Marketing PLans Should Be AS Fluid as a John Lennon Ballad

John Lennon once mused that “life is what happens when you’re busy making plans.”

There’s wisdom in that statement beyond our responsibilities as spouses and parents. Business professionals can take a lesson from that statement because life is what happens when we’re busy implementing our marketing plans, too.
Lennon seems to suggest that life not only “happens”; it requires flexibility and the ability to adapt. In 20 years as a marketing communications specialist, I’ve often been tempted to quote John Lennon’s words to clients who, for one reason or another, are reluctant to modify the strategies outlined in their marketing plan.

My experiences – with small and large businesses, non-profits and associations – have taught me that the best marketing plans ought to be as fluid as a John Lennon ballad and subject to change when conditions justify it. The success of any business depends in part not only on our ability to adapt, but also the courage to alter the strategies we once were convinced would reap quick dividends.

The very best marketing plans outline not only strategies and methods but also a point person who is responsible for implementing each of these methods. A marketing plan should become a “living” document, and the methods should, to some extent, become part of the business owner’s day-to-day routine – not part of an esoteric exercise that ends up stuffed in a file drawer. Too many marketing plans gather dust, not steam.

Developing a marketing plan can be time consuming and expensive, which I suspect is one reason so many business owners are reluctant to change it.  They’ve invested heavily in that plan, with their time and their money, so it’s understandable that they feel inclined to “stay the course.”

The problem with that thinking is that most marketing plans are designed for an entire year, and unless your marketing professional also possesses mystic powers, you can't possibly expect the plan to address conditions or circumstances that almost certainly will change in that time period.  Look at the last few years and what has happened to our economic climate and our way of life.  Nothing stays the same for long.

So how do you know if and when it’s time to deviate from your marketing plan? Let’s assume that you’ve got a good system in place to track your marketing strategies and that your point person is accountable for and enthusiastic about your marketing plan. Let’s also assume that since you treat your marketing plan as a living and breathing document, you’re taking its “pulse” periodically.   If this isn’t the case, there are several factors that you may want to look at and adjust your marketing plan accordingly.

It may be time to tweak your Marketing Plan when:

  1. You discover that your target market is changing. For obvious reasons - you can’t use the same messages and concepts for every target audience.
  2. You see that a marketing method is failing to generate some results after about two months.
  3. You find that your clients are gathering information in new ways – and more of them are every day. People are going directly to the Internet – skipping over such traditional resources as print collateral, newspapers, magazines and journals. Your company Web site provides the perfect opportunity to deliver impressive content 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you’re not using it as a marketing tool with online commercials and streaming video, you’re under-using a powerful and informative marketing tool.
  4. You see that interactive CDs, video brochures and video e-mails can energize your marketing messages – enabling prospective clients to remember you long after they’ve forgotten your competitor. The beauty of multimedia is that it allows you to change content quickly and easily – without having to throw away expensive print pieces. Plus, as with all technologies, multimedia marketing is becoming increasingly affordable, which is why more companies are relying on it.
  5. You can freely accept the reality that business or economic conditions may require you to shelve even the most creative, most ingenious marketing tactics for a better, more strategic time.

So the take away for both marketing professionals and business owners is to always pay attention to what is going on around you, and your business.  Complacency breeds defeat.  A simple change of direction, justly noted in an ever evolving marketing plan, can be the difference between moving forward, stagnating or going out of business over time.  And unlike another one of John Lennon and the Beatles most popular songs, the worst thing you can do with your marketing plan is to just “Let it Be!”