Marketing Planning can be broken down into two stages:
- What you want to achieve and how you intend to make it happen.
- What marketing activities will you do when.
The first stage is covered very well in a short, powerful marketing plan.
>>> The Guerrilla Marketing Plan – 7 Sentences To Marketing Clarity
The second stage is when you get specific about what you will do in your Marketing Calendar.
What Is A Marketing Calendar?
This is a simple, two dimensional document (a spreadsheet is ideal) that plans out what marketing tasks will be done to achieve your marketing plan.
Here is a simple example.
June
- Email campaign to store credit holders – extra 10% off discount for Summer sale
- Door-drop leaflet campaign to the five most affluent areas to promote the luxury goods in the sale.
- Advertisement for the “Summer Sale” in the local newspaper – all four Fridays of the month.
- Radio advertisement for “Summer Sale” on the local radio station – twice in the breakfast show each day and twice during the show for commute home each day.
- Pay per click advertising in Google Adwords for the 10 best sales promotions in the Summer Sale
- In store money-off vouchers for the School Holiday promotion for July
July
- School Holiday promotion window displays
How To Put A Marketing Calendar Together
I split it into two to cover the two types of marketing – search marketing where customers look for you and start a relationship and outreach marketing where you take proactive steps to get a response from potential prospective customers.
The main columns are:
- Every Month – these are activities that you intend to do every month and I find it better to group them together than to keep repeating them.
- Individual months – list out each month. Highlight months of peak demand with a priority shading. Are there special promotion events that need to be marked on because your marketing in the weeks before that are all about the special event?
- Marketing tactics – list out the activities you will do. List the marketing media you’re planning to use perhaps a message is there is a seasonal issue or event.
- Who will do the work and take responsibility?
- Add start and/or finish dates. Some tasks you will start and continue. Others you will be doing and intend to stop. Others you will start and finish, perhaps to drive more enquiries during quiet times.
- Add any location information. This might be location for particular regions or branches.
- Add any resource requirements. I think it’s useful to have a financial budget and a time estimate.
- Record results number of enquiries, converted customers and/or sales revenue generated.
- Assess the success of the activity, perhaps Success and repeat (where you will do exactly the same again), Success and learn (where you think you can make improvements), Failure and learn (where it didn’t go right this time but you think it will in the future).
The Feedback Loop
By recording what you do and how well it has succeeded, you create a feedback lop that you can use in your next marketing calendar.
You know what’s worked and you know where there are gaps that need to be filled with more creative ideas.
Do You Need A Marketing Calendar Template?
I’ve seen some offers to provide templates but you don’t need one if you can use a spreadsheet.
I’ve given you suggestions for the column headings but I recommend you get creative and take control of your marketing.
Think about what you want to know about the individual marketing activities. How can you provide a summary of what you’re going to do (and then done this year) so that you have a roadmap for next year?
To learn more about Guerrilla Marketing I recommend you read:
>>> Guerrilla Marketing by Jay Conrad Levinson
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