Here's the thing: it's simply not enough to be good at what you do nowadays.
I'm sure you've encountered people in your professional life who have less than stellar professional abilities but are getting loads of gigs. You wonder, "Why?" - when your resume is way better than theirs.
Well, it may simply be because they are better marketers, and they have been implementing a strategic marketing plan.
They may not keep clients over a long time, but you have to admit, they're pretty darn good at reeling them in. And reeling them in means knowing and truly understanding their needs - and knowing your business well enough to be able to address those needs.
You know you need to create a strategic marketing plan that promotes your great abilities or your products and services, but first of all, realize that you might be the best at what you do, but if nobody knows about you and your offering, and why they're of value, then you can't expect clients or customers to come running towards you.
Needless to say, a well-conceived and properly implemented strategic marketing plan is the foundation for your business' success.
So how do you do it? Go back to the basics. Only when all these things are clear to you can you implement a great marketing plan:
# 1 Know EVERYTHING about your business.
What are you product or service strengths? Know all these by heart, including your pricing, sales promotion and distribution methods, etc. Take a look at your industry. Is it growing or declining?
#2 Know your prospects, clients, customers.
Who are they in terms of age, status, income, job title, etc.? Do you know their habits more or less? Where do they shop, what do they read, watch, and listen to? What do they currently value most about your offerings - convenience? Service? Reliability? Affordability? Your friendly face and good looks perhaps? How did previous clients/customers learn about your product or service? Was it through email, public relations, advertising, word of mouth?
#3 Check out your competition.
In your target area, how many competitors do you have? What do they offer that you don't? What online marketing strategies do they use. Is their website and content better than yours?
#4 Know your budget.
What were the methods you have used that had been most effective? Which tools or strategies did you used that required least amount of time and money, yet delivered great results? Do you need to make new action plans? If yes, what's the budget for its implementation?
After you've answered all these questions and are now ready to develop a strategic marketing plan, don't forget to keep this in mind: your prospects ALWAYS want to know what's in it for them. Your marketing efforts are less about you and your business than they are about your clients, and customers. Take with you the confidence that comes from truly knowing and understanding your business, so that you can come up with a great plan that will make you a winning online marketer.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Monday, September 13, 2010
Grow Your Income - Form a Small Business Marketing Consulting Team
Small business owners are typically hands-on and multi-tasking managers who, while having realized the need to take their business to the next level on the Internet, have neither the knowledge nor the time to learn the ropes of online marketing.
Business owners, professionals and non-techies who would like to have their own websites will definitely need the services of marketing consultants to take care of:
* Web design and construction,
* Search Engine Optimization (SEO),
* Web content writing,
* Sales copywriting,
* Data encoding and everything there is to do for launching and maintaining their websites.
By organizing a small business marketing consulting team, you can accept more clients and charge higher recurring fees than anyone working solo.
Benefits of a small business marketing consulting team
One-stop shop for small business clients
Busy business owners prefer to deal with one person rather than several consultants at a time so that they can turn their attention to other aspects of the business. As a team of consultants, it's easy to offer a comprehensive package of services such as web design and construction, content writing, SEO, copywriting, without having to do them all by yourself.
Share in the workload
As a team, it will be easy for any member to unload some of the work occasionally in case something more urgent like an unexpected family matter or illness comes up. Sharing responsibilities also allows your consulting team to take on more work without overwhelming anyone with too much responsibility.
Higher incomes
While a team of freelancing consultants may work together on some projects, they remain independent of each other and have multiple sources of income outside of the shared consultancy. Moreover, a robust package of marketing services will definitely fetch a higher price than an individual service fee. Having more clients also mean higher revenues as a team.
What you will need
Aside from having a good set of skilled contacts you are willing to work with you as a team, you will also need to develop systems to manage projects and team members efficiently. The fastest way to have a system in place is to either outsource its development or to adopt one that has been developed and tested by an expert.
In fact, even if you work as a small business marketing consulting team, constantly simplifying and systemizing tasks and finding new ways of doing work quickly will promote client satisfaction, improve quality of work, and boost income while enjoying a good work-life balance.
Business owners, professionals and non-techies who would like to have their own websites will definitely need the services of marketing consultants to take care of:
* Web design and construction,
* Search Engine Optimization (SEO),
* Web content writing,
* Sales copywriting,
* Data encoding and everything there is to do for launching and maintaining their websites.
By organizing a small business marketing consulting team, you can accept more clients and charge higher recurring fees than anyone working solo.
Benefits of a small business marketing consulting team
One-stop shop for small business clients
Busy business owners prefer to deal with one person rather than several consultants at a time so that they can turn their attention to other aspects of the business. As a team of consultants, it's easy to offer a comprehensive package of services such as web design and construction, content writing, SEO, copywriting, without having to do them all by yourself.
Share in the workload
As a team, it will be easy for any member to unload some of the work occasionally in case something more urgent like an unexpected family matter or illness comes up. Sharing responsibilities also allows your consulting team to take on more work without overwhelming anyone with too much responsibility.
Higher incomes
While a team of freelancing consultants may work together on some projects, they remain independent of each other and have multiple sources of income outside of the shared consultancy. Moreover, a robust package of marketing services will definitely fetch a higher price than an individual service fee. Having more clients also mean higher revenues as a team.
What you will need
Aside from having a good set of skilled contacts you are willing to work with you as a team, you will also need to develop systems to manage projects and team members efficiently. The fastest way to have a system in place is to either outsource its development or to adopt one that has been developed and tested by an expert.
In fact, even if you work as a small business marketing consulting team, constantly simplifying and systemizing tasks and finding new ways of doing work quickly will promote client satisfaction, improve quality of work, and boost income while enjoying a good work-life balance.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
5 Step Action Plan For Successful Export Marketing
Export marketing is a serious issue for most growing companies in today's interconnected global economy. Whether to export or not, where to and how to, are the major questions for companies willing to expand their international markets.
Export marketing is not just a process to find buyers/importers and approach them with the expectation of export orders but a well planned strategic marketing process one should follow and performed well to get success in International Market. Since last 10 years of my International Marketing consultancy practice, I have found that major export marketing efforts get failed due to lack of implementing strategic marketing action plan.
So what is that strategic marketing action plan..?
Strategic marketing action plan is a set of key functional areas of export marketing which should be performed well and followed step by step to get succeed in Export marketing. Performing following key tasks step by step will give you a rapid success in export marketing with sustainable and profitable export sales growth.
Step-1 : Identify your target market
First step of export marketing is to identify target market and market needs where your products/services has good market potential and demand. There are many countries in world and you should pick right one(s) for your product and services. If you know your target market and market needs, you could easily get export orders from those countries. You can identify target market by conducting International Market research activity that will give you detailed knowledge of opportunities in International market.
Step-2 : Developing Export Marketing strategies
After identifying target market, second step of export marketing is to develop a right Export Marketing Strategies including market entry strategy, positioning strategy, product strategy, pricing strategy, branding strategy, supply strategy and promotional strategy according to target market needs. Based on the conclusions of the International market research, you will be able to develop the strategy to meet your export marketing objectives. Your Export Marketing strategies should be able to develop a sense,
o To enter in right market where your products/services has good market potential and demand
o To position appropriately that give you and edge over competitor
o To develop products/services that satisfy needs of buyer,
o To offer prices that give both of you and your buyer a competitive advantage,
o To offer own brand or private label solution
o To supply as per ready stock or buyer's requirements
o To promote your company that creates awareness among buyers/importers
If you have developed right export marketing strategies you could enter and develop international market faster with sustainable export sales growth.
Step-3 : Preparing Marketing Communication tools
Once you have developed strategies based on target market needs, third step is to prepare informative and appealing marketing communication tools like Company Profile, Sales letter, Product Catalogue, Brochures, Website etc. that can supports in positioning and promoting your company. Your all marketing communication tools should be well designed, informative, professional and appealing that can deliver all necessary information of your company and products/services to prospective buyers/importers and influence their decision to start business communication with you.
Step-4 : Promotion
After preparing marketing communication tools, next step is Promotion which plays a major role in export marketing success. Main objective of promotion is to create awareness among buyers/importers of what you are and what you offer. Promotional mix should be cost effective and should deliver right message, in right time and at right place. Promotion should lead buyers/importers to get attention, capture interest and take action in initiating business communication with you. Internet is the best cost effective and fastest promotion tool in present export marketing practices. It has been seen that major buyers/importers using search engines, B2B portals and directories to find and contact genuine suppliers. So presence of your company profile and products/services in major search engines like Google, yahoo and B2B portals like Alibaba.com will give your company a global exposure and creates awareness among buyers/importers effectively. Participating in Trade fairs, Exhibitions and catalogue shows is also a good offline promotional strategy which can generate a direct and live contact with buyers/importers.
Step-5 : Generating Export Inquiries
Success in export Marketing begins with generating genuine export inquiries from prospective buyers/importers which requires expertise and focused work of promotion, sourcing genuine buyers and approaching them professionally. One should study buyer's profile and/or buy leads to know whether you can offer them what they requires. It has been seen that many suppliers contact majority of those buyers/importers who have no interest in their product/services without understanding their profile and needs. A Buyer/importer can send you inquiry only when he needs your products/services either better than his existing supplier in terms of either Quality, Price, Services and/or developing more suppliers and/or for other reasons. So contact them by offering competitive advantage which can get them interested to send you inquiries which can be converted in to export orders by communicating and negotiating professionally.
All above steps are inter connected and can only give results if each step performed or performing well. Export marketing is a continuous process and all those key functions can be reviewed and modified time to time as per changing global economic and market situation.
Export marketing is not just a process to find buyers/importers and approach them with the expectation of export orders but a well planned strategic marketing process one should follow and performed well to get success in International Market. Since last 10 years of my International Marketing consultancy practice, I have found that major export marketing efforts get failed due to lack of implementing strategic marketing action plan.
So what is that strategic marketing action plan..?
Strategic marketing action plan is a set of key functional areas of export marketing which should be performed well and followed step by step to get succeed in Export marketing. Performing following key tasks step by step will give you a rapid success in export marketing with sustainable and profitable export sales growth.
Step-1 : Identify your target market
First step of export marketing is to identify target market and market needs where your products/services has good market potential and demand. There are many countries in world and you should pick right one(s) for your product and services. If you know your target market and market needs, you could easily get export orders from those countries. You can identify target market by conducting International Market research activity that will give you detailed knowledge of opportunities in International market.
Step-2 : Developing Export Marketing strategies
After identifying target market, second step of export marketing is to develop a right Export Marketing Strategies including market entry strategy, positioning strategy, product strategy, pricing strategy, branding strategy, supply strategy and promotional strategy according to target market needs. Based on the conclusions of the International market research, you will be able to develop the strategy to meet your export marketing objectives. Your Export Marketing strategies should be able to develop a sense,
o To enter in right market where your products/services has good market potential and demand
o To position appropriately that give you and edge over competitor
o To develop products/services that satisfy needs of buyer,
o To offer prices that give both of you and your buyer a competitive advantage,
o To offer own brand or private label solution
o To supply as per ready stock or buyer's requirements
o To promote your company that creates awareness among buyers/importers
If you have developed right export marketing strategies you could enter and develop international market faster with sustainable export sales growth.
Step-3 : Preparing Marketing Communication tools
Once you have developed strategies based on target market needs, third step is to prepare informative and appealing marketing communication tools like Company Profile, Sales letter, Product Catalogue, Brochures, Website etc. that can supports in positioning and promoting your company. Your all marketing communication tools should be well designed, informative, professional and appealing that can deliver all necessary information of your company and products/services to prospective buyers/importers and influence their decision to start business communication with you.
Step-4 : Promotion
After preparing marketing communication tools, next step is Promotion which plays a major role in export marketing success. Main objective of promotion is to create awareness among buyers/importers of what you are and what you offer. Promotional mix should be cost effective and should deliver right message, in right time and at right place. Promotion should lead buyers/importers to get attention, capture interest and take action in initiating business communication with you. Internet is the best cost effective and fastest promotion tool in present export marketing practices. It has been seen that major buyers/importers using search engines, B2B portals and directories to find and contact genuine suppliers. So presence of your company profile and products/services in major search engines like Google, yahoo and B2B portals like Alibaba.com will give your company a global exposure and creates awareness among buyers/importers effectively. Participating in Trade fairs, Exhibitions and catalogue shows is also a good offline promotional strategy which can generate a direct and live contact with buyers/importers.
Step-5 : Generating Export Inquiries
Success in export Marketing begins with generating genuine export inquiries from prospective buyers/importers which requires expertise and focused work of promotion, sourcing genuine buyers and approaching them professionally. One should study buyer's profile and/or buy leads to know whether you can offer them what they requires. It has been seen that many suppliers contact majority of those buyers/importers who have no interest in their product/services without understanding their profile and needs. A Buyer/importer can send you inquiry only when he needs your products/services either better than his existing supplier in terms of either Quality, Price, Services and/or developing more suppliers and/or for other reasons. So contact them by offering competitive advantage which can get them interested to send you inquiries which can be converted in to export orders by communicating and negotiating professionally.
All above steps are inter connected and can only give results if each step performed or performing well. Export marketing is a continuous process and all those key functions can be reviewed and modified time to time as per changing global economic and market situation.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Six Tips For Becoming an Independent Consultant
Many people think about life as an independent consultant, but something holds them back. Still, the dream may come back to them over and over. If you've ever contemplated becoming an independent consultant, you may want to think not just about the dream, but about what holds you back from achieving it.
Six tips for unblocking the road to independent consulting
* Why not? What's holding you back from independent consulting? Write, draw, mindmap and brainstorm reasons you feel keep you from independent consulting.
* Go deeper. What's scary about those reasons?
* Can you do anything to resolve those fears? For example, if you're worried about having a stable income, perhaps you would start consulting part-time, use that income to build up an emergency fund, secure some stable clients, and plan to have a part-time job when you do move to full-time consulting.
* Are any of your concerns all or nothing scenarios? If you see things in black and white, are there any opportunities to bring in shades of gray? For example, if you see working on your own as a huge risk, could you involve partners, find a mentor, join a professional association, take a course or get involved in an online community?
* Talk to others to find out how they have tackled similar problems. Sometimes, by reaching out to others - whether they are mentors, teachers or colleagues - we can learn from the wisdom of experience, without having to suffer for that experience.
* Work on a plan for becoming a consultant.
Becoming an independent consultant may well be within your reach - if you're willing to work out a plan for getting there. It's often the lack of a plan that makes things feel out of control. If you can work out goals and obstacles and a plan for dealing with both, you may find yourself on the road to independent consulting.
Six tips for unblocking the road to independent consulting
* Why not? What's holding you back from independent consulting? Write, draw, mindmap and brainstorm reasons you feel keep you from independent consulting.
* Go deeper. What's scary about those reasons?
* Can you do anything to resolve those fears? For example, if you're worried about having a stable income, perhaps you would start consulting part-time, use that income to build up an emergency fund, secure some stable clients, and plan to have a part-time job when you do move to full-time consulting.
* Are any of your concerns all or nothing scenarios? If you see things in black and white, are there any opportunities to bring in shades of gray? For example, if you see working on your own as a huge risk, could you involve partners, find a mentor, join a professional association, take a course or get involved in an online community?
* Talk to others to find out how they have tackled similar problems. Sometimes, by reaching out to others - whether they are mentors, teachers or colleagues - we can learn from the wisdom of experience, without having to suffer for that experience.
* Work on a plan for becoming a consultant.
Becoming an independent consultant may well be within your reach - if you're willing to work out a plan for getting there. It's often the lack of a plan that makes things feel out of control. If you can work out goals and obstacles and a plan for dealing with both, you may find yourself on the road to independent consulting.
Friday, September 3, 2010
4 Strategic Planning Tools For Business Model Innovation and Business Strategy Design
There are strategic planning tools for pretty much any objective a business executive can conceive of. However, for managers and entrepreneurs wishing to innovate their business model, it can be challenging making the leap from conventional thinking to the sort of creative but realistic thinking from which the next generation of sustainable profits can develop.
Knowing the types of tools you can use for various kinds of business strategy tasks can you get far more innovative results from your strategy development sessions while cutting the time it takes to arrive at good business models.
Tools for Mapping and Dominating Uncontested Market Spaces
1. Strategy Canvas
The Strategy Canvas is a tool first introduced in the book, "Blue Ocean Strategy" by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne. It is a chart that plots the positions of business competitors relative to the factors important to the customer marketplace. The horizontal axis plots the factors of competition (hopefully established through customer knowledge), and the vertical axis plots the degree of offering or service level.
Using this chart differences between current and potential business competitors can be graphically portrayed. The primary point of the strategy canvas is to illustrate divergence between market and business strategies as it relates to customer needs. By using a strategy canvas, you can create a new value innovation that breaks the conflict between low cost and differentiation - the heart of blue ocean strategy.
The strategy canvas is also a great tool for USP development.
2. Strategic Control Point Index
This is a tool used to assess the level of strategic control a business has in its industry relative to competing businesses and organizations. It was best articulated by management consultant Adrian Slywotzky in "The Profit Zone" (a book which I highly recommend). The strategic control point index classifies these control points according to the level of "profit-protecting power" they confer to a business.
Simply put, it is a simple description of the path to monopoly power (or at least near-monopoly) in any business design. The profit protecting power of these strategic control points go from "None", "low", "medium" to "high". Some examples of strategic control points given by Slywotzky include:
* 10 to 20 percent cost advantage in commodity product (low)
* One-year product development lead (slightly higher, but still low)
* Two-year product development lead (medium)
* Brand, copyright (slightly higher, but still medium)
* Customer relationship ownership (High)
* String of superdominant market positions (Higher)
* Management of the Value Chain (Even higher)
* Standards Ownership (Highest)
3. 6 Paths Framework
This analytical tool is another from "blue ocean strategy" and masterfully gives strategists a way to think across the "six conventional boundaries of competition" to systematically construct new assumptions and stimulate product or business design breakthroughs. The idea is that one of these unconventional ways of looking at the competitive landscape may crack open a strategic breakthrough.
a) Look across industries - Compete with alternatives and substitutes for your product/service rather than those you think are your competition.
b) Look across strategic groups - Look at how your new strategy can be developed between the naturally assumed strategic boundaries in your industry.
c) Look across the chain of buyers - Consider how you can change the game by changing the defined "primary buyers.
d) Look across complementary products and services - Thinking about the whole system of your customer's typically solution (in which your current offering might be just a small part).
e) Look across functional or emotional appeal - Examine how you may be able to create a new value curve by adding emotion to a functionally oriented industry, or removing stripping out emotion and reducing a product or service to its functional core.
f) Look across time - Adjust your time horizon to a different point or cycle than is typical in the rest of your industry.
4. Business Design Matrix
The business design matrix is a great analytical tool that you can use to help understand and analyze "at a glance" the business models of your competitors. It is largely derived from the work of Dr. Adrian Slywotzky. The criteria across which you analyze your competitors as well as your own organization include:
* Customer selection
* Profit Capture System(s)
* Differentiation / Strategic Control
* Scope of offerings and presence
These core four considerations provide a foundation for deciding marketing strategy - a foundation upon which a larger business strategy can comfortably rest.
Knowing the types of tools you can use for various kinds of business strategy tasks can you get far more innovative results from your strategy development sessions while cutting the time it takes to arrive at good business models.
Tools for Mapping and Dominating Uncontested Market Spaces
1. Strategy Canvas
The Strategy Canvas is a tool first introduced in the book, "Blue Ocean Strategy" by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne. It is a chart that plots the positions of business competitors relative to the factors important to the customer marketplace. The horizontal axis plots the factors of competition (hopefully established through customer knowledge), and the vertical axis plots the degree of offering or service level.
Using this chart differences between current and potential business competitors can be graphically portrayed. The primary point of the strategy canvas is to illustrate divergence between market and business strategies as it relates to customer needs. By using a strategy canvas, you can create a new value innovation that breaks the conflict between low cost and differentiation - the heart of blue ocean strategy.
The strategy canvas is also a great tool for USP development.
2. Strategic Control Point Index
This is a tool used to assess the level of strategic control a business has in its industry relative to competing businesses and organizations. It was best articulated by management consultant Adrian Slywotzky in "The Profit Zone" (a book which I highly recommend). The strategic control point index classifies these control points according to the level of "profit-protecting power" they confer to a business.
Simply put, it is a simple description of the path to monopoly power (or at least near-monopoly) in any business design. The profit protecting power of these strategic control points go from "None", "low", "medium" to "high". Some examples of strategic control points given by Slywotzky include:
* 10 to 20 percent cost advantage in commodity product (low)
* One-year product development lead (slightly higher, but still low)
* Two-year product development lead (medium)
* Brand, copyright (slightly higher, but still medium)
* Customer relationship ownership (High)
* String of superdominant market positions (Higher)
* Management of the Value Chain (Even higher)
* Standards Ownership (Highest)
3. 6 Paths Framework
This analytical tool is another from "blue ocean strategy" and masterfully gives strategists a way to think across the "six conventional boundaries of competition" to systematically construct new assumptions and stimulate product or business design breakthroughs. The idea is that one of these unconventional ways of looking at the competitive landscape may crack open a strategic breakthrough.
a) Look across industries - Compete with alternatives and substitutes for your product/service rather than those you think are your competition.
b) Look across strategic groups - Look at how your new strategy can be developed between the naturally assumed strategic boundaries in your industry.
c) Look across the chain of buyers - Consider how you can change the game by changing the defined "primary buyers.
d) Look across complementary products and services - Thinking about the whole system of your customer's typically solution (in which your current offering might be just a small part).
e) Look across functional or emotional appeal - Examine how you may be able to create a new value curve by adding emotion to a functionally oriented industry, or removing stripping out emotion and reducing a product or service to its functional core.
f) Look across time - Adjust your time horizon to a different point or cycle than is typical in the rest of your industry.
4. Business Design Matrix
The business design matrix is a great analytical tool that you can use to help understand and analyze "at a glance" the business models of your competitors. It is largely derived from the work of Dr. Adrian Slywotzky. The criteria across which you analyze your competitors as well as your own organization include:
* Customer selection
* Profit Capture System(s)
* Differentiation / Strategic Control
* Scope of offerings and presence
These core four considerations provide a foundation for deciding marketing strategy - a foundation upon which a larger business strategy can comfortably rest.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
4 Conventional Strategic Planning Tools For Business Executives, Entrepreneurs and Consultants
Strategic planning tools are important components of any competent manager's toolkit. However, they cannot replace your individual or organizational ability to execute effectively. Treat the following tools as what they are - aids to competent management.
1. Situational Analysis
A situational analysis allows you to get a comprehensive view of the basic problems facing your organization, as well as the opportunities you may be overlooking. You have to take great care in how you frame and define the problems or else much of your subsequent analysis and corrective actions could be a total waste. An effective situational analysis does not just identify problems or opportunities, it also prioritizes them.
2. SWOT Analysis
A SWOT analysis is a simple analytical framework for deriving strategic implementation options from the results of a situational analysis. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. The results of a SWOT analysis are usually summarized with a simple matrix that categorizes findings under Internal, external, positive and negative groupings.
* Strengths are related to organizational attributes (internal) and positive.
* Weaknesses are also internal to the organization, but have negative implications.
* Opportunities are external conditions that have positive implications.
* Threats are external conditions that have negative implications for an organization.
3. PEST Analysis
The PEST analysis tool is particularly appropriate for really big organizations or small organizations with a particularly large (or international scope). PEST stands for Political, Environmental, Socio-cultural and Technological. It is used to enable brainstorming and help flesh out some of the "biggest picture" scenarios that may affect an organization or enterprise.
4. Boston Matrix
The Boston Matrix (also known as the BCG-matrix or the "Growth-share matrix") is a strategic decision making tool that can be used to help make decisions regarding business lines, product lines and brand marketing. It is employs a graphic matrix that shows the relationship between market growth, market share and a given opportunity.
In the Boston Matrix, business line or product line opportunities are grouped in 4 areas depending on the combination of market share and overall market growth.
Dogs - These are product lines or businesses that have a small market share in a low-growth market. These are generally the most undesirable to have in your portfolio (unless of course your individual "dog" is highly profitable).
Cash Cows - These product lines or businesses are also in a low-growth market, but have high market share within those markets. Because you have a high market share, it may be possible to extract maximum leverage from that high share position. However, you should be looking for the next growth market even as you exploit this one.
Question Marks - These exist in high-growth markets, but have low market share. They are also referred to as "problem children". These opportunities give strategists the most headaches and should be carefully analyzed before more investment is poured into them as they could go on to become stars or dogs if the market matures before returns are realized.
Stars - These products or businesses have high market share in high-growth markets. Given these facts, you should prioritize these stars and work hard to exploit the opportunities you find here.
Conclusion
Applying the right strategic planning tools to the right problem is crucial. However, even more important that planning is excellence in business execution.
1. Situational Analysis
A situational analysis allows you to get a comprehensive view of the basic problems facing your organization, as well as the opportunities you may be overlooking. You have to take great care in how you frame and define the problems or else much of your subsequent analysis and corrective actions could be a total waste. An effective situational analysis does not just identify problems or opportunities, it also prioritizes them.
2. SWOT Analysis
A SWOT analysis is a simple analytical framework for deriving strategic implementation options from the results of a situational analysis. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. The results of a SWOT analysis are usually summarized with a simple matrix that categorizes findings under Internal, external, positive and negative groupings.
* Strengths are related to organizational attributes (internal) and positive.
* Weaknesses are also internal to the organization, but have negative implications.
* Opportunities are external conditions that have positive implications.
* Threats are external conditions that have negative implications for an organization.
3. PEST Analysis
The PEST analysis tool is particularly appropriate for really big organizations or small organizations with a particularly large (or international scope). PEST stands for Political, Environmental, Socio-cultural and Technological. It is used to enable brainstorming and help flesh out some of the "biggest picture" scenarios that may affect an organization or enterprise.
4. Boston Matrix
The Boston Matrix (also known as the BCG-matrix or the "Growth-share matrix") is a strategic decision making tool that can be used to help make decisions regarding business lines, product lines and brand marketing. It is employs a graphic matrix that shows the relationship between market growth, market share and a given opportunity.
In the Boston Matrix, business line or product line opportunities are grouped in 4 areas depending on the combination of market share and overall market growth.
Dogs - These are product lines or businesses that have a small market share in a low-growth market. These are generally the most undesirable to have in your portfolio (unless of course your individual "dog" is highly profitable).
Cash Cows - These product lines or businesses are also in a low-growth market, but have high market share within those markets. Because you have a high market share, it may be possible to extract maximum leverage from that high share position. However, you should be looking for the next growth market even as you exploit this one.
Question Marks - These exist in high-growth markets, but have low market share. They are also referred to as "problem children". These opportunities give strategists the most headaches and should be carefully analyzed before more investment is poured into them as they could go on to become stars or dogs if the market matures before returns are realized.
Stars - These products or businesses have high market share in high-growth markets. Given these facts, you should prioritize these stars and work hard to exploit the opportunities you find here.
Conclusion
Applying the right strategic planning tools to the right problem is crucial. However, even more important that planning is excellence in business execution.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Strategic Marketing Tips From Your Strategic Thinking Business Coach
Being strategic and thinking strategically in developing your marketing plan means you understand the needs and desires of your clients and customers, and you show them how your product/service satisfies those needs. You must know:
what value your product or service offers and what benefits it provides; what differentiates you and your product/service from the competition; who are your stakeholders, which may include: your suppliers, your bank, your subcontractors or vendors, your associates, your staff, your clients or customers, and of course the general public; where your clients and customers are located geographically; and what are the most effective distribution channels to deliver your product or service? When developing a strategic marketing plan, your strategic thinking business coach provides the following ten (10) strategic marketing tips.
Strategic Marketing Tip #1: Develop a strategic plan with a clearly defined and focused vision and mission for your business, along with core values and goals
As the foundation for all your business, marketing and other plans.
Strategic Marketing Tip #2: Develop a Strategic Action Plan that breaks down your goals into tasks with assigned leaders and completion dates.
Strategic Marketing Tip #3: Develop strong relationships with your stakeholders. People want to do business with people they know or with whom they have a positive relationship.
Strategic Marketing Tip #4: Be positive, persistent and patient.
Strategic Marketing Tip #5: Focus your primary marketing efforts on existing clients and customers since they are already doing business with you.
Strategic Marketing Tip #6: Develop and implement an Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) plan.
Strategic Marketing Tip #7: Develop your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) to differentiate you and your business from the competition.
Strategic Marketing Tip #8: Make effective use of the Internet by having an effective website.
Strategic Marketing Tip #9: Develop and implement an evaluation program for your marketing efforts and commit to continuous improvement of your marketing
program.
Strategic Marketing Tip #10: Develop and implement a customer contact management system to promote Top Of Mind Awareness (TOMA) as part of your marketing program.
what value your product or service offers and what benefits it provides; what differentiates you and your product/service from the competition; who are your stakeholders, which may include: your suppliers, your bank, your subcontractors or vendors, your associates, your staff, your clients or customers, and of course the general public; where your clients and customers are located geographically; and what are the most effective distribution channels to deliver your product or service? When developing a strategic marketing plan, your strategic thinking business coach provides the following ten (10) strategic marketing tips.
Strategic Marketing Tip #1: Develop a strategic plan with a clearly defined and focused vision and mission for your business, along with core values and goals
As the foundation for all your business, marketing and other plans.
Strategic Marketing Tip #2: Develop a Strategic Action Plan that breaks down your goals into tasks with assigned leaders and completion dates.
Strategic Marketing Tip #3: Develop strong relationships with your stakeholders. People want to do business with people they know or with whom they have a positive relationship.
Strategic Marketing Tip #4: Be positive, persistent and patient.
Strategic Marketing Tip #5: Focus your primary marketing efforts on existing clients and customers since they are already doing business with you.
Strategic Marketing Tip #6: Develop and implement an Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) plan.
Strategic Marketing Tip #7: Develop your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) to differentiate you and your business from the competition.
Strategic Marketing Tip #8: Make effective use of the Internet by having an effective website.
Strategic Marketing Tip #9: Develop and implement an evaluation program for your marketing efforts and commit to continuous improvement of your marketing
program.
Strategic Marketing Tip #10: Develop and implement a customer contact management system to promote Top Of Mind Awareness (TOMA) as part of your marketing program.
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