7 tips on starting 2010 with a strong PR and marketing plan

Done well with consistency and synergy, PR and marketing are really cost effective ways of bringing in new customers, so start 2010 with a brilliant plan to keep that flow of clients through the door.

1. Set aside some time.  You can’t do any planning effectively if you have given yourself half an hour between a sales appointment and a teleconference with a feisty supplier.  Clear the diary, hold your calls and promise not to check your email for at least two hours because you need to give your brain some breathing space.

2. Spot your core customer.  Analyse your customer base to find out who is spending the most with you, how often they are coming back and what they are buying.  You should be able to identify a core customer and they are the ones you should be targeting for the best chance of success

3.  Know where your profit is coming from.  It might be that most of your profit comes from one or two big deals or it might come from lots of the smaller transactions.  If you have limited resources for PR and marketing in terms of time and money you should spend it on the part of the business which will bring you the maximum return

4. Focus on what you want to say.  Really hone in on the one or two most important things about your business which could be your key services or the things you do better or differently.  Don’t try and tell everyone everything or no one will understand what you are trying to say

5. Understand your competitors.  Look at what they say about themselves, how they position their business, where they are investing their marketing money.  You can then be clear about your niche and how you differ from everyone else in the market

6. Be realistic. By now you will have narrowed down what you want to say, who you want to say it to and why you are telling them.  This will make drawing up the activity plan much simpler but choose activities which are achievable within the time and budget you have available.  Your PR and marketing plan should be an integral part of your business not a nuisance so give yourself a plan you can do.

7. Let ‘little and often’ be your mantra.  Your marketing messages will be better understood if you are consistent with what you say and you say it regularly.  Committing to a small amount of time each week on what appear to be low key activities will bring you much more success than one big event with a brass band and dancing girls followed by nothing for the rest of the year.