The internet has created a plethora of opportunities for small and large business owners alike. Marketing resources and strategies are strewn about the internet and help owners find more customers and eyes for their products and services. If you own or hope to own an outdoor business then building a marketing plan is absolutely essential! But, with such an abundance of resources, it can be tough to know where to begin. Check out these 5 tips to getting started building a marketing plan for your outdoor business!
Assess Where You’re At
The first step you should take to building a marketing plan is to undergo a “situation analysis.” This analysis will analyze the services your business offers and give you insights on how to set yourself apart from those you’re directly competing against.
The demographics who are interested in your business will be small and niche at first, but you’ll learn how to slowly expand your marketing efforts to reach those who would otherwise never have heard of your business. You’ll want to take into account, your business’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as the locations and sites you’re already advertising on.
Define Your Target Audience
If you’ve already defined your target audience, you’ve made a great step in the right direction as far as your marketing is concerned. However, you can always improve the profile of your chosen demographic and add details to your already established customer outlook. Demographics and trends are always changing, the desire to participate in outdoor activities and businesses shift with these demographic changes.
There are a variety of new questions you can ask yourself and your team in order to more thoroughly hone in on the type of people who are looking for your company’s service, including questions around their motivations, potential budgets, and the types of activities they are looking for. Specificity and detail will only help your company as you market toward those you’re trying to reach.
Plan Well Ahead
In order to truly know if your marketing is a success, you’ll need to track your results. Furthermore, you’ll want to track your actual outcome in comparison with your expected outcome. In order to find the difference between the two, you should make a list of marketing goals and a list of tasks and metrics to keep track of how close you are to those goals.
For example, write down any percentages or real-money changes you want to see within your company because of your future marketing efforts. Make these goals lofty but reachable and gauge what it takes to reach them every so often. There’s no set frequency with which you should look, but make sure you’re keeping track of them throughout the process.
Formulate Your Plan
Now that you’ve redefined your target audience and have made goals about what you want to accomplish during your new marketing campaign or strategy, it’s time to formulate your plan officially. This step is where the brunt of the work lies, as you should thoroughly research your avenues and decisions before proceeding.
As an outdoor business, you can look to a number of places for inspiration, such as the internet or your own competition. You should also brainstorm your own unique path and move forward when you feel your company will be well-seen and represented by the methods you’ve chosen. You can advertise directly on the internet via Google Ads or choose to improve your social media presence or take advantage of physical media like billboards.
Budget Accordingly
When moving through the process, never forget that your plan is never free. There are costs to everything you’ll do, and you should know what these are ahead of time so you can ensure the completion of your marketing campaign without budgetary constraints.
You’ll want to set aside necessary funds and carefully track how much you’re spending per objective and a set amount of time, such as a two-week period of your new marketing campaign. Keep the numbers in mind and adjust accordingly, based on the success rate of your current efforts and the money you have left to spend.