Step-by-step plan marketing and publicity plan

You have a greater chance of success if you devise a good marketing strategy before you put something ‘into the market’. This also forces you to look at your plans critically and to start planning early.

1. Conduct a market analysis

In order to be able to choose the right marketing tools, you first analyse your plans:

  • Determine your mission: describe what your motives are with your enterprise and how your plan distinguishes itself from other, similar enterprises. Why do you want to do or make this, and what is your objective?
  • Make a SWOT analysis: describe the strengths and weaknesses of yourself or your plans/project, and the opportunities and threats in your environment. (SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.)
  • Determine your Unique Selling Point (UPS): formulate what makes you and/or your work/project unique. Describe what’s different, better or innovative about it.
  • Describe your target groups: the potential customers, clients, fans and/or visitors. The more specifically you manage to describe the target groups, the easier it is to reach and ultimately convince them. Describe your target groups in detail: age, sex, cultural background, lifestyle, living in..., visitors of... and all other distinctive characteristics that define a target group. The more specific, the better. This does not mean that you exclude people from the target group. You just don’t direct your marketing at them. That is important, because anyone who tries to speak to everyone, ultimately convinces no one.

2. Determine the marketing strategy

In response to the above analyses, you determine the marketing strategy. You do this on the basis of the marketing mix, which is comprised of the five Ps: product, price, place, promotion and personnel.

  • Which product/service are you offering and how would you describe it?
  • Which price fits what you have to offer and your target group?
  • What is a good place to offer your product/service and/or where does your target group like to go to?
  • Via which communication channels and with which tools can you reach your target group in order to promote your product/service?
  • Does your product depend entirely on the quality of your personnel, and if so how do you link their story to that of the product?

If that which you have to offer is also characterised as a leisure activity, then you are not only competing with your peers, but also with other providers of leisure products. People are not only able to spend their money just once, but also their time. Read more about this in the download ‘Beleveniseconomie’ (Experience economy, in Dutch only).

3. Make a marketing plan

Make a concrete plan of action based on what you have devised in your strategy. Arrange a schedule, budget and, if applicable, a division of duties. In order to this, you must know, among other things, what will be known when and to whom you have to communicate. You should also take into account the deadlines of all parties that you need for your promotion.

4. Make a publicity plan

For all your target groups, you should investigate which communication channels can be used to reach them. The promotional tool must suit your message and the channel that you use. You must, at least, include the following subjects in your plan:

  • Who: describe your different target groups in detail.
  • What: which promotional tools are you going to use in order to inform/enthuse your target group(s)? Are you going to use online adverts, printed matter or a creative form?
  • Where: which communication channels can you use to reach your target group(s)? Think about locations that your target group visits, physical and/or online. And also think about the media that they read and/or is it possible to reach them, for example, via a mailing?
  • Why: you can distribute your message in various ways. Set a clear goal which your promotion has to fulfil and which should make people want to buy and visit, as well as sparking enthusiasm and a sense of connection, etc. Make sure that your promotional tool fulfils this goal and makes it feasible.
  • When: make a schedule and note down the deadlines for each tool that you use.
  • How: describe the different responsibilities who you are going to assign for this. Determine numbers of your promotional tools and make a budget.

Directly to:

Publicity

5. Evaluation

Check which measures were most effective during and after the execution of the marketing plan. The findings may also form a good foundation for a subsequent (and better) marketing and publicity plan. Think about how you can measure the effects beforehand.