- Who are your customers and what do they want?
- Where are your customers?
- How can they be targeted effectively?
- What do they know about the products already?
- How is your market changing?
Only when you have begun to answer these questions
will you be able to embark on finding new business opportunities and get the edge
on your competitors. You can answer these questions by considering the following:
Research
There is plenty of information out there – including
government statistics and market reports. Or you might want to commission your own
research that can give you answers to your specific business needs.
Segment your market
It’s vital that the plan identifies market segments
and considers ways to ensure their individual needs are met. It’s about finding
out what is important to particular groups of your customers, be that price, quality,
convenience, etc. Any marketing material should then emphasize your strengths in
the areas that are most important to your target segment.
Promoting your home-based business
From advertising and direct mail to developing your
own website, it's important you establish which tools you need to help you to execute
your marketing campaign. The internet is a popular forum for marketing your business
and selling your products. Many companies use websites to allow customers to place
orders and/or to promote their products or services. Emailing can allow you to reach
large numbers of customers quickly and cheaply.
Build client loyalty by developing your own database of customers. Ask customers
to join your mailing list. Send out newsletters, either electronically or through
the mail, to keep customers up-to-date with your business. Give them new ideas to
build your profit. For more information on rules and regulations regarding electronically
communicating to customers,visit
www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/spam/business.htm
Evaluate and assess
For a plan to succeed you must subject it to a thorough
and constant process of evaluation and assessment. Identify which areas are working
and which have failed to produce results and make changes accordingly. By establishing
what you are good at as a business, you can identify positive messages which can
be relayed to existing or potential customers.
