Marketing and Sales Strategy in Business Plan

You’ve done your research and know who your ideal customer is.

Now, the focus should be to sell your product to them. This part of your business plan explains the steps you'll take to meet your goals and grow your business.

It answers important questions like:

• How will you present your product in the market?
• What marketing channels and messages will attract your audience?
• What sales strategies will help turn interest into purchases?

However, the strategies that help answer these questions may vary as every business is unique. However, some basic plans work well for most. What are those? You'll get to know in this article.

What should you include in a marketing and sales strategy?

Your business moves in the right direction when it has a strong sales and marketing plan because it helps you set clear goals, determine your target market, and outline the best ways to reach them.

It's also important to track customer feedback and sales trends. This keeps you adaptable to make changes whenever it's needed.

Here’s what should be part of the plan…

In a marketing strategy

A marketing strategy is a plan that outlines how a business will promote its products or services to reach and attract its target audience.

Here’s what to include in it:

Market research and target audience identification

A marketing plan helps define who your product or brand is for. It uses market research to figure out the best ways to reach your audience, whether through social media, online ads, or local TV.

Knowing your target audience and why they’d choose your product is essential as it helps you focus your efforts and track results. Different groups have different preferences, so understanding their needs makes your marketing more effective.

Marketing objectives

Set your marketing goals either alongside your four Ps or right after.

The marketing mix, known as the four Ps, is your starting point to know what, where, and how you’ll be marketing.

Here’s a quick look at each P:

• Product: What are you offering?
• Price: How much will it cost?
• Place: Where will it be available?
• Promotion: How will you spread the word?

You can build a detailed plan for each channel after you’ve defined these. This big-picture view guides your marketing efforts in the right direction.

Defining goals early on is helpful since they shape other parts of the plan, like budget and content.

Be specific with each objective. Aim to create SMART goals for each channel or tactic, and remember—you can always adjust these goals as priorities shift.

Marketing budget

Your marketing plan should include a clear summary of your budget and spending priorities. This helps streamline decision-making by tying projects to financial boundaries.

Here's how you can do it:

Step 1: Define your total budget

Start with a set total budget for your marketing efforts.

Step 2: Break down costs

Divide your budget into expenses for specific projects. Organize these projects into two categories:

• Needs: Essential tasks critical to the success of your marketing strategy.
• Wants: Optional tasks that are beneficial but not directly tied to core objectives.

Step 3: Allocate funds

First, calculate the cost of your needs. Once these are covered, assign the remaining funds to the most important items from your wants list. This ensures you prioritize resources while staying within budget.

Competitor analysis

Understanding your competition is essential for building a strong marketing strategy. Without a competitive analysis, you risk putting out messages that miss the mark.

Even if you think you know your competitors, it’s worth researching deeply. You might find unexpected players competing for your audience’s attention, which can impact how you stand out.

Segmentation, targeting, and positioning (STP)

STP is about sending the right message to the right people. Instead of guessing, you follow a clear plan to connect with your ideal customer.

Here are the steps to achieve this:

• Understand your audience: Talk to customers, do research, and create buyer profiles.
• Target a specific group: Focus on a smaller, more relevant audience.
• Stand out: Use what makes you better than competitors to guide your marketing.

Content creation

Once you’ve set your budget, analyzed competitors, and gathered your STP insights, it’s time to focus on creating marketing content. But it’s important to approach this strategically.

First, avoid publishing random content that doesn’t solve customer needs. Second, focus on trends to keep your brand visible in a competitive market.

Third, choose the right marketing channel.

There are two types of marketing you can go for:

• Free channels: Social media posts, online listings like LinkedIn, or joining digital groups to engage with your audience. Networking and referrals also count as free options.
• Paid channels: Boosted social posts, search engine ads, billboards, direct mail, or TV ads.

Pick channels that fit your business and target audience.

Key performance indicators (KPIs)

Lastly, your marketing strategy should include metrics and KPIs. This will be used to measure how well your marketing campaigns are working.

However, the KPIs you track will depend on your business and how you're bringing customers. But here are some basic ones:

• Customer acquisition cost (CAC)
• Organic traffic
• Conversion rate
• Marketing qualified leads (MQLs)

In a sales strategy

A sales strategy is a plan that guides how your sales team sells your products to new customers.

It helps sales reps to:

• Stay on track with clear goals for the sales process
• Position the product
• Analyze the competition

Here's what to include in it:

Clear sales goals

Your sales goals give your strategy direction and act as targets for your team. However, setting a goal that's too high can lead to burnout. And one that's too low can slow down progress.

Your aim should be to set realistic goals.

Here’s how you can set goals that work for your team:

Assess your company resources

Think about what your sales team has to work with. Do you have enough salespeople? Are your tools, like a CRM, helping move leads through the pipeline? Make sure your team has what it needs to move forward.

Review past customer data

Look at your data to set practical goals. For example, if many customers churned last year, focus on improving retention. Or, if you’ve got a bigger sales team now, aim for more customer acquisition. Use this info to set goals that are useful and doable.

Set SMART goals

SMART stands for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound. These goals help your team set clear, focused targets.

For example, you can set a SMART goal like "increase monthly sales by 10% over the next three months". After you have set this goal, your team may analyze it to see if it's achievable or not.

After setting your sales goals, work backward. Create short-term deadlines for the steps your team needs to hit those goals.

Market fit

Understanding how your brand fits in the market is crucial for sales. If you can’t explain your brand’s unique value, selling becomes much harder. So to know that, conduct a SWOT analysis.

A SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) helps you know about your market position. It shows which opportunities you can use and which challenges might hold your sales team back.

Here are a few questions to consider:

• What problem does our product/service solve?
• What’s our value proposition?
• What obstacles could stop us from reaching our goals?

Buyer personas

Your customer profile is a made-up character that represents your ideal customer and explains why they would want your product or service.

A customer profile should include:

• A fictional name and title, like “Dana White", CPA”
• Industry, age, salary, and education
• Their goals and challenges
• How your product or service meets their needs

To create customer profiles, start by grouping your customers based on shared traits—like industry, location, or demographics. Then, create a profile for each group.

Work closely with your marketing team on this. They’re also bringing in leads and need to agree on what qualifies as a good prospect. Sales and marketing teams should regularly refer to these profiles to make sure they’re targeting the right people.

Sales team overview

For each member, include their name, job title, and their time with the company. If relevant, add their salary. Think about their strengths and how they can help you meet your goals.

Next, note any gaps in your team. Will you need to hire for these roles?

Sales funnel

A sales funnel shows the journey customers take from becoming aware of your brand to making a purchase and beyond. Here's how you can create it:

• Define the stages of the funnel and map out the customer journey.
• Use paid channels like PPC ads to attract leads.
• Train your sales team on how to negotiate and close deals effectively.
• Make sure the transition for new customers is smooth and stay engaged after the sale by collecting feedback to improve their experience.

Sales forecasting

A sales forecast predicts future sales over a specific period. The best forecasts are detailed reports that estimate what a salesperson, team, or company will likely sell weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annually.

Most forecasts use past sales data and consider changes in demand. While you can create them manually, many companies use sales forecasting software to automate the process.

4 Tips for creating a marketing and sales strategy

Creating a marketing and sales strategy takes careful planning, making sure it matches your business goals, and understanding your target customers.

Here are some simple tips to help you create a successful strategy:

1. Understand your marketplace and prospects as they truly are

The best strategies reflect the real market, not how we imagine it. The same goes for potential clients—what we think they want may be different from reality. Without solid data, it’s easy to guess wrong.

Start your strategy by understanding your target clients and the market.

Don’t focus on your services or assumptions about what clients need. Conduct market analysis to know what they really want and adjust accordingly. Studies show that companies who research their clients regularly grow faster and are more profitable.

This research will give you a clear view of client needs, their buying process, the competition, how your brand is seen, and the real benefits you offer. This knowledge lowers risk and improves your strategy.

2. Spot opportunities

Take a deep look at how customers move from prospects to making a purchase. Understanding this journey helps you find better ways to convert more customers in the future.

Here are some ways to spot opportunities for improvement:

Reach out to your current customers

Talk to your customers about their experience with your brand. What did they like or dislike? Are your sales reps focused on building relationships or just pushing sales? Do customers feel forgotten after they buy? You can gather this info through casual chats or surveys.

Find out what drives or blocks purchases

Ask customers about any barriers that stop them from buying. Is price an issue? Or is your product hard to understand? You might need to offer more affordable options or train your reps to explain things better.

Check out your competitors’ customer journeys

See how your competitors are capturing customer attention. What platforms do they use?

See their websites, social media, and reviews.

By knowing what works (and what doesn't) for your competitors, you can improve your own customer journey and attract more prospects.

3. Assess your firm: goals and value offering

Once you understand your market position, assess your company’s internal situation. Ask yourself:

• What does your company want to achieve?
• What valuable product or service do you offer that your target client needs?
• Do you want to add new products, or services, or expand into new markets?
• Are you aiming for growth? If so, what kind and how much?

Answering these questions helps define your sales and marketing strategy. It clarifies what your strategy needs to achieve and how to measure its success.

4. Choose a strategy that fits your strengths

Plan how to implement your strategy after researching your target client, marketplace, and resources.

• Are you a sole proprietor? If so, you'll likely use the "seller-doer" model, where you sell your expertise and build trust with clients personally.
• Does your firm have a sales team? If so, the "seller-expert" model might be a better fit. In this case, your sales team highlights the expertise of your staff to position them as thought leaders.
• How will you position your firm in the market?
• What key messages will you focus on?

Will you use inbound, outbound, or both marketing strategies?

This helps clarify your approach and ensures you're ready to take action.

Marketing and sales strategy example in a business plan

This example highlights the marketing and sales strategy for Denver Delights Bakery, a local shop known for its fresh, handcrafted baked goods. The bakery focuses on quality, variety, and customer satisfaction to build trust with its community. Here's a breakdown of the strategy:

Conclusion

Sales and marketing strategies are often closely guarded by businesses.

After all, if a strategy works well for one company, it could potentially benefit their competition too. Because of this, it's tough to pinpoint exactly what will work best for your unique situation.

However, if you're looking for help in creating your own strategy, Bizplanr is here to assist. With our AI-powered tool, you can easily craft detailed sales and marketing plans.

Just enter your ideas, and the AI will take care of the structure and drafting, saving you time. Whether you're validating a new idea or launching a startup, BizPlanr offers industry-specific guidance to make the sales and marketing planning process smoother and more efficient.