If there’s one lesson all entrepreneurs have learned over their years in business, it’s the importance of a marketing plan. What your business is, who your target audience is and how you attract your target market are essential elements to a successful business plan. A marketing plan also enables you to focus your action steps on these key areas.

In defining a marketing plan, there are probably as many different answers to what the perfect marketing plan is as there are entrepreneurs. Some follow the textbook definition, while others customize a plan based on their business, budget and goals. The key is to create a plan that works for you and will keep your marketing action steps on track.

To achieve a perfect marketing plan, there are a few essential components to include. Here are five easy steps to follow to create your successful marketing strategy.

1. Define Your Market.

In a few sentences, describe who your customers are going to be. Ask yourself what types of people are more likely to buy your product or service. Be as specific as possible in terms of gender, age, occupation, lifestyle, buying habits, etc. Identifying your market is the basis for all your other marketing activities.

2. Identify Ways To Attract Your Customers.

List ways you plan to go after your target market. What do you plan on doing to get their attention? This step requires a lot of thought because you need to identify what sets you apart from your competitors and how you plan to communicate these advantages. Once you determine your niche, then you need to incorporate this core message into all your marketing materials, including your packaging, phone message, website, letterhead and other means and materials that go out to customers.

3. Go Prospecting.

Your marketing and advertising efforts need to pique a customer’s interest in your company. Your advertisements, in particular, should encourage your targeted audience to ask for more information about your product or service. The goal is relationship marketing. Many businesses make the mistake of going for the immediate sell in their advertisements. But for customer retention purposes, you want to attract a large number of prospects rather than a few sales. With prospects, you can educate the consumer about why your product is better than the others. This will naturally lead to a sale, but your education-based approach leaves the customer with a better understanding of the value they are receiving. That’s means repeat business for you.

4. Exposure.

Think of all the possible ways you can get your message out to your targeted market. If your advertising budget is small, you can market your business just as effectively through free exposure in an article in the newspaper or a reference quote in a radio or television story. Get to know the newspaper journalists and radio and television news reporters who cover your local area or industry. By building a trusting relationship with them, they will turn to you as a reliable resource when they need a quote or sound bite when a story develops in your field of interest. You can also pitch your own story ideas pertaining to a particular seasonal issue or event.

5. Establish Referrals.

Customers who enjoy doing business with you are more than happy to spread the word. Within your business structure, create referral marketing processes that maximize the potential for customer referrals.

Once you have identified your marketing plan, create an annual calendar and put in reminders of the daily, weekly and monthly marketing activities that need to take place to keep your marketing plan on track.

With your perfect marketing plan in place and a vehicle for keeping it on track, you will be well on your way towards attracting new business, fostering repeat business and retaining existing customers.

What do you have in your marketing plan which has really made a difference?

Matthew Toren