Creating Successful Direct Marketing Business Plans

By Alex Har

There are no shortage of checklists for writing Marketing Business Plans...most of them would include items like:
- Describing the customer
- Analyzing the market size
- Analyzing the competition
- Defining the Products features and benefits
- Identifying the Products unique advantages
- Outlining the Product and Organizations Strengths and Weaknesses
- Defining the window of opportunity, in terms of product uniqueness, other strengths the sustainability of such advantages over time.
- Designing the operations, work process and measures of performance
- Projecting the numbers and the financial statements
- Documenting the plan as a guide for implementation and management

An essential difference between Direct Marketing and General Marketing Business Plans is that it is essential in Direct Marketing Plans to dissect the total into a number of specified campaigns...each of which defining its own means of reaching out to and winning the targeted customers, and the likelihood of success. If the targeted sales in the Business plan is $10 million and from 50,000 customers, it must be supported by the necessary number of campaigns each specifying its sales and customer acquisition potential.

Campaigns allow Direct Marketers to be accountable for their marketing spend. Philip Kotler refers to them as micro-markets which provide a more controlled and predictable environment than the universe. Direct Marketers generally shape their campaigns from past experiences, scientifically testing new ideas as they go along. Projections are always based on past campaigns or where such is not available comparable campaigns. Changes and variations are tested on sample audiences before major investment are committed to rolling out to the whole target market.

An effective Direct Marketing Business Plan is one that is able to dissect the total plan into campaigns, defining the risks of each of the campaigns and the tests that will be done where such risks are beyond the prescribed level of tolerance.
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Alex Har is the managing director of Systems Strategist Pte Ltd. He is a pioneer of Insurance Direct Marketing in Asia and have been involved in such activities since 1985. Alex has his own website at http://www.one1.com.sg