Practical Wisdom from the Entrepreneurs Creative Edge by William Reed

A plan is an estimation of success. Do you have one? How will you go about it?

Although things seldom work exactly according to plan, many strategists agree that failing to plan is planning to fail. As Dwight David Eisenhower said, “plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”

As often as we are called upon to plan, isn’t it odd that we are seldom taught how? The joke runs that if Plan A doesn’t work, you can always switch to Plan B: “Run like hell!”

A good plan should be well thought out, easy to execute, and connected to a calendar. This is what makes the three P's in planning: perspective, perseverance, and a program.

PERSPECTIVE (well thought out)

It is very difficult to get perspective staring at a blank sheet of paper. Jay Conrad Levinson, the pioneer of Guerrilla Marketing, recommends starting with 7 basic questions to create a one page marketing plan that can organize your thoughts and get you started.

1. What is the purpose of your marketing?
2. What benefits give you a competitive advantage?
3. What are your target markets?
4. Which marketing weapons will you use?
5. What is your niche or specialty?
6. What identity do you stand for?
7. What is your marketing budget? 

PERSEVERANCE (easy to execute)

After you plan your work, you must work your plan. Perseverance is the power of action that gives you traction. To overcome inertia you must put your plan in motion.

It is easy to be enthusiastic at the beginning of a project. But many projects fall short due to lack of resolve to see it through. In Japan people joke about the “3-day priest” (mikka bzu), the person whose commitment to a long term task lasts only 3 days.

The truth is that, without consistent and persistent marketing and sales, you simply cannot grow your business. Don’t wait for inspiration or motivation.

As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Do the thing, and you will have the power.”

PROGRAM (connected to a calendar)

A Japanese proverb says that, if you chase two rabbits they will both get away. But is chasing really the most effective way to catch rabbits in the first place?

In marketing you will never be successful if you try just one or two techniques. To be effective, you actually need to orchestrate dozens of techniques.

This is very difficult unless you have a program for selecting and implementing the right combination of techniques for your business. In Guerrilla Marketing there are literally hundreds of marketing weapons to choose from. To get you started, you can download a list of 100 marketing weapons at http://budurl.com/jdc8.

The key to making the list work is to have a program to select, budget, and connect these ideas to a calendar. There is such a program, and it’s called the Fast Marketing Plan http://budurl.com/a3xv, an affordable online system for selecting from over 500 marketing weapons. With descriptions, tips, and templates for each, this program ensures that you will never get stuck staring at a blank sheet.

Once you have customized your plan, you can print it out or export it to your calendar, with the option to have a reminder for each plan e-mailed to you every Monday morning. When the plan is on your calendar and in your face, you are more likely to do something about it. When you start to realize that your time is money, is when you really bring your marketing plan into focus.

With so many options, how do you avoid getting overwhelmed? You probably don’t need to make yourself any busier than you already are. The way to make the program work for you, and not against you, is to work smarter, not harder.

• ・Start with the things that you are good at and that you enjoy doing
• ・Whatever remains that still belongs on your list can be outsourced or delegated
• ・Budget your time and money invested in marketing and track the results People tend to set their short term goals too high, and their long term goals too low, forgetting that the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

If you start with a 7-step one-page plan, commit to making it happen, and a program to keep you on track, you will have a competitive advantage that most businesses only dream of, a marketing plan that actually works.

William Reed

WEBSITE: http://www.williamreed.jp

JAPANESE SITE: http://www.reedcom.jp

BLOG: http://www.EntrepreneursCreativeEdge.com