3 Benefits of a Marketing Plan

"This little piggy went to market and this little piggy stayed home."

Why do you think that this particular little piggy was the only one that got to go to market? Was he the only one that was ready? Was there an issue with the supply chain? Were the others not quite ready? Or, was it because he was the only vegetarian in the bunch -roast beef? Yuk.

Maybe the farmer had a 'marketing plan'?? It is quite possible especially if he was a successful farmer.

There came a time when I had to admit that I liked a certain amount of control in my life. Change is never like the flicking of a switch - control feels normal to me. There There's not much to life if you're a control freak - it takes the fun out of it I believe. I've worked on that. But I'm not an all or nothing kind of gal.

There is one area where I will maintain control and that is when it comes to my business. I control the numbers - knowing how close I am to my targets at any given time. I also control my marketing. I have a marketing plan and I believe that there is a correlation between your revenues and your plan to get the goods to market. I'm a firm believer that regardless of the size of your business, investt the time (and money if that's not your thing) in a smashing marketing plan - you won't regret it.

There are many benefits in having a marketing plan. Here are my top three.

1. It saves time and time is money.  Time is precious in business especially in the early days when you are wearing so many hats. A marketing plan lets you make a plan and work the plan. Won't it take precious time to make a plan? Well ya, but the time you spend planning will give you time to work on your business later on. Without a plan, we use more valuable time. Time is money.

2. A marketing plan is a good test of how viable your business is. Usually a marketing plan goes hand in hand with your projections. If you plan to make X (revenue) and you need to sell Y (# of units) then you will need to know where you will sell those. A marketing plan maps that out for you and let's you know if you're nuts in your projections.

3. This is my favourite. The universe loves clarity. When you make a plan, you're committed. You're going for the goal. You've not only called it by name. You've made a plan to make it happen. The universe loves that kind of clarity.

And you're waiting for what? Get crackin' -- make the plan and work the plan. BAM!!!