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How to create a marketing plan for your small business - build a brand, target customers and set prices that will maximise sales.

The internet has transformed business marketing. No matter what you do, the internet is likely to be at the heart of your marketing strategy.

Social media is firmly established as a marketing tool. Having a presence opens up new lines of communication with existing and potential customers.

Good advertising puts the right marketing message in front of the right people at the right time, raising awareness of your business.

Customer care is at the heart of all successful companies. It can help you develop customer loyalty and improve relationships with your customers.

Sales bring in the money that enables your business to survive and grow. Your sales strategy will be driven by your sales objectives.

Market research exists to guide your business decisions by giving you insight into your market, competitors, products, marketing and your customers.

Exhibitions and events are valuable for businesses because they allow face-to-face communication and offer opportunities for networking.

How to use data analytics to drive better business insights

Data analytics can be incredibly beneficial for businesses of all sizes as it enables you to tailor content and outline customer journeys. It can also allow you to gain insights into customer behaviour, the performance of your sites/products and the growth of the market you are in.

Some businesses will have an in-house team with the skills needed for data analytics. However, if you are running a small to medium business and find you do not have the right team for this type of task, then a quick google search can ensure you find the best digital marketing agency to help you with this!

Before we go into data analytics best practices, let's talk about what you need to understand about the data. When a company collects data, they need to put together a long-term goal and formulate a plan. It is essential to pinpoint your goal(s) upfront. This can be done through a target and KPI toolkit if necessary. Here are some factors you should consider:

  • What do you plan to get from this data? You might want to know more about the customers buying from your site.
  • How are you currently using the data you are collecting. How do you want to adapt and change this strategy?
  • Do you have any business objectives that align with your data strategy?
  • What data do you require access to for this strategy?

Once you have discussed and finalised the reasoning for collecting the data analytics, you can begin to think about how this can drive better insights for your business.

There are various channels you can use to collect your data, including social media platforms, search engines (Google Analytics), website tracking and sign-ups. You need to ensure the data you analysing is accurate and that you avoid the use of flawed data that contains errors. If you check the data you plan to analyse beforehand, this can help guarantee that you are using accurate information that contains valuable insights.

What are business insights, and how can they help you?

Essentially your business insights are the same as other insights you come across whilst working. They are a way to gain a better understanding through research and analysis. To make knowledge-backed decisions, you will need insight. By making the most out of data analytics, businesses can measure performance, create new strategies and identify trends to jump on, it is an essential process if you want to stay ahead of your competitors.

There are many benefits to using data analytics for your business. Aside from understanding what is working well, data analytics can also help you:

  • maximise profits
  • find the right tools for your business
  • target specific customer segments
  • improve customer service
  • discover how your customers use your website

Knowing this can enable you to adapt your services and products in line with what the customers want and need. This in turn allows you to provide a better experience for everyone - you will see an increase in numbers and sales, and your consumers will find a business they want to buy from!

Data analysis best practices

Analysing your data will be a key to success for your business. It will allow you to gain a better understanding of your insights and make decisions based on these. Your business’ priority should be focusing on collecting high-quality data, ensuring your data is timely, accurate and can be trusted. Another thing you will need to be clear about is the questions you want to answer with the data you are collecting. To do this most efficiently, create objectives and goals. Finally, it’s important to use suitable techniques and tools to find and collect relevant data from the large volume available!

So, now you understand how important it is to collect data and how this can help you maximise business results. To conclude, once you have gathered your insights, you will have a better understanding of your internal systems and operations. You can develop a new strategy or adapt and improve existing ones if necessary. Another benefit of data analytics is that you can proactively anticipate problems before they happen, so you can address these and prevent them.

Copyright 2023. Featured post made possible by Tom Welbourne of The Good Marketer, a marketing agency in London which drives more traffic, generates conversions and increases sales for small to medium-sized businesses.

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