I’m training for a 5K run at the moment. I do it every year to give myself a goal to work to and to prove I can still do it. The thing is that although I exercise the rest of the year, I’m not really a runner. So I need a training plan to get me ready.
Right now, with eight weeks to go I have a plan that tells me exactly what I need to do each day (some days it’s ‘Rest’ – they’re my favourite days!). So how does having a plan help?
There’s nothing more reassuring than a plan that you can implement everyday, almost without thinking.
My training plan makes it really easy:
- To set a clear, measurable objective – To run 5k on 14 July in 32 minutes or less (I’ve said it now so I’d better do it!).
- To eliminate procrastination – no wasted time thinking about what I need to do, just get on and do it.
- To measure progress and keep motivated – to be honest without a plan I’m sure I’d get distracted after two weeks.
- To keep on track and not get distracted – if something crops up to stop me train, it’s easy to shift that session to another day.
And, most importantly, it gives me confidence that I will achieve my goal at the end of the period (and not embarrass myself by passing out before the finishing line).
So what on earth does my training plan tell us about marketing?
Everything about my training schedule can be equally applied to promoting and growing your business. Even if you know what you want to achieve, without a plan you won’t have a clear idea of how you’re going to do it or whether you’re making any progress. As well as wasting precious time and money, this can be pretty demoralising.
Making a plan might sound like harder work upfront but it’s worth the extra effort to make it easier to start on the right actions and get results. Imagine being able to sit down at your desk today knowing exactly what marketing actions you needed to take, spend some time doing them, then move on. So why not block out a little time to draw up a plan? It doesn’t have to be anything complicated. You can start on one page with:
- What you want to achieve and why (eg x more customers, to generate x more revenue)
- The actions you need to take to achieve this (how will you reach these customers? events, phone calls, social media etc)
- When you will take these actions – get them booked in your diary!
- How you will measure your success (eg enquiries, new customers)
Then you’re ready to get on with actually doing it and making a difference in your business!
Let me know how you get on and post your questions in the comments box below.