.That's like saying, "I'm here in Utah and I'd like to get to Cabo San Lucas", it might be true but it isn't much of a plan.A plan details the steps that are going to be taken to get from point A to point B.For example, I'm going to save X amounts of dollars, take the second week of August off, and fly down on Delta.The first step to implementing a marketing plan is to have a plan.

Once you have a plan, you will need to focus on four different steps to get the plan moving.First, you need to focus on the product (or service) that you are marketing.Part of your marketing plan might be to improve the product somehow.You might focus on making the product more appealing, improving the quality, or adding new features.Everything can be improved in one way or another and the first part of your marketing plan should be to see that the thing you are marketing is as good as it can be.

Next, you need to focus on the pricing of your product (or service).Price should not be static and price variations should be included when you implement your new marketing plan.Consider the different groups that you market to.Not everybody is going to pay the same amount for the same product.This is an area of your marketing plan that needs careful consideration.In different areas with different financial situations, different customs, and different needs you should have different prices.The reason for this is that you have different points of diminishing returns based on the demand of the different areas.Carefully consider the prices of your competitors in the different market segments.

The third area you should focus on is the advertising and promotion of your product.You might have a great product that is fairly priced but nobody is buying it because nobody has ever heard of it.Your advertising strategies should be closely tied to your marketing plan and implementing the advertising strategies should be a part of implementation.However, you should remember that it is not just the advertising team that promotes your product.The sales department is as responsible for promotion as the advertising department.Work with the sales staff and involve them in the new marketing plan.The sales team might have the greatest interest in the marketing plan because these are the people make commission and directly benefit from good marketing.

Finally, when you are ready to implement your marketing plan, present it to the whole team.Business sometimes gets so departmentalized that it is hard to remember that everybody is on the same team.Don't let departmentalism kill your killer plan.Present the plan at a staff meeting or call a meeting for all of the department heads.Let all of the different groups in your company know about the new plan and let everybody know what their role in the plan is.People will be psyched and helpful to the extent that they have a role in the plan.Make sure that all the key players understand that theyhave to work together to realize the goals of the plan.Also, make sure that they understand that a successful implementation of the plan will benefit them directly.