Having a solid marketing plan is the key to the success for businesses, if it is planned and executed timely and consistently. In this article, we will be sharing tips on how your company can put together an effective digital marketing plan, which could potentially help you outperform your competitors , help boost your sales and increase your profit margins. In summary, here are the 6 simple steps to undertake:
1. Branding
2. Differentiation
3. Customer Assessment
4. Competitors analysis
5. The Digital Plan
6. Feedback
1.Branding
Branding is not just about your brand name and logo.
Lets think about BMW, what do you think of when u see a BMW? Luxury?
Yes, BMW is perceived by us as a premium luxury car, where owners of such cars are seen as people with wealth and class. This is in line with their mission statement which defines the BMW Group is the world’s leading provider of premium products and premium services for individual mobility. This highlights the importance of establishing a strong brand image.
Firstly, to track and establish the direction for your company, do ask yourself the following questions:
- Who are you?
- What do you do?
- What are your goals?
After which, you need to determine how you want your company to be perceived in the eyes of your customers and your competitors. In short, branding is all about your company’s perceived image in the eyes of your customers.
2. Differentiation
With many other companies offering the same products and/or services which u provide, how do you differentiate yourself from your competitors, such that consumers would choose your brand over the others?
The major key to success of your brand is determined by how you can differentiate yourself from your competitors, such that customers choose you over your competitors. For example, Apple positions itself as a company that develops simplicity designed innovative products, which deliver powerful, and simple to use, yet effective tools to meet the needs of the people. As such, Apple is able capture huge demand from general consumer market, ranging from the young to the old, to buy and use their products, simply just because they claim that they products are idiot-proof.
3. Customer Assessment
In order for your company to increase returns on investments on your online marketing campaigns, you will need to understand your customers’ behaviors. Research should be done to find out which online channels your customers frequent. This way, you would be able to identify the most suitable channels to reach out to your customers to maximize every dollar spent on your online marketing campaign.
4. Competitors analysis
It is also essential to research on your competitors to understand what they are doing. This could provide a guideline for you to follow and benchmark against.
Since what they have done have been effective thus far, hence it is safe to say that if you follow likewise, chances of you failing would be slim. In addition, you can learn from mistakes they make, and formulate an even better marketing campaign to compete with them. However, always do remember, just like a pair of shoes doesn’t fit all, whatever your competitor choose to do may not fit either. So, do choose the right solutions carefully with the right fit for your company’s needs.
5. The Digital Plan
Once you have established your brand and carefully analyzed your customers and your competitors, you are ready for the digital plan. This involves selecting the appropriate online channel to use to reach your customers. Examples of such channels include Social media campaigns, search marketing, blogs, etc. As each approach is unique, with its own pros and cons, you have to consider each approach carefully, and choose the most appropriate channels to reach your existing customers, and at the same time, reach out to potential new customers.
6. Feedback
In order to assess whether your marketing campaigns are successful or not, feedbacks on the progress of the campaign needs to be obtained and analyzed. There are many analytic tools (e.g. Google Analytics) available for companies to use to track the progress of their online marketing campaigns. By using these tools, valuable information on your customer’s behavior in response to your marketing campaign can be obtained. Information gathered should be used to help you adjust your online marketing campaign strategies accordingly.
Conclusion
Hopefully this article is able to provide you useful tips on how to plan your digital marketing strategies effectively. To learn more about how each online marketing channel is able to engage your target audience effectively, do stay tuned for more articles coming soon on our blog.
