Develop Your Marketing Plan

By spending your dollars on marketing, you’re investing that money in the future of your business. Every company has a marketing side because every company deals with the public. If you are not taking the time to plan and invest in your company you rely solely on the market to keep you going. To be as profitable as possible you must take the time to grow your company, grow your lead generations, and your brand. This is not as overwhelming as it might seem. For the most basic planning, sit down one day and follow these steps:

• First things first, know your limits. If you have the time and marketing background to develop a marketing plan yourself then count yourself lucky. As professional remodelers you understand the value of seeking out someone with expertise, such as a professional marketer. If you need to, hire a professional.
  
  
• Define your company.
• Who are you as a company? 
• Mission/Vision
• Logo — What graphic portrays your image clearly while appealing to your target customer?
• Services  You don’t have to be everything to everyone. You may wish to focus on your core competencies which may decrease your direct competition and you can focus on your expertise in the industry.
• Price- Calculate your real labor costs per person to determine how to properly cost out a job. This will help you define your target market.
• What makes you unique? Do you and your staff have designations to promote? Is your process different?
  
  
• Who is your target audience?
• High end, low, older, younger, geographic location?
• Research about them- what are their interests, where do they shop, research, communicate, etc?
  
  
• Produce a ‘SWOT’ analysis to determine where you are today verses where you can be in the future. Compare your company to your competitors.
• What are your Strengths? (internal factor)
• What are your Weaknesses? (internal factor)
• What are your Opportunities? (external factor)
• What are your Threats? (external factor)
  
  
• Analyze your competitors.
• What do they do well?
• Who are they targeting?
• Where are they advertising?
• What’s missing?
  
  
• Set goals and plan. Plan early and plan yearly. You can’t just place a random advertisement and expect returns on it alone. At the beginning of the business year, assess how many leads you need to achieve your dollar volume goal for the year. A good job of qualifying leads lets you identify early on-before you invest a lot of time and money-which prospects are most likely to buy from your company. Prepare a flow chart or schedule showing when each marketing activity should be started. Schedule the marketing so that expenditures as well as initiatives are spread throughout the year.
  
  
• Set a budget. Design/build remodelers typically spend 1%-4% of their anticipated volume on marketing with more spent early as long-term investments (web sites, stationery, brochures) More specialty remodelers may need to budget more due to the size of projects and the need for more leads.
  
  
• Determine the best media. An ad in the Yellow Pages might not be the best advertisement. Look at advertising where your customers’ interest lie. Do they read a local newspaper rather than a national one? Let your image speak through the medium you choose. When you seek to promote the quality of your business develop a professional glossy post card or display your before and after photos of a project you are proud of.
  
  
• Create a targeted message — make it unique to you — display quality, trustworthiness, credibility, experience.
  
  
• Be consistent- use your branding throughout your company. Everything about your business should be identifiable with your brand. Your image should appeal to your target customer.
  
  
• Keep at it. Along the lines of yearly planning, you need to advertise on an ongoing basis. On a quarterly basis review your marketing plan and see if it needs to be changed. Keep your lead generation sources on hand for this evaluation. What is working? What isn’t?

Effective marketing plans are the road map a company must follow to succeed in securing prospective customers. They are slow-moving, require time to work and do not always yield immediate returns on investment. However, as most investments prove, the returns you receive from the blood, sweat, and tears you have poured into your work will be worth it. Be patient. [ return to top ]