If you want to create a go-to-market strategy for your company’s products and services, you’d better start with a clear plan.
But what does that entail, exactly? Our Marketing Plan Template outlines everything you need to cover to clarify expectations for your team and win the support of senior executives.
Download your free Marketing Plan Template now!
Here, we’ll walk you through the five key parts of any successful marketing plan.
What is the main purpose of a marketing plan?
A marketing plan helps you to organize and outline your strategy around promoting a product or service. It can also be used to propose a plan to senior executives, and make a case for investing in the promotion activities and strategy you’ve outlined.
A marketing plan should also include metrics for measuring its successful execution. Defining the intended outcomes of your plan aligns your team around results, not just activities.
5 key parts of a successful marketing plan
- Target audience
Identify your target audience. These are the potential prospective customers you would like to reach and turn into customers with this marketing plan. Use your company’s buyer personas as a basis for defining your target audience. - Unique selling proposition
Your unique selling proposition (USP) defines how your company’s product and marketing strategy will differentiate it from competitors. Highlight the biggest competitive threats and describe why your offer is unique and, ultimately, more successful. - Conversion strategy
Your promotion strategy will generate interest and leads, but how do you get prospective customers to convert? Define the specific strategies you will use in this section, which could include activities such as: sales outreach, nurture email campaigns, sending samples to prospects, producing more down-funnel content, free webinars, or promoting special offers. - Referral strategy
How can customers converted as a result of this marketing plan help to fuel your business? Referrals are a reliable source of hot leads for marketers, so be sure to have a strategy for encouraging referrals in place, especially for new customers. - Retention strategy
Before launching your marketing plan, you should already have a strategy to retain the customers you will gain in place. Turn a new customer into a repeat customer, who will purchase or renew again and again. Consider opting new customers into a loyalty program or adding them to an email newsletter. It takes a lot of time, effort, and money to find new customers, so keeping them should be a top priority.
