plan ahead developing a marketing plan for your small business PROPER PLANNING: Fail to plan... you might as well plan to fail. Developing a proper plan will make a drastic difference in your success a 72 before you start. Set objectives that are obtainable and realistic to avoid frustration and failure. Your objectives will sculpt your business image with goals such as high quality, fast delivery, or friendly customer service. Place a measurement on your objectives, i.e. five new customers per month or no more than one percent of product re- turns. It is easy to state that you want fast delivery, but how will you know if you’ve accomplished that goal unless you preset how long delivery should take? Don’t set goals that are barely within your reach. Start small, and raise the stakes after you get a feel for good marketing strategy includes a good plan. Many less successful businesses jump right into advertising and promotional efforts, accosting every media source from office cork- boards to national newspapers. These businesses have not thought things through and waste a lot of time and money on hit or miss tactics. If you plan your marketing strategy carefully, you can focus on the best media source for your business and the best way to lure in customers. The following steps will help you develop an effective marketing plan, ensuring a successful and profitable return on your marketing investment. 0set objectives Know what your business objectives are what works best for you. 0analyze your business plan Take a look at the strengths, weaknesses, op- portunities and threats of your business plan. Consider how you might strengthen the weak- nesses and promote the strengths. Opportunities should be weighed for value and return; take note or confront any threats to the plan. Simulate a variety of scenarios, imagining the plan in effect for a long period of time. Try to determine how potential customers will receive your plan. 0 formulate a tactical plan You also need to plan how to follow through with your marketing plan. Take everything you WQ
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