A standard marketing strategy outline

You were wondering how a basic marketing planning strategy looks like? 

Wonder no more! And keep reading:

Premise

These are just guidelines: entrepreneurship is not a cookie cutter science – as a matter of fact: it’s quite various.

In this article there’s going to be the 2 main scenarios of marketing:

  • Scenario 1: marketing of an already existing product
  • Scenario 2: marketing of a new product

Let’s start:

Scenario 1: marketing of an already existing product

In this scenario, the marketer has to study how to market a product already available on the market.

Here’s, broadly speaking, the steps we follow:

  1. Analysis
    Analyze and understand the entrepreneurial scenario.

      1. Product analysis
        1. How does the product works?
          1. What are its advantages?
          2. What are its shortcomings?
        2. Why does the customer needs this product?
      2. Competitor analysis
        1. What does the product from other makers do?
          1. What are its advantages?
          2. What are its shortcomings?
        2. Why can’t we all work together?
          1. Evaluate possible partnerships
            We’re all in this together: the more we can get to work together, the better.
      3. Customer segmentation analysis
        1. Who is the customer for this product?
          1. What is he looking for?
          2. What does he need?
    2. Planning
      In this phase, we plot the strategy.

        1. Prospecting
          1. Who are the best potential clients for the product? (Prospects)
            1. Creation of a prospect list
              A list of potential customers for this product.
        2. Lead generation strategy
          1. How do we explain our product’s usefulness to the prospect?
          2. How do we make sure to sell only to people who actually need our product?
            1. Best to not sell than to sell to somebody who’s then going to find out this is not what he needs!!
        3. Account management strategy
          1. After we’ve closed the deal, how do we make sure the client has a service on par with what expected?
    3. Execution
      This is where the party gets started.

        1. Marcom assets creation
          1. We create everything needed to implement this strategy (e.g. Web pages, brochures, videos, music tracks, etc…)
        2. Lead generation outreaches
          1. We push our marcom materials into the world – be it so through outbound tactics (e.g. Sending an eMail) or inbound ones (e.g. Setting up the SEO for the landing pages).
    4. Evaluation
      This phase starts together with phase 3, and continuously keeps track of this strategy’s effectiveness. Here’s the main parameters kept into evaluation

        1. Economic efficacy (ROAS)
          1. What’s the monetary return on this marketing investment?
            1. As a rule of thumb: anything beyond 5X (we gained 5 times the money invested for marketing) needs urgent revision. If things go beneath 2X, heads have to roll.
        2. Human sustainability
          1. Is the team fine with this workflow?
            1. If we have a strategy that creates a 10X ROAS, but it’s too much to bear humanly speaking, it’s obviously not feasible: what’s the point of making good money, if you’re going to lose your battle brothers in the process?

Scenario 2: marketing of a new product

AKA product development.

This scenario has the very same steps from scenario 1 – but with one crucial difference: phase 1, 2 and 3 are going to happen in a 2 way connection with product development. Meaning that the marketing and production team will give each other feedback about how to achieve success.

Here’s 2 examples of this:

  • The marketing team finds out a new feature which would greatly help market the product, and advises the production team to evaluate and, eventually, modify the product accordingly.
  • The production team finds out a new feature for the product, and asks the marketing team how that could affect the product’s marketability. 
  • The marketing team evaluates the product being made, so as to make sure it is marketable.

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