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I love when I hear conversations about social media that contain complaints about a lack of response to marketing messages. Too often, it seems, people tend to focus on marketing and not the social part of it all.

Social media is about building communities and developing relationships. Yes, there is currently a large commercial component to social networking but, that doesn’t mean that the expected elements of social communication are irrelevant in these web based arenas.

Think about this scenario: you’re at a networking event and someone who you’ve never met and knows nothing about you comes up to you and shoves their business card in your hand, and then walks away. How likely are you to want to work with that person, even if you need or want what they are selling? Most people would be more likely to toss that card in the nearest trash can and move on.

Networking is not (or, at least, shouldn’t be) about closing the sale and moving on; it’s about creating and developing relationships with those that might be interested in your services or are connected to and influencers of others that would be interested. People want to do business with people they know, like and trust.

If you were to just jump on the nearest social network, bombard all of your contacts with spammy sales messages and have no interaction with them, you’re not really behaving any differently than the guy that shoves a business card at you. Let your contacts get to know you, share information with them, join into their conversations (when you have something relevant to say), develop a relationship so that they trust you, and let them know that you’re there to help them.

So, you may be asking why a web developer is writing about Business Plans and Marketing Plans. To put it simply, I have a vested interest in my clients – current & future – clearly knowing how their business is doing, where they want it to go, and how it’s going to get there.

Developing a marketing plan will help you keep on track to achieve your goals, and the plan should be your step-by-step guide to getting there.

1. Target Market
   Refer to your Business Plan for this information. Your target market are the people who’s problems you’re going to solve. Knowing their location, education level, income level, pain points and strengths will help you to tailor your marketing message to be the most effective.
   If you find that you have more than one target market, or that there are extreme difference among segments of your market, consider developing different marketing messages to appeal to each of these segments.
2. Marketing Goal(s)
   What do you want to accomplish over the next year? Make sure your goals are specific and measurable. A goal of “get more clients”  or “increase sales” is not enough. Without specific, quantifiable goals, it can be easy to give up to quickly, or for goals to seem too daunting to be realistic.
   Doesn’t something like “get 10 more clients” or “increase sales 25%” sound much more attainable?
3. Strategies & Tactics
   A strategy is a plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal. Tactics are the specific actions taken to get there. You’ve identified your goals and your target market. You know what you want to do and who you want to help. How are you going to get your message to them?
   Be sure to include all media that you plan to employ, such as direct mail, your website, email marketing and social media marketing in this section.
4. Cost & Budget
   Now that you know what to do, figure out how much it’s going to cos and is this cost within your budget? You can come up with greatest marketing plan or campaign that’s ever been conceived for your industry but, if your business can’t handle the expense, it’s not going to do you any good.

A business plan is one of those things that many people try to avoid when starting a business. When you try to research why you should have one or how to write one, you’ll most likely get results that make a business plan sound complicated, tedious, and unnecessary unless you’re looking for financing or investors. However, a business plan is a great asset to anyone serious about being successful in their business ventures.
Unless you are applying for financing, a business plan doesn’t have to be a long, polished document. It could just as easily be done in bullet points on index cards or the notes program on your BlackBerry. Most of the value of a business plan to you, the business owner, is in the research and thought work that goes into drafting it. Below are some of the basic components you’ll want to have in your business plan.

Mission

What is the purpose of your company? Who do you plan to help with your products or services? What is the problem that you are providing a solution for? How will you be helping this target market?

Vision

Think about where you want your company and your brand to be in three, five, and 10 years. How much sales volume will you be doing? Will you have expanded market share, market reach, or products or services? How will your company have grown or changed to accomodate or influence this growth? How does the change affect you and your personal life?
There’s a concept know as te law of attraction. Visualizing where you want to be in the future and reading over this, internalizing it, making it part of your routine can have amazing power to influence things to help you achieve the vision that you have created., whether you realize it or not. I’ve experienced this first hand in my business and it’s truly amazing.

Financial Assessment & Predictions

Take stock of the current state of your finances. What are you assets vs. Liabilities? Profits vs. Loss? Are you in debt? What is your project income over the next one, three and five years?
Think about the vision that you have just completed. What will it take to get you there? Will your current sales get you there, or will you need to increase sales volume? Will your current staffing situation get you there, or will you need to consider hiring employees or freelancers?

Market Analysis

Think of your target market – the people who’s problems you’re going to solve, based on your mission statement. Where are they (location)? Who are they (demographics)? Who are your competitors? What are their strengths? What are your (or your products’) weaknesses?

Marketing Strategy

Now that you’ve identified who your customers and target market are, when, how and how often will you contact them? Will you see them in person at networking events or industry meeting? Will you send them newsletters and postcards?
How often will you send press releases to the media? What criteria will determine if an event is worthy of a press release? Who will you send releases to? Have you identified a media contact list? Do you have a media kit ready if someone asks for it?

I know this seems like a lot, but each topic builds on the previous one. If you approach it step by step, you’ll likely find youself finishing quickly and with a clearer understanding of where you are, where you’re going, and how to get there.

The web used to be a great land of “build it and they will come” options. However, the proliferation of websites for every business venture means that your customers have many more options than ever before. A simple search for the topic of choice will direct an interested party to hundreds of websites. If yours is on the list, what is it about your site that will encourage users to stay longer, to look around more and, possibly, to buy your products or engage your services. Below are a few things that you can do with your website to make your website more user-friendly, and increase your odds of visitors hanging around a bit longer.

1. Consistent Navigation – Having consistently placed and ordered navigation on your website makes it easier for visitors to find their way around your site. Navigation that’s always in the same place on your site, and links in the same order allow the user to feel comfortable in their surroundings. Navigating a foreign place is always stressful – eliminate that stress for visitors to your website.
2. Well Organized Information – Most people agonize about the look and layout of their website but many people forget to consider how the information the site will present is organized as well. Also known as Information Architecture, carefully planning the organization and presentation of your site increases the ability for users to find the information they are looking for on your site. Make sure each page has a clear topic – and only one. Trying to fully inform a visitor about several topics on one page may confuse them and encourage them to leave, quickly.
3. Clear Call to Action – Do you know what you want the user to do when they’re on your site? Let them know! And make it easy for them to do what you want them to. Do you want users to sign up for your newsletter? Have the newsletter sign up form located at the top of your page (preferably on the right side). Do you sell products on your website? Make it easy for users to add products to their cart, and easy to checkout.
4. Use Common Terms for Common Actions – If you have a shopping cart, call it that. Or shopping bag or basket, or some other term that the average person will recognize. It may be tempting to come up with some cute or witty name for your shopping cart, newsletter, or other features on your site but if your visitors don’t know what they mean, it doesn’t do you any good.
5. Write with the user in mind – Who is the target audience of your site? When you (or your copywriter) is writing to copy for your site, make sure you keep your audience in mind. What is their technical or educational level? Writing too simply may turn off highly educated or technically skilled visitors, while writing over the heads of less skilled or knowledgeable users could cause frustration and leave them searching for a website they can better understand.