MARKETING BLOG

Why is planning so important to successful marketing?

15/1/2013

I’m a great believer that with spontaneity comes creativity; however creativity alone is not enough to drive your marketing activities and grow a competitive business.  Whilst I agree that ideas and innovation are an added advantage; it's the ability to transform your vision into a strategic, profitable and sustainable business that makes the real difference between success and failure.

 

Inadequate planning is particularly problematic for small businesses - not necessarily because business owners are poor at planning - but because they simply do not have the time or resource in-house to prioritise and perform this essential task. 

 

In addition, millions of ideas buzzing around in your head can present a problem if you don’t know how to plan properly, and in any case, it’s very unlikely you’ll be able to deliver them all effectively anyway.

 

Marketing planning is a fundamental discipline for all businesses, especially in today’s rapidly changing climate.  During my career, I have only come across a handful of companies that actually view planning as a priority, actively reviewing their plans on a regular basis. It also amazes me how many companies fail to allocate any budget to their marketing activities, let alone stick to one and for those that do - they very rarely allocate sufficient funds and many simply waste money on a whim.

 

Below are arguably, five of the most important, and often overlooked areas to consider before planning your marketing activities:

 

1. Budget

2.Market environment - i.e. who are your competitors, are there any trends, is the market saturated, where are the gaps?

3.Target audience (demographics, needs and requirements)

4.Objectives

5.Competitive advantage

 

Once you have a clear understanding of the above you can begin to develop your ideas and grow your business more effectively.

 

If you have an idea for a new product, service or business but need help planning your marketing strategy, please contact Cambridge Marketing Consultancy, we would be delighted to help.