Beyond the Basics: Advanced Marketing Planning

Advanced Marketing PlanningMelissa Eckert, Marketing Communications Manager

Company Confidential Vistaprint © 2011

Your Marketing Plan• Need not be complicated• Need not be perfect• BUT…

• You need one if you want too drive higher responseo spend smartlyo focus your time and effort

• The plan should be seasonal but there is no one single “planning season”.


Plan for the Customer Lifecycle

Acquire

Convert

GrowRetain

Reactivate


Arabella Salon & Day Spa, South Portland, ME

Scott Associates, CPA, Portland, ME


Five Steps to a Marketing Plan

1. Assess the Market

2. Assess your Customers

3. Set Goals

4. Select Tactics

5. Track Performance


1. Assess the market

Know what is happening in the market to take advantage of opportunities and avoid pitfalls.

• Economic, demographic and political trends

• Behavioral and technological trends

• Competitor tactics and results


Sample Market Assessment

Market trend What it means for business

Troubled economy has people cutting out non-essential expenses

Need to reinforce that clients will save more money by using a professional

More people filing taxes online

Need to make sure we have an online presence

Competitors getting a larger share of the planning business

Need to determine whether our customers are likely to pay us for those services, too.


Sample Market Assessment

Market trend What it means for business

More women in the area are working outside the home

Need to make sure hours and services match the needs of working women

People don’t have a lot of extra money to spend on beauty

Need to keep prices reasonable and within expectations

Market in the area is saturated

Need to determine what sets us apart from the two other salons on the street





3. Set Goals

4. Select Tactics



2. Assess your customers

You cannot effectively and efficiently retain customers without knowing something about them.

• Which are most valuable?

• What benefits do they care about?

• Turn customer data into customer insight


Customer Data

• Age• Gender• Location• # of years as a customer• What they purchase • $$ spent per transaction,

month, year• How they found you• Etc. Customer Insight

Behavioral Data

Transactional Data

Demographic Data


Customer Insight

• Most customers only use our services once a year, during tax season. However, they do come back year after year so they appear satisfied.

• The majority of customers found us through word of mouth. Another indication that our customers are happy with our services.

• 65% of customers are over the age of 50. Many of those same customers are in a high income bracket but are not using Scott for retirement or estate planning services.


Customer Insight

• Customers using spa services are more likely than those using salon services to only visit once and never come back. They may be dissatisfied or consider spa services “special events”.

• Most salon customers only come twice a year, indicating that they are likely visiting other salons, too.

• 75% of visitors come on the weekends. Our customers may be more likely to work during the day and have family commitments at night.





3. Set Goals

4. Select Tactics



3. Set Goals

Without goals to guide you, you cannot know where and when to spend your marketing dollars.

• Should be focused and tied to financial metrics

• Must be for a specific period of time

• Will inform all choices from here on


Increase revenue per customer

Improve customer retention

Increase customer referrals

Three goals, three outcomes


Focus on one goal at a time

Increase revenue per customer

Improve customer retention

High customer satisfaction

Competitors getting additional business

Highly competitive, high-margin market

Customers are visiting other salons

There are other goals either company could identify.

Focusing on one at a time conserves resources and puts your effort where you think it will be most effective.





3. Set Goals

4. Select Tactics



4. Select tactics

It is not always the least expensive form of marketing that will be most cost effective. Tactics should be based on market and customer insight.

• Assess purpose

• Arrange by customer type

• Assign to calendar


Tactical choices: Acquisition

Objective Appropriate Media/Tactics

Increase awareness of product/service Banner advertisingIn-person eventsSearch marketingWebsite Email

Consider your company an expert Industry publicationsPublic relationsIn-person eventsCompany blog

Learn more about your product/service Direct mailEmailCompany blogFacebookWebsite

Trigger purchase through an offer Direct mail + offerEmail + offerBanner ad + offerWebsite + offer


Tactical choices: Retain and Grow

Objective Appropriate Media/Tactics

Cross-sell and up-sell current customers In storeIn-person eventsDirect mailEmail

Increase customer satisfaction and usage Direct mailEmailCompany blogFacebookNewsletters

Create customer dialogue and community Company blogFacebookTwitterMessage boards

Allow customers to provide feedback Company blogWebsite surveysFacebook


Goal Strategy Tactic To-Do

Increase Revenue per Customer

Encourage use of our services throughout the year

Monthly newsletter Develop list of potential monthly themes

Review last year’s emails for anything to leverage

Reminder emails at important tax events

Create list of events

Set reminders to be emailed one month prior to each event

Cross-sell planning services

Direct mail prior to tax season to high-potential clients

Review customer list to find high-value clients not yet using planning services

Order postcards

In-store rack cards explaining services

Visit competitor sites to see how they are explaining services

Ask existing planning customers what made them choose Scott

Sample Tactical Plan

Format from The Marketing Plan Handbook, by Robert W. Bly


Goal Strategy Tactic To-Do

Increase Customer Retention

Improve Customer Satisfaction

Welcome email to set expectations for all new clients

Write list of FAQs about the first visit

Add email field to scheduling software

Survey customers for possible improvements

Write survey

Set up survey and add link to emails

Reward loyal customers

Loyalty card with discounts on services

Develop list of discounts

Order loyalty cards

“Member Mornings” for no-wait spa service

Ask current customers if that would interest them

Calculate how often new customers ask for morning service to asses risk

Sample Tactical Plan

Format from The Marketing Plan Handbook, by Robert W. Bly





3. Set Goals

4. Select Tactics




You want to know when you are on track…and when you need to change course.

• Start slow – qualitative data is still valuable

• Then ramp up – quantitative data will help you see trends across groups of customers

• Always match back to goals


Goal Metrics to track

Increase revenue per customerRevenue/customer# of services used/customer# of customers using planning

Increase customer retentionSatisfaction ratingRepeat rate

Track performance


In review

1. Assess the market and your customers.

2. Turn data into insight.

3. Use insight to inform your goals.

4. Select tactics that are appropriate for your customers and your goals.

5. Put the tactics on a calendar and follow the plan!

6. Track performance to see what you are doing well and what you can improve.


Appendix


Sources of Market Data and Trends

• U.S. Census Bureau (www.census.gov)• Bureau of Labor Statistics (www.bls.gov)• Google Trends (www.google.com/trends)• Trendwatching (www.trendwatching.com)

http://www.census.gov/

http://www.bls.gov/

http://www.google.com/trends

http://www.trendwatching.com/


Recommended Reading

• The Marketing Plan Handbook, by Robert W. Bly

Date post:	21-Oct-2014
Category:	Business
View:	1,540 times
Download:	0 times

Beyond the Basics: Advanced Marketing Planning

Business