How to Develop a Strategic Marketing Plan (With SMS Marketing Example)

Thinking about starting a business in the upcoming future? If so, then a precise marketing plan might as well be the make or break of the success of the company. For many people, the perception of marketing is the more mainstream methods like newspapers, TV ads, billboards, etc., but marketing in recent decades has evolved to something more than just the conventional methods.

Nowadays, there are so many types of marketing strategies available like CRM (close range marketing), transactional marketing, relationship marketing, SMS marketing, mass marketing, email marketing, and so much more.

So it depends on the type of business model and concept that the person has in mind to curate a marketing strategy for the business.

Here are some general steps necessary to help create a strategic marketing program: 

1. Set Intentions and Goals for the Company

To get the desired outcome from the program, one needs to manifest their aims and objectives of exactly what they require from the marketing plan. The short-term goals (1-6 months) for the company might change as time goes on, and to fulfill those goals they have to make new strategies, but the long-term goals (12-24 months) must stay the same as it shows the intentions of the company itself.

2. Perform a SWOT Analysis

Once one has fixed the goals, it’s time to start assessing the current state of the individual’s business field. The strength, weakness, opportunity, and threat to the business can give an idea of what the individual might encounter while marketing the business.

So, analyze what places the company can improve on – what are the key aspects that would make the business unlike others in the market? Figure out the competition and the external factors (such as renting impressive meeting rooms for the first client meeting) that could be used to the company’s advantage.

3. Marketing Simulation Audit

After completing a SWOT Analysis, there is now a general idea of what technique would be useful to market it successfully. So now, one must simulate all the desired methods of marketing and find out which ones will provide ample coverage for the budget.

4. Organize Some Research on the Market

The next step is to check where that individual’s business model stands among the community, and this gives out a realistic idea of the field and its requirements. This research is one of the most time-consuming steps, yet the most crucial step to figuring out any flaws in the plan that had not revealed itself in the previous points.

5. Interpret the Research

From the research conducted, find out the target audience and the best marketing plan to reach the target audience and customers. Figure out which forms of marketing would equate with the competition and which ones would make the company stand out. Choose appropriately to get the best results.

6. Create a Timeline on the Order of Execution

One must estimate the time it would take to complete each task and leave some space for anything that goes off the rails. This line of action would help one make the most of their time and use it wisely.

7. Estimate the Budget

Although a lot of forms of marketing might be appealing, one does not have a game of thrones budget, so set a limit. Find out which ones are affordable and worth the money and effort. A budget does not mean that the options are limited; it instead helps one to be more aware of the opportunities available to them.

8. Check the Effectiveness of the Plan

Before going ahead and jumping into implementing the program, have a once over, use some free tools available online to check the effectiveness of the strategy, and then move on to the next step.

9. Distribute Work Among Others

One must understand that that person can do not everything by themselves and also get things done within the required time limit, so divide the work among others in the team.

10. Enactment Schedule

Now, after all the preparatory steps, it’s time to start implementing them and as time goes by, change the plan accordingly to match the changing market.

As previously mentioned, there are a lot of different types of marketing techniques that can be used by any company, and one of them is SMS marketing.

SMS Marketing Is Also Part of the Marketing System

The short message service is mostly used by companies to engage their customers.

Here are a few ways to properly take advantage of SMS marketing:

• Timing is key

If the client can not use their phones at a given time, be it calls or texts, they will be unavailable in that situation. But it is easy to avoid this by not using SMS before or during work. Sometimes, it is better to use SMS services around 5pm till 9pm because this gives the client a lot of room to relax and use their phone casually, increasing the probability of them seeing SMS texts.

Before breakfast and after dinner may also be a better time to text clients since they will most likely be leisurely scrolling down their phones.

• Age group demographics

Today’s teens all come with a smartphone, and they are more bound to screens than Millenials and Boomers. Young people are a better target audience since they text more than the other generations.

Taking advantage of this is a smart solution to covering a broader demographic. Teens also have a better clickthrough rate as compared to clients over 35 years of age.

• Short and sweet

Keep the statement condensed and to the point. It makes the person reading it to notice the purpose of the text and remember it better. Keeping the content shorter keeps the client from not getting annoyed by having to read a lengthy sentence like this one. Make sure that the text is clear and does not need further clarification while maintaining the short length.

• Bigger circle

Be sure to plan your strategy so that it involves company webpages, social page links, and other links related. By making them interact with your social media pages, they can familiarise themselves with your products and be a potential customer in the future if not now.

• Let them feel special

The simplest method is to make them consider your offers by making it seem exclusive and more suited for them alone. Including their name in a text makes them feel more like it’s a product tailored for them and would fulfill their requirements. Crafting the right text hook may take time, but it is rewarding and is worth the effort.

• Immediate response generation

Texts should make it seem like an offer is only available for a short period. It will make the user consider taking action sooner.

• Feedback

The most important part is figuring out what customers want. Feedback is essential to analyze and predict the person’s lifestyle, budget, interests, requirements, and limitations for not buying it. Surveys are also an excellent measure to figure these out swiftly and accurately.