FREE online courses on Business Plan Basics - The Essential Elements of a
Good Business Plan - Part 5 - Marketing and Sales Strategies
Marketing is the process of creating customers . . . and
customers are the lifeblood of your business. In this section, the first thing
you want to do is define your marketing strategy. There is no single "right" way
to approach a marketing strategy. Your marketing strategy should be part of an
ongoing self-evaluation process, and unique to your company. However, there are
steps you can follow which will help you "think through" the strategy you would
like to use.
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Market penetration strategy
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Strategy for growing your business. This growth strategy might include: an
internal strategy such as how to increase your human resources; an acquisition
strategy such as buying another business; a franchise strategy for branching
out; a horizontal strategy where you would provide the same type of products to
different users; and/or a vertical strategy where you would continue providing
the same products but would offer them at different levels of the distribution
chain.
-
Channels of distribution strategy. Choices for distribution channels could
include: original equipment manufacturers (OEMs); an internal sales force;
distributors; and/or retailers.
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Communication strategy. How are you going to reach your customers? Usually
some combination of the following works the best: promotions; advertising;
public relations; personal selling; and/or printed materials such as brochures,
catalogues, flyers, etc.
- Once
you have defined your marketing strategy, you can then define your sales
strategy. How do you plan to actually sell your product?
- Your
Overall Sales Strategy should include:
- A
sales force strategy. If you are going to have a sales force, do you plan
to use internal or independent representatives? How many salespeople will you
recruit for your sales force? What type of recruitment strategies will you use?
How will you train your sales force? What about compensation for your sales
force?
- Your
sales activities. When you are defining your sales strategy, it is
important that you break it down into activities. For instance, you need to
identify your prospects. Once you have made a list of your prospects, you need
to prioritize it. Next, identify the number of sales calls you will make over a
certain period of time. From there, you need to determine the average number of
sales calls you will need to make per sale, the average dollar size per sale,
and the average dollar size per vendor.
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