One of the most common mistakes small business owners make when running their business is skipping the step of developing a marketing strategy.
No one drives to a destination they have never been to before without GPS. Why would you try to expand your business to new markets or audience without a plan?
Here are 3 reasons marketing strategies matter to small businesses.
1. You can’t afford to not have a plan.
One of the best parts of having a marketing strategy is being able to know in advance about how much money you may have to spend. When trying to grow your business, the more you know about your finances the better. Marketing strategies define the channels you plan to use to market your business. Knowing those channels, you can budget for advertisement, promotion, events, and more. There are fewer surprises when you have a plan.
2. The strategy is ground zero.
If you work with multiple people to handle the different aspects of your business, you need a document that keeps everyone on the same page. Your website shouldn’t be doing one thing while your social media is doing another. Having a strategy will help you know who needs to do what, how, for how long, and for what reason. When your service providers know where they fall in the grand scheme of things, they can do their part for efficiently.
3. It works.
It’s that simple. Marketing strategy isn’t a new concept. Selling it to you in Facebook posts with bright flat lays promising to get your $100K in 1 month is new. The idea of mapping out your pricing strategy, defining your target market, choosing the right channels, budgeting, and branding has been being taught for decades. Spend your time wisely and do what works.
The downside to this is that building a marketing strategy isn’t easy. Whatever your business sells is likely your passion and you’re great at it. It can be difficult to see past that or to build a large strategy alone. Work with a consultant or coach to guide you in building your strategy. Then execute it with all your might.
Photo credit: Campaign Creators
