What are the marketing plan components for your jewelry store?
Granted you realize the importance of a well defined, executable marketing plan, but what is the general outline to get you started?
Good question and fortunately we have good answers.
First off, developing a marketing plan gives you the opportunity to sit down and evaluate what worked in the past and what fell short.
What was the message you were trying to convey and how was it received?
Secondly, a chance to look at the condition of the present market you are in.
Is there a new competition?
How is your message different from their’s, and how much do you think they are spending in their efforts?
Thirdly, where do you want to position your store in the future?
Are you moving your image to align with the high-end client, or are you going to tout your exceptional value and wide array of services?
With this information in hand, you can move onto the components that make up your marketing plan.
Marketing Plan Components
– Brief Introduction / Overview.
Broad, descriptive, and qualitative in nature.
You want to set the stage with a light overview of the key points of the plan.
Include what you have done, what you are going to do, how you are going to get there.
Broad strokes at this point.
– Define The Objectives.
The overall goal of your plan must take into account your strengths and weaknesses in the context of your competitive environment.
What are the specific targeted segments and how is it a part of your overall business strategy?
Commonly we incorporate S.W.O.T. (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) situational analysis in this section as well so we can look ahead to potential problems to the plan.
– Target Audience.
Your marketing message cannot be all things to all people.
Who are you trying to reach?
What is the demographic breakdown, income level, and education level?
As you work through developing your target audience you must also identify which marketing tools will be most effective.
Direct mailing? Emphasis on public relations avenues?
Which promotional methods are the most cost-effective to get the message out to your target audience?
What are the total resources committed to the project both in time, money, and other resources?
– Plan Implementation.
This is where the rubber meets the road.
Here we break down exactly what steps we are going to take to make the plan work.
Each marketing tool we are going to use is listed in terms of how we are going to use it when it is to start, the message, the target, duration, cost, and projected impact.
This becomes your roadmap to actually getting the plan off the ground and running successfully.
– Measurement / Tracking.
Did it work?
If you don’t measure it then you can’t manage it.
What steps are you taking to measure the success of this marketing plan?
What is the time frame for tracking?
So many independent jewelers skip this vital section, thus they never really know where their successes came from or how to correct less productive areas.
You need to be able to track each marketing tool for effectiveness.
Remember that marketing drives sales.
Sales do not drive marketing.
If you want to grow your business you must have a well written, executable marketing plan in place.
The days of “spray and pray” marketing are long gone.
Targeted messages to specific segments of consumers are the only way to be heard in the avalanche of advertising that all of us experience every day.
Keep your focus on the components of your marketing plan to be more successful.
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The host of “Inside the Jewelry Trade” Radio Show – Jewelry Business Strategist – President of Four Grainer LLC. Author of the business books “A Reason To Chant,” and “A Reason to Chant – Jewelry Trade Edition.” Rod lives in Atlanta with his wife and two almost-human cats.