One of the best things about marketing is that there’s more than one way to make it work for you. But while your approach to marketing can be unconventional, creative or quirky, it’s still sensible to develop a marketing plan.

Like it says on the tin, a marketing plan is your strategy for promoting your business or your products. No matter what stage you’re at, whether you’re brainstorming ideas or delving the depths of paid advertising, a marketing plan can help give you a sense of perspective and direction.

Once you put that marketing plan into a presentation, it’ll be easier to share and explain your ideas – something you might need to do to secure funding or get the ball rolling. Learn how to get started with this handy guide and find out how Adobe Express can help you build out your own business marketing plan.

What is a marketing plan?

A marketing plan is an outline that shows how you intend to advertise and sell your product or service. No two marketing plans will be the same. It can provide as little or as much detail as you’d like, and it can be designed for one person or a whole team of marketers.

Whatever you choose to include, your plan should be useful and actionable. This means you’ll have to address your strategy, your methods of marketing and how long you plan to use them. You’ll also want to include facts and figures, because even if you don’t have to justify your decisions to anyone, it’s always good to have data behind your strategy.

What are the benefits of a marketing plan?

Maybe creating a marketing plan feels too much like hard work, or you know you need to do it but you’ve been putting it off. You should know there are real benefits to having a strategy in place and the sooner you implement a plan the sooner you could see the gains. After all, a marketing plan can help you:

• Set clear and measurable marketing goals - It’s easy to say you want to increase conversions and profits, but setting achievable goals can tell you if you’re performing well.
• Create consistency across the business – It’s unlikely that a marketing plan is your only plan. You probably have a business plan and a budgeting plan that you use to make business decisions. Often these plans work together, to create a richer experience for everyone involved.
• Ensure budgets and spending remain on track – Marketing, while good at making you money in the long run, will typically require an initial investment. If you don’t have a marketing plan, it can be harder to track your budget and spend wisely.
• Give a clear sense of direction to marketing teams – If you have a marketing team around you, it’s likely they’ll struggle without a plan in place. When creating your plan, it should be clear to anyone who picks it up what your objectives are, and what needs to happen.
• Can help to get buy-in from investors and employees – Lastly, a good marketing plan can show that you know what you’re talking about. Whether you’re reaching out to investors, onboarding new employees, or working with an agency, a clear plan demonstrates you’re serious about your business and reaching the right customers.

What are the different types of marketing plan?

Just like you need your product or service to perform a unique role in the market, you might need a marketing plan that’s dedicated to one role. It can be tempting to create one generic or overall marketing plan, but with specific plans based on your needs it can be easier to juggle all your responsibilities.

Here are some of the most common types.

• A plan for a specific product launch – Launching a new product can be stressful, and if you’re working to a tight deadline, it can be hard to keep all the plates spinning at once. With a plan dedicated to your product launch, it’s easier to stay on top of tasks while knowing what comes next.
• Content marketing plan – Producing large amounts of content can be tricky. Much like any operation, being able to see the work that’s been completed, the work that’s left, and any future plans is key. You can use your content marketing plan to cover specific details, such as content headlines or SEO keywords.
• Social media marketing plan – Whether you post on social media once a month or three times a day, you need to have an overview of what you’re sharing. There’s always room for responsive marketing, especially on social media, but when things are quiet and you’re racking your brain, having a clear plan or schedule to fall back on is never a bad thing.
• Marketing plan for a specific event – Planning and running an event involves lots of moving parts. A key part of this is marketing. If your event is a one-off, you’ll need a whole new plan that’s specific to the event to ensure everything goes off without a hitch.
• Crisis management plan – When a crisis strikes it’s easy to panic, but having a plan can prevent things from spiralling. You can create a generic guide, but it can also help to identify likely crises and build specific responses.

6 editable marketing plan examples for your business.

How to create a marketing plan presentation.

One of the best ways to share your marketing plan is on a presentation. As a tool it allows you to combine text and images on a slide to demonstrate your marketing plan clearly. However, creating a marketing plan presentation isn’t always straightforward. Below we put together an easy-to-follow process to ensure you include all the necessary details.

1. Hook the audience – Kick off the presentation with something that will capture your audience’s attention. This could be a surprising stat, a startling gap in the market or a thought provoking question. Grab them at the start and they’ll pay attention till the end.
2. Your marketing goals and objectives – This is what you want to achieve as a result from your marketing. What are you aiming for? This could be an increase in revenue, or a jump up in your number of followers.
3. Your target audience – Here you’ll introduce the people you’re trying to reach. Knowing who you’re talking to when creating marketing material can not only give you direction but can also make your outputs more effective.
4. Competitors/market analysis – What does the current market look like? Are there lots of people out there doing what you do, or are you the only one? Is there much appetite for your product/service or are you breaking new ground?
5. The main marketing strategies you’ll use – You know who you’re selling to, but how are you going to do it? What marketing channels will serve you best and perhaps, more importantly, what are you going to market? Consider your USPs, and how to use them to your advantage.
6. Budgets you’ll need to stick to – While it can be tempting to go all out with your marketing, if you want to last more than a month you’ll need to stick to your budget. Break down key costs and explore how the budget will be divided between marketing channels.
7. Timelines and KPIs – You’ve already discussed your objectives, but how long do you think it’ll take to get there? Setting out a timeline is a great yardstick to measure yourself against, but it can also show others where you expect to be in six months, or a year’s time.

5 tips for your next marketing plan presentation.

Creating a marketing plan presentation might seem daunting at first but it doesn’t have to be. There are plenty of ways to engage the audience and share key information. Read our tips on creating an effective presentation for your marketing plan.

1. Engage your audience.

Did you know that 91% of successful presentations begin with an impressive statistic? Ok, that’s not true, but it’s a great example of how data can be used to hook audiences in. Engaging your audience is a smart way to ensure they pay attention to what you have to say.

2. Be clear on what your presentation will show.

Early on you should indicate what your audience will learn. This could be audience insights, business solutions or data such as your ROI. Not only will the heads-up keep your audience engaged, but it’ll ensure that your presentation does what it’s supposed to.

3. Back things up with data.

As you’re telling your story, use data to back up your points. Though not everything needs to be quantified, some points will feel hollow without the evidence to support it. A credible presentation will deftly weave in data, anecdotes and insights.

4. Don’t be afraid of a little humour.

While this isn’t the place to practice your stand-up routine, there might be moments that can be lightened or improved with a little humour. Whether it’s a GIF, a meme, or a funny anecdote, humour can be used to break the monotony of a presentation. Just ensure that your jokes are relevant and aren’t too distracting.

5. Finish with a clear call to action.

By the end of your presentation, you’ll want your audience to know what they need to do next. This could be implementing what you’ve shared, it could be setting up a future meeting, or it could be simply engaging in a Q&A.

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Good to know.

What is the difference between a marketing plan and a business plan?

A marketing plan focuses on how you’ll sell your product or service. Typically, a marketing plan will involve the channels you’ll use, your marketing budget and your goals. A business plan on the other hand involves the whole of the business. This will encompass things like staff, production, services and wider goals. A business plan may include a marketing plan, but a marketing plan will only usually refer to a business plan and its goals.

How should you lay out a marketing presentation?

It may sound simple but start with an introduction. Include a hook, a bit about yourself and the contents of the presentation. Then move into the main body and cover the essential parts. Finally, end with a conclusion slide that summarises the key takeaways and introduces a call-to-action.

What are the dos and don’ts of a marketing plan presentation?

Here five dos and don’ts to keep in mind for your next marketing plan presentation:

• Be conscious of time
• Don’t overfill the slides – five bullet points per slide is enough
• Look and engage with your audience
• Know what’s on your slides before you present
• Try not to read straight from the notes.

Is Adobe Express free?

Yes, our free plan offers many core features including thousands of templates, photo editing and effects, animation, and 2GB of storage. See our  pricing page for details and to compare plans.