How to Create a Marketing Plan | Step-by-Step Guide

Summary

In this video, Mike Plogger from Visme guides viewers through the essential steps to create a winning marketing plan. He covers understanding the purpose, setting goals, analyzing the market, identifying target customers, outlining marketing goals, detailing strategies, and budget considerations. Various Visme templates are also introduced to assist in presenting the plan effectively.

Takeaways

• 📝 Start with a clear understanding of the purpose of a marketing plan to set goals, understand the target audience, and optimize marketing impact.
• 🎯 Include essential components in your marketing plan: short and long-term goals, target audience description, and high-level strategies and tactics.
• 📊 Utilize infographic templates to clarify objectives, audience, and strategies in an easily digestible format.
• 🔍 Conduct thorough market and competition research to analyze strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT analysis).
• 👥 Identify and create a detailed persona of your target customer to inform tailored marketing strategies.
• 📈 Set specific, measurable marketing goals with clear deadlines to track progress effectively.
• 🛠️ Develop a comprehensive marketing strategy outlining what needs to be done, how to do it, and the channels to use.
• 📅 Consider using visual aids like infographics or presentations to make your strategy and timeline easy to understand and follow.
• 💰 Detail budget considerations for your marketing plan to manage costs and set financial goals.
• 💼 Explore various Visme templates for different industries to customize and adapt to your specific marketing needs.
• 🌐 Emphasize the importance of creativity and visual presentation to make your marketing plan stand out and be memorable.

Q & A

What is the primary purpose of a marketing plan?

The primary purpose of a marketing plan is to help set goals, understand the target audience, and optimize the impact of marketing campaigns.

What are the key components that should be included in a marketing plan?

A marketing plan should include short and long-term marketing goals, a description of the target audience and their persona, and one or more high-level marketing strategies and tactics.

What is the significance of an executive summary in a marketing plan?

An executive summary is a brief overview of the entire company and the key details of the marketing plan. It highlights the function of the business and the purpose of the plan, providing a quick introduction before delving into the details.

Why is it important to revisit a company's mission, vision, and values in the marketing plan?

Revisiting a company's mission, vision, and values is important to provide clarity and answer questions about why the marketing plan is structured the way it is. It shows that these elements were considered throughout the planning process.

What is a SWOT analysis and how does it help in marketing planning?

A SWOT analysis is a strategic planning tool used to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats related to business operations and competition. It helps in presenting research, visualizing the company's path, identifying opportunities, and setting goals.

How should a target customer be identified in a marketing plan?

A target customer should be identified by creating a detailed persona, including age, income, interests, and values. This helps in creating more informed and tailored marketing strategies.

What is the importance of being specific with marketing goals?

Being specific with marketing goals is crucial as it helps in setting concrete, measurable objectives. This makes it easier to track progress and ensures that the goals are clear and achievable.

How can a visual representation like an infographic help in presenting a marketing plan?

A visual representation like an infographic helps in displaying information in an easy-to-understand manner. It makes the plan more engaging and increases the likelihood of information retention compared to text alone.

What are the three key details to include when outlining a marketing strategy?

When outlining a marketing strategy, the three key details to include are: what needs to be done, how to do it, and the channels to use.

Why is detailing the budget considerations important in a marketing plan?

Detailing the budget considerations is important as it helps in understanding the financial implications of the marketing plan. It ensures that the costs are clear upfront and helps in setting a cap to stay within budget.

Outlines

00:00

📝 Introduction to Marketing Plan Creation

The script introduces the topic of marketing planning and the challenges faced by those without prior experience. Mike Plogger from Visme offers guidance on creating a marketing plan, emphasizing the importance of understanding business goals, target audiences, and strategies. The video promises to walk through seven essential steps and provide templates to assist in the process. The first step is to recognize the purpose of a marketing plan, which includes setting goals, understanding the audience, and optimizing marketing impact. The script also mentions the components every marketing plan should have: marketing goals, target audience description, and high-level strategies. An infographic template on Visme is highlighted as a tool to clarify objectives, audience, and strategies.

05:01

🔍 Deep Dive into Market Research and Target Audience Identification

This paragraph delves into the importance of market research and competitor analysis, suggesting the use of SWOT analysis to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. It stresses the need to understand one's own company and the competition. The script then moves on to defining the target customer, suggesting the creation of a detailed persona to inform marketing strategies. It mentions the use of templates that resemble resumes to describe the target audience's characteristics. The paragraph also touches on the use of infographics with data widgets and pie charts to visually represent target audience demographics and preferences.

10:02

🎯 Setting Clear Marketing Goals and Strategies

The script outlines the process of setting specific, measurable marketing goals, advising against vague statements and emphasizing the need for clear, numerical objectives. It presents a template that simplifies the presentation of goals, making them easy to track and measure. The paragraph also discusses the importance of outlining the marketing strategy, detailing what needs to be done, how to do it, and the channels to use. Visual aids such as phase diagrams or detailed timelines are recommended for clarity. The script concludes by highlighting the significance of budget considerations, suggesting a template that clearly outlines costs and encourages setting a financial cap.

🛠️ Utilizing Visme Templates for Marketing Plan Success

The final paragraph showcases a variety of Visme templates tailored for different industries and marketing needs. It mentions templates for restaurant marketing, real estate, content and editorial calendars, social media strategy, and digital marketing. Each template is customizable to fit individual branding and content requirements. The paragraph also touches on product marketing and personal branding templates, highlighting the importance of consumer research. The script concludes by encouraging viewers to explore Visme's template collection and to utilize the platform to create visually appealing and informative marketing plans.

Keywords

💡Marketing Plan

A marketing plan is a strategic document that outlines the goals, strategies, and tactics for promoting a business's products or services. It's essential for any business aiming for success, as it helps to clarify objectives, understand the target audience, and optimize marketing efforts. In the video, the creation of a marketing plan is the central theme, with steps and templates provided to assist in its development.

💡Target Audience

The target audience refers to the specific group of consumers a business aims to reach with its marketing efforts. Understanding this group is crucial for tailoring marketing strategies effectively. The video emphasizes the importance of identifying and understanding the target audience through personas, which are detailed descriptions of the ideal customer.

💡SWOT Analysis

SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. It's a strategic planning tool used to identify and analyze the internal and external factors that can affect a business's performance. In the script, SWOT analysis is presented as a method to deeply analyze a company's position in the market and to inform the marketing plan.

💡Marketing Goals

Marketing goals are the specific, measurable objectives that a company aims to achieve through its marketing efforts. The video stresses the importance of setting clear and specific marketing goals, such as increasing web traffic by a certain percentage within a defined timeframe, to guide and measure the effectiveness of marketing strategies.

💡Marketing Strategies

Marketing strategies are the high-level approaches a company takes to reach its marketing goals. The video outlines the need for a marketing plan to include one or more strategies and tactics, which are the specific actions taken to execute the strategies effectively.

💡Templates

Templates are pre-designed formats or layouts that can be used as a starting point for various documents or presentations. The video script provides several examples of templates available on Visme, which can be customized to fit different aspects of a marketing plan, such as executive summaries, SWOT analysis, and budget considerations.

💡Executive Summary

An executive summary is a brief overview of a larger document, such as a marketing plan. It provides a snapshot of the entire plan, highlighting the key points and objectives. In the video, the executive summary is described as the starting point of a marketing plan, designed to give a quick introduction to the company and its marketing intentions.

💡Infographic

An infographic is a visual representation of information, data, or knowledge intended to present complex information in a simple and easily digestible format. The video suggests using infographics to clarify objectives, target audiences, and strategies in a marketing plan, making the information more engaging and accessible.

💡Persona

A persona is a fictional character created to represent the ideal customer of a product or service. It helps businesses to understand and empathize with their target audience's needs and preferences. The script mentions creating a persona to describe the target customer in detail, which is vital for crafting effective marketing messages.

💡Budget Considerations

Budget considerations involve the financial planning and allocation of resources necessary to achieve marketing goals. The video emphasizes the importance of detailing the costs associated with a marketing plan to ensure that the company is aware of the expenses involved and can set a cap on spending.

💡Timeline

A timeline is a graphical representation of events in chronological order, showing when tasks are to be completed. In the context of a marketing plan, a timeline helps to visualize the sequence of marketing activities and ensures that the plan is executed in a timely and organized manner. The video mentions including a timeline in the marketing plan to keep everyone on the same page regarding the schedule of activities.

Highlights

Mike Plogger from Visme introduces a guide to creating a marketing plan for businesses.

The necessity of a marketing plan for business success is emphasized.

Seven steps to creating an effective marketing plan are outlined.

Templates available on Visme for marketing plans are mentioned.

Importance of understanding the purpose of a marketing plan is discussed.

Components of a marketing plan, including goals, audience, and strategies, are detailed.

An infographic template on Visme that clarifies objectives and strategies is introduced.

The suggestion to present marketing plans in various formats like infographics or presentations is made.

The first step of creating a marketing plan is to start with an executive summary.

The significance of revisiting company's mission, vision, and values in a marketing plan is highlighted.

Conducting market and competition research is identified as a crucial step.

SWOT analysis is recommended for presenting research findings.

Identifying the target customer is key to creating tailored marketing strategies.

Templates for creating customer personas and resumes are provided.

The importance of setting specific, measurable marketing goals is stressed.

Templates for outlining marketing goals with clarity and specificity are shown.

Laying out a comprehensive marketing strategy in phases is suggested.

The use of visual templates to represent marketing strategies is recommended.

Detailing budget considerations for the marketing plan is deemed essential.

A variety of Visme templates for different industries and purposes is showcased.

The video concludes with an invitation to explore Visme's template collection.

Transcripts

so you're ready to start marketing but

you have no plan where do you begin what

should you include

how can you present it you have the

questions we have the answers

[Applause]

[Music]

hello world my name is mike plogger and

here at visme we aim to make your work

life easier whether it's design

presentations or marketing we have the

tools to help you become a true

professional marketing is a necessary

operation for any business looking to

take a leap towards success however if

you don't have the proper experience you

might be lost on how to create a

marketing plan and these are extremely

helpful when it comes to understanding

your business clarifying your goals

staying focused and keeping everyone on

your team on the same page

in this video i'll take you through the

seven necessary steps to creating a

winning marketing plan as well as share

a number of templates you can start with

right away shall we

understanding the purpose behind a

marketing plan is step number one

ideally it should be used to help you

set your goals understand your target

audience and optimize the impact of your

marketing campaigns communicating your

big strategy or idea is what your

marketing plan is all about in order to

do this every marketing plan should

consist of the following

number one your short and long-term

marketing goals number two a description

of your target audience and their

persona and number three one or more

high-level marketing strategies and

tactics this infographic template

available on visme right now features

each of these key details it clarifies

the objectives the target audience and

strategies in an easily consumable page

if you wanted to go the extra mile and

include even more detail you can also

add an overview of the current market

situation key performance indicators

budget or financial considerations or a

timeline on when the plan will be

carried out typically all of this

information is communicated on a pdf

just like the one we just saw but if

you're feeling creative try creating an

infographic a full presentation or an

interactive web page to share your plan

who knows it could be the difference

between your plan and someone else's

without further ado let's dive into

seven steps for creating an effective

marketing plan

step number one start with an executive

summary this is essentially a brief

summary or overview of your entire

company and the key details of your

marketing plan it highlights the

function of your business and the

purpose of your plan this shouldn't be

very long the summary can include past

achievements and the future direction of

the company

consider this template here the details

are concise and to the point you want to

tease your viewers on what's to come and

get them on the edge of their seats it's

not overwhelming just a quick

introduction before you get into the

meat of your plan

revisiting your company's mission vision

and values is important to highlight

early on

why it'll provide clarity and answer any

questions as to why your marketing plan

is the way that it is it'll show viewers

you had this in mind throughout your

entire planning process templates like

this can help because it'll educate or

remind your viewers how your company got

to the point they're currently at and

where you're looking to be in the future

one of the first steps with any plan is

doing your research study the market

study the competition what are others

doing that's working and then what can

you do to make it even better deeply

analyze your own company's strengths and

weaknesses touch on what you're doing

well but don't be afraid to communicate

what you think could be stronger a swot

analysis or strengths weaknesses

opportunities and threats is a great way

to present your research you can

visualize the company's path identify

opportunities set goals and so much more

this template right next to me can be

edited in visme and is completely

customizable from the text content to

the colors fonts icons you name it you

can edit all of our templates to match

your brand you can do the same for your

competitors compare your company with

another one in the industry to see how

they match up with one another side by

side it can be eye-opening sure but take

a hard look at the competition it's

crucial if you want to compete in the

market

after identifying your competition you

must identify your target customer this

will allow you to create more informed

and tailored marketing strategies vote a

person from scratch how old are they

what's their income what are their

interests what do they value

a template like this is perfect for

putting that person you've built on

paper and explaining him or her to your

audience during a presentation or during

a meeting

or what's one way that's almost always

used when someone wants to explain

themselves for a job

well a resume of course this template

more closely resembles an actual resume

it includes basic information a

photograph personality traits a bio

goals frustrations you can edit it

however you see fit to describe your

target audience and if your target

audience is a mixture of different

people try creating an infographic with

data widgets you can break down how much

you should cater to one group or the

other there's a number of different

charts and graphs you can use to help

but this template went with pie charts

to break down target customer

percentages it's easier to understand

than if someone was trying to explain it

without a visual

[Music]

okay you've done your research you know

your audience now it's time to outline

your marketing goals what are you hoping

to achieve with your marketing plan the

most important thing to remember with

this step is to be specific with actual

numbers if you're hoping to achieve more

web traffic don't just say the goal here

is to increase web traffic say my goal

is to increase traffic to our site by 30

percent within the next three months you

need a concrete goal not a blanket

statement

this template is simple easy to digest

and lays out specific goals they're all

measurable and clear following the

progress towards the goals won't be

difficult with how definitive they are

and as i mentioned deadlines could be

used as well if that's the case a

template like this could be more fitting

in order for this company to accomplish

a goal these three phases must be

properly carried out marketing plans

like this help viewers follow along as

they can refer back to them if they

start to get off track

continuing off my last point our sixth

step is to lay out your marketing

strategy from beginning to end there's

three details to write down and include

with this step one what to do two how to

do it and three the channels to use i

highly recommend turning this into a

visual so your team and audience can

fully understand your thought process to

make it even easier for them turn your

strategy into a series of phases or

steps it could look something like this

clarifying what needs to be done in each

step before moving on or if you want

more certain dates and deadlines this

template here could be even better

specific dates are laid out from the

first phase of the project to the launch

if you want to ensure something is

completed by a certain time we highly

recommend using this template

infographics in general are wonderful

for displaying information in a way that

is easy to understand people are much

more likely to retain information paired

with a visual rather than with text

alone another template to consider is

something like this lay out all of your

information in a detailed manner leaving

nothing to the imagination

last but not least detail the budget

considerations for your plan how much is

it going to cost in order to reach your

goal it's important to be clear with

this up front at least as best as you

can marketing can be costly and there

are often a lot of hidden expenses

this may be the most helpful template of

all it clearly lays out the cost to your

company try to set a cap early on so you

have a goal to stay under from the jump

[Music]

okay we've covered the steps for

preparing your marketing plan you should

be able to put one together from start

to finish but i did want to share just a

few more visme templates that may help

you depending on what industry you're in

this restaurant marketing plan template

is versatile for either massive chains

or local eateries you can replace the

photos with your own and change the

colors just like with other templates

if you're in real estate and are part of

a team or even if you're operating your

own business this template here can be

useful the swot analysis included makes

it perfect for businesses focused on

property marketing

maybe you work for a sas or content

company and you're looking to take your

content to the next level this template

will help you organize your editorial

calendar so you're able to reach your

goals on time

or what about social media we all manage

our own pages of some sort and all

businesses should have their own as well

want more followers this template can

lay out your goals describe your ideal

followers and so much more this digital

marketing template has a modern feel

with a number of different features swot

analysis executive summary goals

strategies it has it all just waiting

for you to hop on board and make it your

own

product marketing requires as much or

more research into consumers as any form

of marketing that's why this template

covers those basics as well as includes

the detailed marketing budget we covered

just a minute ago

want to market yourself build your own

personal brand well visme has the

templates for you too it's just a simple

three-page plan highlighting resume

skills and experience before getting

into your personal goals and it wouldn't

be a visme video without further

discussing infographics visme has

changed the game when it comes to

presenting information in fun animated

and clean designs this one page

marketing infographic template contains

all the necessary details and won't

overwhelm your audience

okay now that you've done at least some

of your research it's time for you to

get to work i highly recommend at least

scanning visumy's template collection

there's even more marketing templates

past the ones that we've discussed today

and they're waiting for you right now

head to visme.com to get started in the

meantime thank you so much for watching

if we were of any help we'd love for you

to click that like button down below

and if that's not in the cards well

maybe next time we'll see you again soon

for now i'm mike plogger with visme

helping you make information beautiful

[Music]

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