How to Create An Effective Digital Marketing Plan

A digital marketing plan is a map that guides you to achieve the objectives and goals of your brand. It is necessary for every organization that is involved in marketing. It is so important, it's not enough to just have a plan, that plan has to be effective. It has to bring results as early as it is implemented.

For a digital marketing plan to be effective, it has to consider all necessary aspects of the brand/business, and it have to be realistic and practical. Something that you can look at on a wall and follow the steps without having to spend another hour or more trying to decipher the meaning of that step.

Now, let's discuss how to create an effective digital marketing plan

1. Research: This is probably the most recurring word in any form of marketing. Whatever it is you're selling, you will sell better with proper research. Your research must answer the following questions: What am I selling? What is that one thing I'm promising my customers (USP)? Do I need a website? How far have I gone in online marketing? What is working for me as of now? What is my competition doing? What can I learn from my competition? By research, you are undergoing SWOT analysis.

You find specific, straightforward answers to all those questions, then you're one step away from having an effective marketing plan.

2. Objectives: It is hard to imagine anyone starting a business without an objective or several objectives. Having something to look forward to has a way of motivating you, so this is where you clearly stated and write down your objectives. Write it down, there's power in written words. A little tip: your objective(s) should be SMART. You must have read or heard this before. SMART means Specific (detailed and concrete answering questions like why, when, and who), Measurable (you should be able to know when you've reached your goal), Achievable (not too easy and not overambitious), Realistic (make sure you have the resources it takes), and Time-bound (if there's no deadline, it's just a dream). If any of those are missing in your written objectives, revise and rewrite until they meet the criteria.

3. Buyer persona: Who is your ideal customer? What category of people did you have in mind when you created your business/brand? businesses or consumers? What problem did you intend to solve and who is currently experiencing it? Answers to these questions enable you to focus your products and/or services to and through the right channel.

To know more about buyer personas, check out our blog post here.

4. Content creation: If it is digital marketing, you need a content strategy. What topics are your contents going to be based on? Through what platform would they be distributed? Which social media platform do you need? (There's a blog post that talks in details about this). How often would they be created? In what form would they be created? Written words, videos, infographics? Answers to these questions will help you create a content calendar.

Click here on the social media platform that suits your business

Remember you want customers that visit your website, buy and come back for more. To keep that happening, your content has to grow and adjust based on the level of prospects and customers. 

5. Keywords: You're online and you want to be noticed, how's your keyword doing? Are you using clear keywords related specifically to your industry? Or are you confusing yourself, Google, and customers by using too generic keywords? Generic keywords are not bad, you just need to be sure that they're good for you. For more details on this, do check out our blog post on how to choose the best keywords for your website.

6. Measurement strategy: Also known in the marketing world as a Key Performance Indicator (KPI). This just means taking those measurable criteria of your objective one step further and incorporating the time-bound criteria. How often would you measure your performance? Monthly? Biweekly? Having this in mind helps you stay on track with your plan. It keeps your mind focused on your objectives.

7. Plan B: Last but not least, is the part of the plan that answers the question: what if this doesn't work out? Nobody wants to fail obviously, but we can't ignore the fact that sometimes mistakes are just inevitable. If you're lucky, your mistake can bring about a positive result, and if not, well you should have something to fall back on - a plan B. This prevents you from dwelling on failure and possibly considering quitting. It keeps you moving. Every business needs that.

Now, you have everything you need to start your digital marketing. If you have a plan on having a team, bring them in and make sure everyone understands every word of the plan - VERY important. If you're working alone, you're good to go.

Published: Halimat C. Atanda, Content Strategist