Channel Planning 101: Know Where To Market Your Business (+ Free Workbook)
One of the biggest confusions when it comes to marketing is knowing what channels you should choose to be on and what you should be doing there. This doesn’t just include social media either; a channel is anywhere that you get your product in front of customers. With so many social platforms, let alone all the other channels, channel planning is vital; but where the heck do you start?This is not just some arbitrary choice, although it can sometimes feel like it. Do you ever stumble across a business on Instagram and wonder why they’re there? Very often, small businesses feel like they need to be on everything; they want an Instagram account because it’s there and everyone seems to be talking about it, whether or not it suits their business.
Realistically, you can’t, and shouldn’t, be everywhere. Not every channel suits every business, and, think about it, your target customer isn’t on every single channel either. Plus, if you tried to be on everything you’d spend no time actually creating your products or moving your business forward - you’d be too busy trying to maintain every single platform.In a small business like yours, where every minute and every penny is precious, it is more important than ever to have an effective channel strategy. To make sure that you are putting your energy and resources into the most effective places where you’ll see the most impact. The workbook download below is designed to get you on the path to channel planning heaven.
Here's what we’ll cover in the workbook…
Where Are Your People?
The most important thing to consider when planning your channels is where your target customer likes to hang out, where they consume their information and find things they want to buy. It stands to reason that it is vital for your business that you are visible and active in the places where your customer makes a buying decision - and remember this can be both online and offline.
Where Suits You and Your Product?
Which channels show your product in the best light. Where can you shine? What suits your brand? For example, perhaps you have a very visual product like photography or homewares, and so highly visual channels will suit you. Maybe you’re a service provider or content creator, and therefore channels with an emphasis on words might be better.
Your Final Selection and Next Steps
We’ll think about how to make the final selection of channels, looking at the importance of variety, the blanace between immediacy and longevity, and how your channels can work together to meet other aims.Finally, we’ll set you on the path to populate your new channels – from the quick wins, to upskilling, repurposing and creating content.
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This is my most in depth free workbook to date and will really help you approach you business more like a marketer. You can now get the ebook, with a load of other freebies, on my Free Resources page. 