How to Develop A Marketing Strategy: 16 Steps to Drive More Sales

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how to develop a marketing strategy

When Forbes writer Corey Poirier interviewed more than 4,000 of the most influential leaders in the world, she found a golden thread running through their success stories. They were all deeply connected to their “why.”

Want to know what else she learned over the course of these interviews? When you know your “why,” your “how” will fall into place.

This proves just as true when it comes to how to develop a marketing strategy. So, let’s dive into finding your “why,” and then use it to formulate a winning marketing strategy.

1. Find Your “Why”

Before you begin strategizing about product marketing strategies, you need to find and successfully articulate your company’s “why.” This requires drilling down to explain why your company exists, and why it provides the best solutions.

2. Write Down Your USP

In other words, you must state your company’s unique selling proposition (USP). And you need to do this succinctly in one sentence. This means cutting to the very core of why your company exists.

Your USP sets your company and products apart from the competition. It summarizes the very essence of your business. And it should be the theme running throughout your marketing materials.

3. Know Your Customer

Once you’ve got your USP, you need to get to know your ideal customers thoroughly. These are the people you’ll address with all of your content marketing and other efforts.

4. Speak to Your Customer

Knowing your customer goes well beyond demographics. You need to understand what their problems are, what keeps them up at night, and what they hope to get from your company. You need to speak their language.

Every single decision you make with regards to marketing should be firmly based in your USP and your understanding of your customers.

5. List Your Benefits

Ultimately, your company sells benefits. What do we mean? Instead of selling products, you sell the idea of how these products will benefit your customers when they purchase and use them.

Don’t ever forget this important distinction. Now, sit down with a sheet of paper or your laptop, and start listing all of the benefits associated with the product you’d like to focus on marketing.

Not sure where to start? Remember that any benefits will be directly linked to the product’s details, so look to these for inspiration. For example, if you sell a car wash system that ends in pH neutral chemicals, then one benefit would be eco-friendliness.

6. Get Deep

Once you’ve listed all of the benefits associated with your product, list the deeper benefits. These refer to how the product will make your customer feel or how it will improve their lives.

For example, if you own a martial arts studio, you could market self-defense classes by saying that they’ll help you protect one from violent crime. Sure, that’s a benefit, but does it address the deeper reason why customers might enroll?

Not really.

But if you think about your ideal customer and how these classes will change how they feel, then you might come up with something like “these classes will ensure you’re never a victim again.” This will resonate with your customers.

7. Get Strategic

Now that you have a clear picture of what to market and why, you need to define your marketing methods. That means making important decisions about where you’ll advertise.

Direct marketing? The Internet? Public relations?

Based on where you choose to place your ads and other marketing materials, you can develop a strategic plan for how to craft your campaign to suit that channel.

8. Mix It Up

While it’s important to focus your marketing efforts, make sure that you mix them up to reach the widest viewing audience. Just keep in mind who your audience is so that you can choose the best marketing mix to reach them.

9. Check Out the Competition

As you flesh out your campaign strategy, scope out the competition. Figure out what they’re doing that does or doesn’t work. Evaluate each company’ strengths and weaknesses.

10. Determine How to Be Better

Once you know what you’re up against, you can identify areas to exploit to benefit your sales. Make your competition’s weaknesses your strengths. You’ll also position yourself to address competitive challenges without getting caught unawares.

11. Price It Right

While checking out the competition, pay attention to what they offer in terms of value and pricing. Make sure that you can justify your price points and that they make sense in the larger scheme of your industry.

12. Create a Value Proposition

Once you’ve got solid prices, consider how to include your pricing strategy within your larger marketing message. This means emphasizing value, benefits, and deeper benefits to justify your price point.

A solid high-value proposition sells.

13. Make a Budget

All of your efforts remain pie in the sky until you nail down a solid budget to move forward. So, figure out what you can afford and then dive in.

14. Map Out What Happens Next

Now that you have a marketing plan and a budget, list or map out exactly what you need to do to get there. This task list should guide you through every aspect of your promotional efforts.

15. Write Out Measurable Outcomes

Your efforts mean nothing if you can’t track and measure your results. So, write down measurable outcomes. Make sure these outcomes remain specific and grounded in the “why” of your campaign.

16. Analyze and Tweak

Once you start receiving analytics related to your campaign, take a cold, hard look. Analyze what’s working and what needs improvement.

Marketing is not an exact science but rather a game of strategy, so it requires flexibility and evolution.

How to Develop a Marketing Strategy That Sizzles

When it comes to how to develop a marketing strategy, these 16 tips will put you on the road to a rocking campaign. From finding your “why” to developing your USP to knowing your customer, move step-by-step through this list for stellar success.

Interested in learning more about content marketing? Or maybe you want to know how to make money online? We’ve got you covered.

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