How to Create Your 2021 Marketing Plan

How to Create Your 2021 Marketing Plan

With all of the interesting challenges that 2020 has brought, you may be thinking about revamping your marketing plan in 2021 to make up for anything lost this year.

Although 2021 still brings a certain amount of uncertainty, there is reason to be optimistic about the economy in the new year.

Nevertheless, though you should still factor in flexibility and the possibility for some budget adjustments, now is a great time to start setting your sights on new goals in 2021, and create your 2021 marketing plan to maximize your business’s impact. 

As a local advertising specialist, Ad Pages Solutions is here to guide you, whether you’re a small or large business owner, as you prepare your marketing strategies for the new year. Here are some of the best tips we recommend you consider as you start planning for 2021: 

• Review 2020 and Past Plans. Before you consider anything for the new year, take time to review how your 2020 marketing tactics worked for you. Did you meet your goals, and was it through the marketing channels you used? What marketing tactics worked, and what didn’t? Figuring out these things will make sure you continue doing things that achieved positive results and stop the tactics that underperformed for you.
• Establish Goals for the New Year. Make clear and concise goals for the new year. We recommend writing them down so you know and remember exactly what you’re working towards! Determine what you want to achieve, while making sure that your goals are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely, or SMART!

• Decide on Tactics and Channels to Market With. Now that you know what you want to achieve, how will you achieve it? There are plenty of tactics that you can use to achieve your goals, but depending on your industry or business, different strategies may work better for you. You may consider the Ad Pages Magazine, blogging and Search Engine Optimization (SEO), email campaigns, social media campaigns and organic posting, event creation, and more. All of these will drive more traffic to your website, resulting in more sales, customers, and revenue. 

• Define Your Target Audience. Of course, making and starting a new marketing strategy will do nothing if you don’t define your target audience. Consider your industry, location, and product, and determine the audience and demographic you are trying to reach. Who is it, and how are they consuming media? Where do they get their news, and what apps are they using? Are there any ways that your business can engage and connect with your audience more? Do you want to reach your target demographic in their homes, on their laptops or on their phones? All of these are solutions that Ad Pages has for you.

• Invest in Analytics. Once you’ve figured out your target audience and how you want to market to them, consider investing in analytics on each of the platforms you are using. Analytics will gather data for you, such as click rates, email opens, social media insights, follower and like counts, and more. This valuable information will tell you which channels specifically are doing the best for you, which may inform how you create future marketing plans. Each media platform and marketing tactic has its pros and cons, so take the time to carefully decide which tactics you will be using and how you will improve your analytics with them. 
• Plan Your Budget. Last, but certainly not least, determine your marketing budget for the year. You may have a certain number you want to spend, but how much CAN you spend, and how much should you realistically spend on marketing? Most businesses spend about 7-10% of their revenue on marketing, however, some businesses spend upwards of 20-30% of their revenue on marketing efforts. Go over your financials, and figure out what percent of your profits you want to allocate towards marketing based on your goals, budget, and tactics you’re using.