Marketing Planning 101

One of my goals each month is to read books written by other business owners or about a topic that provides a new or re-invigorated way of looking at a well-known subject.

I’m reading Multiple Streams of Income by Robert G. Allen, a book given mixed reviews on Amazon.com. As a solo business owner, I want to learn everything I can to tap into various income streams.

Chapter 2, titled “The 10-Minute Millionaire,” offers a reminder, and in some cases, a lesson for all marketers. It talks about planning and how this exercise saves time and money.

“Poor people have disorganized, short-term planning horizons. Rich people have organized, long-term planning horizons. The more scheduled you are into the future, the cheaper your life is going to become. You’ve got to begin to organize your life like a major corporation.”

I talked about planning a few weeks ago because I’m searching for a paper-based system to help me track my marketing campaigns. I can forget using software. It’s just not for me, though I’d love to know who’s successfully using marketing software.

I’ve developed a habit of planning my work schedule in weekly intervals, and when I’m time stressed, that weekly plan ends up being a daily plan. I know this is not good, and the book confirms it.

The chapter encourages anyone who’s not planning for the long term to start with an exercise of planning for the next 90 days.

“Instead of just planning your daily activites, look at your calendar 90 days out from today and ask yourself, ‘What do I need to do today to make sure that the things I need 90 days from now can be purchased smarter?’”

This practical thinking goes beyond a purchasing plan; it also makes you consider where you want to be in 90 days. What do you want your marketing efforts to achieve in the next three months?

When you become comfortable with a three-month planning schedule, you can stretch it to a six-month schedule, and so on. The goal for us solo marketers is to be well-oiled machines, similar to the companies we’ve left. No - actually, we’ll be better.

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