Strategic Business and Marketing Plan for 2011

Being successful in the business world begins with having a strategic business and marketing plan. This year, make it your resolution to move your business ahead. A strategic business plan should provide you with a structure to help allocate resources effectively (including investment of money, time and energy), help you track your progress, and be adaptable to changes as necessary over the course of the year. The following four simple tips will help you develop a plan that is functional, realistic and strategic!

1. Review History: If you have an established company, then spend some time analyzing what has worked in the past for your company. If your company is new, examine similar companies to see what successful strategies they have used to make a profit. For example, if you are a health and wellness practitioner, then decide which trends are growing and which ones are becoming less popular.

2. Create Income Goals: Set an income goal by deciding how much money you would like to make from your business this year. Divide that number by 12 to get a monthly income goal. Then, figure out how many clients you need to have per month or how much product you need to sell each month to reach that goal. Be realistic when you set this income goal, chances are you will not be a millionaire as soon as you start out, but do keep in mind that you have to be somewhat aggressive with your goals in order to move your company forward.

3. Create a Marketing Plan: Review which marketing strategies you have used in the past, both locally and globally. Learn more about online marketing, it is an inexpensive and effective way to grow your clientele, and the Internet is only becoming a more powerful tool for reaching people.

4. Create a Web Presence: Take a close look at your website and make sure it is effective at attracting and keeping customers and clients. Does your site accurately reflect your business and your goals? Are you getting enough web traffic? If you find that your website needs some sprucing up for the new year, find ways to delegate some tasks so that you can devote more time to developing the business side of things. Outsource things like graphic design, web content writing or search engine optimization. Focus on what you are good at-developing your business, and hire out the rest.

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