You’ve gotta have a plan. And when starting a new business, everyone knows that you need a strong business plan. But for some reason, many times business owners forget about a marketing plan, which is just as critical to the success of a business.

A marketing plan focuses on how you are going to get the customers you need to survive. It’s your plan of action – what you are going to be selling, who is going to buy it and how you are going to reach those potential customers and convert them to sales.

Here’s how to create a marketing plan that works:

Who are you? Define your company, the products or services you offer, and what sets you apart from the competition. Positioning your product requires a complete understanding of the market segment you are entering. You must know what your competitors are offering and what makes your product or service unique or a better value.

Include an overview of your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Strengths and weaknesses will be factors within the company while opportunities and threats are external factors.

Who is your target audience? Describe your prospective customer – this can be done in terms of demographics or by lifestyle. If you’re marketing B2B you may define your target audience by the type of business, size of the business, job title or any other factors that make them potential customers. It is important to know exactly who your target customer is in order to plan your marketing strategy.

What do you want to achieve? Write down a list of measurable goals.

Develop strategies and tactics. These are the guts of your plan! Focus on reaching prospective customers at all stages of your sales cycle, whether they are cold or warm prospects. Outline your primary marketing strategies, then include a variety of tactics you’ll use to reach prospects at any point in your sales cycle. This should be a combination of several tactics that can include social media, traditional print advertising, online advertising, blogs, customer events, loyalty programs and email marketing. It’s important to know which media your customers and potential customers will go to for information on the type of product or service you sell.

Remember, a great marketing strategy needs to be realistic and implemented consistently over time. Building brand awareness takes time and patience. If you need a guiding hand, we on the Porch can steer you in the right direction!

In the latest installment of my never-ending quest for more energy and mental acuity, I recently turned to our friends and clients at The GEM. Nature and age have a way of guiding those ready to hear the call for a healthier lifestyle.

While inspiring, I didn’t feel ready for a juice cleanse. But I was delighted when The GEM offered the chance to experience a gentle route to health and well-being in their newly launched  “A Day in the Life of a Gem” series. A Day in the Life is a four-part series led by Chief GEMologists: Leslie Needleman, Mary Kathryn Bass, and Maury Neirling.

And let me tell you, It’s been an eye opener.

I have learned that in addition to juice and cleaner eating, there are other elements to this whole GEM lifestyle thing. And guess what? It makes a huge difference.

I love to cook (full disclosure: In my opinion there is nothing that wine or a stick of butter can’t fix!). And while I have always been cognizant of the importance of eating healthy, what I thought was good nutritional value at our dinner table couldn’t live up to the nutritional standard I learned about at The Gem.

My biggest concern going into this was the food itself — because for me, food means comfort and an expression of love for my family. And I asked myself, will this satisfy my taste buds or ruin my cooking mojo? And if so, is it worth it? So, I set about this with a tiny bit of skepticism. And I am happy to say, it was unfounded. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Each session starts with a delicious sampling of Gem fare. The savory lentil soup in a quinoa salad, topped with a dollop of smooth, fresh jalapeno pesto scaled my taste buds like an episode of The Chew. And the nutritionally dense, but creamy and flavorful Tahitian Pearl smoothie was beyond delicious. I have been impressed with just how good it all tastes, all while following the 80/20 rule: eighty percent plant based foods.

After a light bite, we move on. We learned about the importance of water – the right kind of water. Filtered water. Thirty two ounces first thing in the morning to flush the system and then consistently throughout the day. It’s surprisingly easy.

A lot of the other things covered I was already doing. Excercising every day? Check. Stretching every day? Getting there. Supplements? Yes, but they have helped me make some healthy tweaks. Buy organic? Mostly. But it was interesting to learn how important it is to buy grass-fed meats. And, to find out how little we need dairy. Your mother’s food pyramid has changed.

Some things have proven to be a little more difficult. Under duress, I gave up my artificial sweetener. That hurt. And, I’m still wrestling with swapping wine for calm tea.

What’s especially nice is that the series is broken down into sessions focusing on a specific part of the day. We started with morning, and the late session covered mid-day. Having a week to practice everything between sessions is very useful and allows time to incorporate changes into your routine.

We walk away with three focus items each week.  And the Gem team is always available to answer questions.  You get the feeling that they genuinely want everyone to experience the vitality that comes with making a few changes. It’s not just about juicing, it’s a lifestyle and it’s hard not to walk away motivated. I’m looking forward to next week’s session on Pantry Cleanout and Kitchen Essentials.

The Gem Mantra is “Diamonds on your Inside”. I may not be shining bright like a diamond yet, but I do feel more energetic and focused. There is a reason this brand is so successful!

Friends, it may be time for a branding and marketing intervention: We love you. We value you. But sometimes, you need to recognize when it’s time to play in your own sandbox. 

We say it all the time on The Porch, “Branding and marketing are more an art than a science,” and our rockin’ Front Porch Marketing Team has spent more than a combined 80 years honing this art form to make a difference in our client’s businesses.

But we can only make a difference if our clients let us.

Our best clients are passionate, excited about their work, and open to new ideas that will enable them to leap ahead. We tell our prospective clients that we work best when we are partners, not vendors, and are treated like a member of their internal team. We believe in direct conversation and diving in the strategy debate while getting our hands dirty.

So … in the spirit of direct conversation (which is a foundation on which The Porch was built), here are a few recent examples of when you, Ms./Mr. business owner, leader or department head, should rock away from the branding and marketing table … rock far, far away friends:

1. You scribble your logo ideas down on paper and/or mock them up yourself on whatever design software du jour. Design software and a favorite font do not a creative director make. Our team of creative professionals work with our clients through a formalized branding process that crystallizes the brand’s vision and ensures that the brand puts itself out there in the best way possible.
2. You recommend a CMS platform for your website because that is the platform you use to manage your child’s sports team and its schedule. We develop and re-design websites constantly for our clients and their brands. We know what works and what doesn’t. Trust us to make these decisions that will accomplish your business needs and goals.
3. You are going to hire an intern or an admin to manage your social media. Both of those positions are vital to a company’s operations. But neither are qualified to take on something as important as social media. Why not go ahead and have your financial manager do it??? (See what I am trying to say here?)
4. You call a half day meeting with your business consultant, VP of sales and VP of marketing because your VP of sales doesn’t like a showroom sign created by the marketing department. Give the power to the people and let sales and marketing handle their feud that has lasted longer than the Hatfields battled the McCoys.

We believe collaboration is key. Bringing team members in from other departments for planning meetings and brainstorming sessions can add new perspective, create different ways of thinking and spark new ideas. Says Pharrell:

Remember, however, we branding and marketing peeps like to work “in a room without a roof.” So let’s work together! We are fully vested in getting your business the desired outcome. After all, if you aren’t successful, neither are we.

Rock on friends.

Chief Rocker Julie Porter can be followed on Twitter and Instagram and so can her company. Follow Front Porch Marketing on Twitter by clicking here, like us on Facebook by clicking here and follow our LInkedIn company page and Instagram fun.

I _______ summer!

Jumping into summer!

If you have children … there are two clearly defined summer camps. Working parents either love it or loathe it. ‘Tis the season for sleepaway camp, trips and being our kids social directors. You have sleepovers and playdates. Camps and sports. Staying connected to friends (as important as family time). Relaxed routines. The list goes on. We on the Porch have watched and listened to these two groups …

From the LOVE camp we saw lots of pictures, “100 activities to do this summer” lists, happy emoticons and summer forever, summer needs a speeding ticket and summer lovin’ taglines. I LOVE SUMMER.

From the maybe not so much love camp, the conversation was about sibling squabbles, last minute requests for supervision, open letters and sarcasm – Worst-end-of-summer; Enjoyable Summer Sarcasm.

The common thread between the two camps was that they had a plan. A SUMMER plan! Where the kids would be and when, who was watching them, vacations and a screen time system.

If you own a local business … again there have been two definite camps this summer. You have either thrived or you have suffered from the dreaded North Texas summer sales slump. If sales were swinging – congrats! If they were slow, perhaps there is something you can learn from Summer Mom. Have a plan. This can include anything from a summer sale to a special event, new product introduction or staffing change. Once you have it – rock it and chill!

Successful summer promotion from our favorite GEMs

The Porch rocked our brands this summer, but we were watching others. We saw some interesting approaches, which ran the gamut from closing the doors to aggressive promotions to strategic affiliations. There’s no escaping that the kids will be at home and families will travel during the summer months, so a dedicated summer marketing plan is always a rockin’ idea.

As for me, sign me up in the I LOVE summer column! I also LOVE fall. They are all my favorites.

Recently I took a girls trip to New York. I. Love. New. York. What’s not to love about the largest, busiest, most exciting metropolis in the country (IMHO)?

We are not “double decker bus girls.” Our group had visited New York several times and had already knocked the tourist spots off our list. And other than securing tickets to a show, we didn’t have even a scratch of plan. Our plan was no plan.

We set out each morning just walking and allowed the city to take us where it willed, fully taking in the sights and sounds of New York. And it was AMAZING.

We experienced the glamour of Fifth Avenue, the reverence of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the grandeur of the public library, happy hour with local residents, spotting Sara Jessica Parker shopping in Gourmet Garage, rockin’ and shopping in the Times Square H&M at 10:30 p.m., and observing the nuances of the cultural pockets of the boroughs … WE LOVED IT ALL.

Bubble Man in Central Park

This great city is the entry point for our ancestors and the entrepreneurial spirit of our country. Entrepreneurs are abundant. However, there was one entrepreneur in particular that peaked my interest.

We found The Bubble Man in Central Park (side note – permits are not required to sell/collect money in the park as long as you are mobile). Here’s the concept: a bucket, soap, rope and stick. I absolutely was fascinated by this set-up and lingered a bit to see the interaction.

Parent after parent dropped $10 and $20 in the hat for their kids to play with bubbles for a couple of minutes in Central Park. Say what?!? Low overhead, easy execution, flexible hours, built-in audience. BAM! So simple. But so ingenious.

Simple models can have big results as long as you put on your entrepreneur pants and work it! Thank you NYC, the city of dreamers, workers, bankers, marketers, artists, actors and entrepreneurs. I heart you!

You’re standing at the podium in front of the room with all 500 eyes on you. Waiting. On. Your. Every. Word. Is this your worst nightmare?

It can be a terrifying feeling for many – in fact, statistics indicate about 74% of people have a fear of public speaking. So if you can relate, you’re in good company. But knowing this doesn’t help when business requires a speech.

The solution? You’ve got to grab the presentation bull by the horns and practice. Honestly, the more you present, the better you’ll get, both in technique and in feeling relaxed when you’re at the head of the table.

Even if presenting doesn’t make you break out in a sweat, it never hurts to remind ourselves of a few best practices that will more fully engage audiences to achieve the desired outcome.

1. Research Your Audience. Know who you’re talking to – if you want to influence these people, you need to understand what they care about and what motivates them.

2. Start With a Good Story. Preferably one that the audience can relate to – and one that will make them laugh. Capture their attention right away.

3. Clarify the Goal of the Presentation. Before you even outline what you’re going to say, determine the end goal. Sharing a key process? Persuasion to a specific point of view? Providing status on a project? Then, as you’ve likely heard before, “Tell them what you’re going to tell them. Tell them. And tell them what you told them.” Keep it simple and on topic.

4. Make Eye Contact. Engagement happens when people feel like you’re talking to them versus at them. They’re more likely to actually hear you and buy into your content when they feel a more personal connection. Eye contact goes a long way in small, intimate meetings and large, seemingly impersonal audiences.

5. Project Your Voice. Everyone in the room, no matter how large, should be able to hear you – otherwise, what’s the point? Practice, if you can, in the room you’ll be in so you can gauge how loud you need to be – and don’t turn your back and talk to your slides instead of your audience.

6. Slow Down. Most people, when they’re nervous, don’t realize how quickly they talk. Concentrate on speaking slowly, pausing at key points, and giving meaning to your words.

7. Use Big Gestures. Not only is your voice and delivery important, so are your gestures. Command the space you’re inhabiting in front of the room. Move around, make a point with your hands – think like a TV weatherman! Your enthusiasm and passion for your subject should be evident in your actions.

8. Be Entertaining. A presentation is not the same as reading an informative article or textbook. It’s in person, and as such, the audience expects to have an emotional connection with the speaker. They want more than just the facts – they want to be engaged.

9. Anticipate Questions. Come prepared with answers to potential questions. You can’t possibly cover everything in one presentation, so what are people likely to ask? You’ve started a conversation, and an enthusiastic audience will want to know more.

10. Practice Like Crazy. Last but certainly not least, practice!!! When you know what you’re going to say backward and forward, you won’t have to worry about stumbling over words or losing your train of thought. And when you know your presentation, you won’t read slides, which keeps your audience focused on you.

Have more tips? All of us on the Porch would like to hear from you!

We love our business and are thrilled by the predictions for expected global growth in video content. Take this statistic, for instance:

• According to Cisco, video will account for 69% of all consumer Internet traffic by 2017 (and some sources take this figure as high as 74%).

Experts indicate that video is the future of content marketing, and that trend is already in full swing. Nielsen claims 64% of marketers expect video marketing to dominate their strategies in the near future.

Our role is to develop clear, concise and engaging video stories for our clients. We know that in this age of information overload people want a quick visual message so they can move on.

In fact, even using the word “video” in an email subject line boosts open rates by 19% and click-through rates by 65%, as reported by Syndacast.

The icing on the cake?

Axxon Research reports seven in 10 folks view brands in a more positive light after watching interesting video content from them.

Videos are a great way to create an emotional connection with your audience and leave a lasting impact long after the video is over. And we love client stories with happy endings!

John Doty, owner of InMotion Imagery, is an Emmy Award winning director and editor who has now worked in broadcast television and video production for more than 25 years. His work has been recognized by, among others, the Telly Awards and The Press Club of Dallas.

Not only is he expert at creating the perfect script-to-screen visual communications tools for clients, but he also directed the construction of InMotion’s sound stages from blueprint to finish. He has led teams of industry experts in producing television programs, live national broadcasts and corporate Webcasts. He’s a member of the Dallas Producers Association.

Like InMotion Imagery on Facebook and follow on Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter and Vimeo as well.

I love it when people ask me about our brand and how the name came to be. We enjoyed our branding process immensely; and we as a team love it when start-ups come to us with their business concept and ask us to help them name, brand and market it.

Just yesterday we were presenting logo options to a client who commented that they were impressed by our process for naming, preparing a creative brief and then developing logo concepts. The leadership team had no idea how much time, energy and thought went into the process and were curious whether we thought other start-ups went through a similar process.

Unfortunately, the answer is no.

But they should! Naming your brand is an important process and must be tackled in a diligent, thoughtful way. Choosing a strong name requires that it:

1. Stands out from the competition (unless it’s more important to fit in)
2. Communicates the business you’re in
3. Reinforces your brand promise
4. Communicates your company’s distinguishing characteristics
5. Has long term viability
6. Is easy to read
7. Is easy to pronounce
8. Is simple to spell
9. Is short and concise
10. Is memorable

Do the work on the front end to analyze your brand, your business, your competitors and your promise to ensure that your identity represents all that you want and need. You will save time, money and energy down the road if you start off right!

Cheers! Your company has a clearly defined brand – a simple, relevant customer promise that competitively gives you an edge. Check that off the list, right? Absolutely! But before you move on to other things, have you thought about your internal processes?

What must you do internally to execute the brand? To make it come alive? Become more than just a piece of paper? Ensure that your customers understand the brand as you intended?

Before you talk about your brand to the masses, you need to first look within to be sure you’re delivering on that brand throughout the organization. You don’t want to set an expectation that disappoints later! So consider this carefully – What are your customer touch points? Think about ALL of them, from where your store is located to how well the product performs or even how clean the front desk is when you walk in the door.

They’re all important.

Ergo, all companies need to identify and proactively manage their brand at all points of customer contact. Make a list of your contact points. Especially the less obvious ones like:

• the way your phone is answered
• how seamless your billing processes are for customers
• what your employees say to others about their job
• the attire of your salespeople
• the quality of your packaging
• the functionality and ease of navigating your website
• your response time for customer questions

Basically, everything you say and do as an organization reflects on your brand. Look carefully at your internal processes. If you’re experiencing problems at a touch point, they need to be addressed – you don’t want a seemingly minor issue to be the string that unravels all the work you put into building your brand. Assess each item on your list, and then prioritize those you need to change.

The goal is to eliminate negative experiences and keep or build on areas in which you are strong. Strong in communicating the brand promise.

Often, we ask a client, “If you do everything right, what’s the one thing you want your target to remember about you? If we conducted research now, would they give that answer?”

This is the fun part, folks! Branding and marketing rocks! Every company has struggles, but strategic marketing built on a strong brand is the impetus for success!

Go team!

Julie Porter is the chief rocker at Front Porch Marketing. You can follow her, julie_porter, or her company, itsfrontporch, on Instagram; and Twitter @juliedporter01 or @itsfrontporch; and like us on Facebook at FrontPorchMktg.

It started as a typical day, moving forward, stopping at the store to pick up milk. I back out of the parking spot, turn the wheels to drive forward, and realize I’m stuck. In reverse. The gear shift is broken. After several scrapped knee-jerk plans (sit and wait, don’t move, don’t turn off the car, drive the car home in reverse) the final decision is made.

Tow it. Fix it. Move forward. 

During this brief, chaotic situation, it occurred to me that I take two beautiful abilities for granted; the ability to shift gears and the ability to move forward. Thank you, vehicle, for the head smack. How awful it would be to only move backward!! Unfortunately, we find ourselves looking backward far too frequently.

We can’t redo yesterday, last week or 10 years ago, so why do we spin our wheels in reverse?

Companies do this all the time. All the time. How many times have you heard or said:

• We will not carry zuladings because we tried and they don’t sell …
• We will not invest in social media (insert any marketing tactic print, radio, TV, community outreach, etc). We tried and it doesn’t work …

Decisions made from a rear view will hinder future success. 

A couple of real business examples:

1. In 2009, Starbucks breakfast sandwiches were a hard fast no. Too much aroma competition. “Coffee must win.”
2. For most of this decade, Michaels Arts and Crafts’ only mass reach tool was the weekly insert in the Sunday paper. The company would not invest in anything else because, “Only print worked.”
3. In late 2009 Domino’s Pizza changed its pizza recipe! After almost 50 years. “Yes, please” was not the initial response.

In all these cases, they didn’t let their rear view to deter them from moving forward. Yes, history can repeat and lessons should be learned; but what didn’t work once might work today because it is a new day, with a different landscape, different customers, and different needs.

Business strategy should always be forward-thinking and used to drive success.

Everyone has the ability to shift gears and move forward personally and professionally. If something is broke, fix it! By the way, I rode my bike to pick up my repaired vehicle. And you know what’s beautiful about a bike? It only goes forward.