For many of us,
finding the time and commitment to complete a marketing plan for our Web
sites is difficult. There are so many other obligations vying for our
attention it is tempting to push planning to the back burner. Giving into
that temptation, however, means putting your business at a disadvantage.
Your marketing plan is the compass by which you navigate. As opportunities
arise or your business environment changes, the objective and strategies in
your marketing plan will point you toward the best action. Without a
marketing plan, you risk becoming unfocused in your marketing and are only
guessing what might be best for your business.
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To be most effective, your Web site marketing plan should be a part of
your business marketing plan. By aligning online marketing with your offline
efforts, you can better achieve overall company objectives. Additionally,
you will present a consistent style and message across all points of contact
with your target audience.
Your Web site marketing plan's focus will be partially determined by your
site's status. If you already have a site in place, your plan can focus
strictly on marketing issues - how to most effectively market using your
existing site. If you have a site that needs improvement, your plan should
incorporate enhancements into the site’s design in conjunction with
marketing activities (While you may not think of these enhancements as
"marketing", in this case, they are instrumental to an effective
plan.). If you do not yet have a site, you can create one while developing
your Web site marketing plan, with your plan focused on launching the site.
In any case, remember that your objective, strategies, and tactics will
change over time as your situation and focus change.
Parts of a Marketing Plan
The Web site marketing plan is similar to a business marketing plan, but
with a narrower focus. Completing a marketing plan includes developing
strategies and tactics (also called action plans) that, when implemented,
will help you reach your marketing objectives. Objectives, strategies, and
tactics are each progressively narrower in scope.
The objective addresses the "big picture". In general terms,
your objective answers the question "How will I overcome my main
marketing challenge(s)?" If your company’s main site- related
challenge is figuring out how to use your Web site to help build client
business, for example, an objective for your Web site marketing plan could
be "To enhance online client service as well as build site awareness
and interest with clients."
Strategies support your objective. Your strategies define the general
approaches you will take to meet your objective. For example, strategies to
support the above objective could include
- improve online communication,
information, and education,
- build awareness of and interest in your
company on the Internet, and
- communicate the Web site’s existence and
advantages to existing clients.
Tactics are where the action takes place - these are the things you will
do to bring your strategies to life. Tactics for strategy 2 in the above
example (improve online communication, information, and education) could
include
- sharing experience and observations in your industry through
participation in discussion boards,
- offering an email newsletter, and
- listing/submitting your site to targeted search engines and directories.
Marketing Planning Tools
The specifics of developing a marketing plan vary according to the
source. All can be effective when used correctly. Some sites and software
that can help you in developing your marketing plan are below.
Sites
eSOLO’s Marketing Action Plans ( http://www.esolo.com/mapslist.php3
)
can help you to come up with strategies and action plans (tactics) to
support common marketing objectives.
The Web Site Marketing Plan's Marketing Plan Resources page ( http://www.websitemarketingplan.com/sr3.htm
) includes several links and descriptions of sites with marketing plan
information.
Software
Each of these software titles takes a slightly different approach to
developing a marketing plan.
- Plan Write® for Marketing, http://www.businessplansoftware.org/marketing_plan.asp
-
WebQuest Pro, http://www.webquestpro.com/
-
Marketing Plan Pro, http://www.bplans.com/marketingplans
About the Author:
Bobette Kyle has over 10 years experience in Corporate Marketing; Brand
and Product Marketing; Field Marketing and Sales; and Management. She helps
businesses integrate traditional and Internet marketing strategies via her
newsletter and site http://www.WebSiteMarketingPlan.com
. For a step-by-step approach to developing a Web site marketing plan, read
Bobette's book "How Much For Just the Spider? Strategic Web Site
Marketing for Small-Budget Businesses",
http://www.websitemarketingplan.com/sr.htm
.
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