BUILDING A BEST PRACTICE MARKETING PLAN: 10 STEP METHODOLOGY

thINK Academy

BUILDING A BEST PRACTICE MARKETING PLAN: 10 STEP METHODOLOGY

   

This class is designed to teach the fundamentals of creating a best practice marketing plan for your business. Whether you’re new to your career, a business owner, or marketing professional looking to boost your skills – this course will be valuable for you. This course will cover each of the 10 critical foundational components of building a best practice marketing plan.

INSTRUCTOR

Robert Rose

Chief Troublemaker, The Content Advisory
Robert Rose is a sought-after consultant, best-selling author, keynote speaker, and one of the world's most recognized experts in digital content strategy and marketing.
 

BUILDING A BEST PRACTICE MARKETING PLAN: 10 STEP METHODOLOGY COURSES

Benchmark Reporting and Dashboards (Metrics, KPI's, and Goals)

Let’s bring it all the way back around with looking at performance. Marketing dashboards are the way we can provide all the up-to-the-minute information necessary to see how marketing is progressing toward its goals. An effective set of measurement and marketing dashboards help us not only understand the performance of marketing, but communicate to our business leaders.

This module will explore the measurement pyramid and how it can be utilized to create marketing dashboards. We will close with learning: what are the difference between goals, Key Performance Indicators, Metrics and other numbered measurements. How do these translate into a measurement pyramid; how we utilize the measurement pyramid against our stated goals; how we utilize technology and human-based measurement to assemble the right dashboards for our business.

Time Commitment:

Self-Paced Online Learning: 10 minutes
Learning Assignments: 1

Marketing Automation and Flow (Reaching, Building, and Moving Audiences)

Our goal as marketers is to reach, and move audiences through a process that sees them ultimately become customers. One of the technology tools and processes that helps us do that is marketing automation. We can automatically deliver the right message to the right customer and (hopefully) the right time in order to help facilitate this process.

This module will explore the basics of marketing automation and lead flow, as well as the benefits of not only moving audiences toward purchases, but also building audiences as well. We will cover: the difference of reaching, moving and building audiences; how marketing automation systems work – and how they combine the best of our multichannel content platforms; how the flow of people impact our measurement of the buyer’s funnel – and the levers we can pull in order to optimize our efforts.

Time Commitment:

Self-Paced Online Learning: 1 hour
Learning Assignments: 1

Multi-Channel Marketing (Developing the Channel Plan and Calendar)

Today’s modern companies typically employ a digital multichannel marketing strategy, usually utilizing more than 10 digital marketing channels to reach customer segments. Development of this strategy is classically known as our “marketing mix”. Each channel can target a different segment of buyers, or different need states for one buyer, to deliver the right products in the right places in the right way at the least cost.

This module will explore how to think about both the foundations of paid, owned, and earned media – but also how to build an ecosystem of purpose-driven marketing channels. We will cover: the balance of owned, paid, and earned media; how to develop the modern marketing mix – multichannel marketing; how to assign goals and purpose to every channel for our content and marketing messaging; how to test, measure and change the mix

Time Commitment:

Self-Paced Online Learning: 1 hour
Learning Assignments: 1

Website Presence (The Core of the Digital Sphere of Influence)

In today’s digital marketing era, the web site is usually the anchor for our marketing efforts. Whether we bring people there to inquire with our sales team, or whether we are facilitating an eCommerce transaction, or we’re trying to get them to drive to our physical location – we need to treat our websites differently. They are both the center of all answers to questions, as well as an engaging way to differentiate our business.

This module will touch on the basics of Search Engine Optimization, of modern website design, and how to use concepts such as landing pages and mobile as a means of building the modern content platform. You will learn: what are websites in 2021? How have they evolved; how do they work in concert with blogs, landing pages, and other types of digital experiences; how marketers can look at their Website like a media product – and manage it as such; How to assign goals, and KPIs to today’s modern website.

Time Commitment:

Self-Paced Online Learning: 1 hour
Learning Assignments: 1

Content Plan

One of the biggest challenges for modern marketers is the number of formats, channels and content types that can get created. No matter how big we are, we need to establish a content plan that can scale to a multi-channel effort.

This module will explore how businesses of any size can get beyond the “container” and build a process to start with content ideas that can be re-used, re-packaged, re-positioned for multiple channels. Together we will: build the molecular content plan by separating out content creation and production; build a content plan and calendar that presents a few “big stories” that can be translated into lots of “little stories”; walk through how to create a workflow process and approach that this content plan can scale at even the smallest levels.

Time Commitment:

Self-Paced Online Learning: 1 hour
Learning Assignments: 1

Creative Strategy (Developing the Core Elements of the Product/Brand)

No company can win if its products and services resemble every other product and offering. As part of the strategic brand management process, each offering must represent the right kinds of things in the minds of the target market.

This module will explore the methods to create brand differentiation and the content that supports it. You will learn: how to use the key messages developed in the previous module, we will start a core brand messaging architecture (define it); how to develop a brand messaging architecture – a creative way for us to communicate (not only the words – but the visuals); how to translate the brand messaging architecture to a creative strategy to develop words, imagery and other multimedia elements to differentiate in a crowded marketplace.

Time Commitment:

Self-Paced Online Learning: 1 hour
Learning Assignments: 1

Personas (The Unique Value Proposition and Key Messaging)

One of the critical areas of focus for modern marketing is to understand the target market – not just as a buyer but as a person. This work enables us to develop a Unique Value Proposition and our key messaging for various marketing channels.

This module will explore the Jobs-To-Be-Done framework for researching audience personas and the development of key unique value propositions that can be instrumental in messaging. You will learn: the value of audience personas as a larger construct than simply seeing everyone as a buyer; the 5-step process for developing research on personas; how the Jobs to be Done framework can help develop unique value propositions and key messaging for your product

Time Commitment:

Self-Paced Online Learning: 1 hour
Learning Assignments: 1

Building the Funnel (Inquiry & Leads)

Successful value creation needs successful value delivery. Instead of limiting their focus to the perceived immediate responsibility (e.g. generate traffic), holistic marketers are examining opportunities across the whole buyer’s journey. They are also looking at how technology is changing the way customers shop and companies sell and finding new and different means to distribute and service their offerings. This model will build upon the goals created and assemble the buyer’s funnel to understand and communicate where marketing will focus to drive visits, inquiries, leads, and conversions.

In this session we will be: building the buyer’s journey – and how this process may change over time; layering each stage of the sales and marketing journey, so as to understand the efforts that will be needed to meet inquiry and lead goals; learning how to build multiple buyer’s journeys and how they affect other goals other than just inquiries and leads

Time Commitment:

Self-Paced Online Learning: 1 hour
Learning Assignments: 1

Marketing Goals (Strategy & Measurement)

Goals indicate what a business unit wants to achieve; strategy is a game plan for getting there. Every business must rationalize a strategy for achieving its goals, consisting of a marketing strategy and a compatible, content, and tools/technology strategy.

In this module we will go over getting to a solid mission, vision and strategic, and measurable marketing objectives. You will learn: A key framework for getting to a specific marketing mission; How to use this framework to develop a vision for the marketing efforts; Defining specific, and measurable objectives that will demonstrate progress to the goals; Starting with the end in mind – how to approach this idea by looking at the goals and working backward to help develop your Marketing Strategy.

Time Commitment:

Self-Paced Online Learning: 1 hour
Learning Assignments: 1

Strategic Planning (Market Research & Insight)

Making marketing decisions in a fast-changing world is both an art and a science. Modern marketers recognize that the marketing environment is constantly presenting new opportunities and threats, and they understand the importance of continuously monitoring, forecasting, and adapting to that environment.

This first module helps the marketer understand the initial steps that should be taken before successful marketing strategy planning can occur. You will learn how to: develop a marketing intelligence system. It's not just one and done – it's about developing a habit of ongoing information gathering and research; gather market needs and trends for plan formulation; identifying key competitors and intelligence gathering for their marketing activities.

Time Commitment:

Self-Paced Online Learning: 1 hour
Learning Assignments: 1