These are the five pieces within the Planning Section of the Model.

1. Vision

What is your dream? What do you want your organization to become?

As long as you're designing your business, you might as well be clear about how you'd like it to perform.

The most important question to answer is; what kind of Life Style do you want your business to afford you?

• On a personal level the issues are income and time spent getting it.
• On a business level the issues are largely about how you will spend what percentages of your time.
1. If you most enjoy working directly with clients, then having a lot of agents working for you isn't the best idea. On the other hand, if you prefer managing people, then lots of agents and administrative help are a good idea.
2. Think about these issues carefully, before your business takes on a life of its own. A little more thought up front will help ensure it turns out just the way you like it.

2. Targeting

Target marketing works better because:

• It gets you away from the "one-size-fits-all" approach that really doesn't impress anyone.
• It causes you to delve deeper into the specific wants, needs and solutions for the people in the niche. Consequently you truly become more valuable to the people in that niche.
• It causes you to seek out marketing channels that will connect you more directly and cost effectively to prospects in that niche.
• It causes you to create marketing communications that speak more directly to the interests of prospects in that niche.
• It helps distinguish you as an expert in that niche; which makes you much more attractive to prospects in that niche.
1. For example, think about some of the possible niches within the buyer segment:
• First timers
• Single women
• Single men
• Young couples
• Middle aged couples
• Old couples
• Young families
• Families with teens
• Soon to be empty nesters
• Soon to retire
• Job relocators
• Investors
1. Even though they are all potential buyers, the wants, needs and solutions for each of these niches are really quite different.
2. The channels for reaching the prospects within each of these niches are quite different.
3. The expertise you need to truly be of great value to the prospects in each of these niches is quite different.
4. Figure out which niches you are attracted to, know the most about, and can help the most. That's where you're going to find your greatest success.

3. Strategy

 

1. What do you need to do to achieve your vision?
2. With your Vision and Target Niche(s) in mind you'll be in a better position to develop your best strategy for achieving your goals.
3. This is the piece where you'll figure out:
• The best channel(s) for reaching your target prospects:
• Web
• Email
• Social networking
• Direct mail
• Advertising
• Your best offer(s) for attracting responses from your target prospects:
• Web site content
• Webinar content
• Publication content
• Meeting content
• Email content
• Consultation content
• Referral content
• Your best systems for managing:
• Marketing Campaigns
• Leads
• Sales Follow up
• Relationships
• Administrative Activities
• Your needs for:
• Recruiting
• Orientation
• Training
• Team Building
• Team Coordination
1. The right strategy makes any tactic work better. The right strategy puts less pressure on executing your tactics perfectly.

4. Tactics

 

1. What do you need to do to achieve your strategy; and when?
2. This is the piece where the preparation in Visioning, Targeting, and Strategizing really pays off. Now you're in position to choose implementation tactics that work together in a comprehensive and synergistic manner to:
• Cover all the necessary bases
• Reduce redundancy
• Lower costs
• Increase efficiency
• Increase productivity
• Increase return on investment

 

1. Consequently you'll be able to make much smarter choices about how and when you will use:
• Vendor services
• Web technologies
• Communication systems
• Computer equipment, software and services
• Staffing

 

Carving your turns better is a tactic.

Choosing the right ski area in the first place is a strategy.

Everyone skis better in Utah, it turns out.

Seth Godin

 

5. Budget

Budgeting will make you realize that planning is not a linear process, but an iterative one. You can and should start with a grand vision, ambitious and multiple target markets, plus comprehensive strategy and tactics capable of delivering your desired results; but don't expect your first pass to be your last. Budgeting will help you revise and tighten your plan, then show you where and how to package your plan into prioritized, bite-sized steps.

Q. What's the best way to eat an elephant?

A. One bite at a time.

Comprehensive planning is vital, because it enables you to make your best, most integrated and therefore cost effective decisions about the rest of your business. It also puts you into a very solid place for creating all of your marketing communications.