Marketing is itself a strategy and so no marketing plan is completely fool-proof. There are some qualities that must be met to be able to consider it effective and this will help in converting customers to make marketing successful. A marketing plan is a frame work that must be followed to transform into a killer strategy. Here are five qualities proving its abilities in the marketing strategy.Focus on the productProduct focus is not simple as it always is focused towards the market. The product varies in demand depending on the age, gender and trend. In case it is about clothing, then women in 50s if they are working would prefer formal, quality and semi formal dresses, while the younger adults may have a different focus on the product. In case you also have shoes to offer, you can help women show how they can look tall and in this way this will include shorter women who would love to gain height, thus your marketing focus widens more effectively.Focus on the marketThe market focus should be defined. It is impossible to please everyone and if you try doing so, you are going to be under severe pressure and eventually result in losses. Focus on the market fashion, but decide first if your focus is with male or female and without fail consider the age factor. By focusing on the market you will see the likes of your target audience. The other factors worth considering are the purchasing power of your audiences. If you find there is a diverse taste, set your goals by dividing, choosing and conquer the market. Have measurable informationAnything to be marketed should be quantifiable and must be ideally in numbers. Include all the details, major and minor as detail information has a crucial role in marketing. A strategy is a must for any good marketing plan to see success. The plan that is the marketing strategy should be measurable to know the ROI. If your business is new, you can have both marketing plans, short and long. They can be interconnected. However, ensure the goals are attainable.Accountability and responsibilityMarketing strategy is about being accountable and this in combination with responsibility alone paves way to success and to attain better results. Marketing plan fails to work in groups than individuals. It is best for each individual to have a specific task and to bring good results. At the same time paying attention to individual’s accountability helps you keep a vigilant eye on their handling of responsibilities. Without fail reprimand the failures and do not forget to reward the achievers. A perfect marketing plan requires absolute involvement that one must be committed to it. Each person should know their job and also should be aware of the outcomes.ReviewsA marketing strategy is a planning process and an effective marketing plan handles everything from tracking performance to setting goals and measuring the units quantifiable. However, regular reviewing and revision is essential. Do not wait until the last day, keep reviewing regularly and change the plans in-between if essential.
Are Your References “Professional”?
What do your professional references say about you? Ever think about it? You should because no matter how good your interview went, if your references don’t say good things about you….you’re not getting that new job you want. Seems kinda harsh doesn’t it? But it’s true, a bad reference can single handedly sink an otherwise great opportunity.Ironically, most people pay little to no attention to their references. I hear things like “I haven’t talked to him in ages.”, “I didn’t really work that closely with her.”, “I’m just his friend” but my favorite is the “one word answers” – yep, no, yes, maybe, absolutely. Joking aside, if you aren’t taking the time to really cultivate and inform your professional references you are putting yourself at a disadvantage in any job search. Someone who takes their job search seriously has educated, informed, prepared and PREDICTABLE references. I recall a candidate interaction a long time ago where the recruiter asked a reference “Would you hire so and so again?”. Simple stuff, nothing major, should be a straight forward response and it was just that….”I wouldn’t hire that guy to stock shelves”. End of interview, no hire, thanks for playing. If your references say they wouldn’t hire you again, it’s pretty bad but when they go out of their way to torpedo your application it’s apocalyptic.Without further adieu, a few quick tips on how to give the best professional references:1) Give people who you know, trust and who will absolutely, positively say nice things about you – I know, right, who WOULDN’T do that? You’d be surprised. I’m not even going to talk about this anymore, do your homework, call your references so when they talk to potential a employer they don’t throw you under the bus.2) Give a former manager – Again, I know, not rocket science. I’m always happy to hear how great a guy someone is, or how they play a mean guitar or how they can finish Halo without dying……….but, at the end of the day it doesn’t matter. I want to talk to someone who can tell me what kind of an employee you’ll be once you are hired. Former managers are critical to making sure any potential employer can get the info they need to hire you without reservation. If you don’t have a former manager who’ll say nice things, try someone else in a leadership role. You need someone besides your lunch buddies to say nice things about you, especially in a competitive job market like we have now.3) Make sure your references are available and expecting the call – This one drives recruiters crazy. Nothing more frustrating than leaving voice mail after voice mail for a reference only to follow up with an email that bounces back “On vacation until September 2013″. Good times! It’s common courtesy for everyone involved and will help also make sure our references say nice things about you.4) Have a few people recommend you on LinkedIn – Simple stuff, and frankly it doesn’t matter if this is a former manager or not. With the rise of social networking, more and more companies are searching the web for potential hires. No better way to reinforce that you are a quality hire than to have a well groomed LinkedIn profile that has several people singing your praises.5) Keep in touch with your references to make sure you have a big stable of people to use -This is the final tip, and probably the most important. You want to keep in touch with people who can serve as great professional references. Seriously, think about it. How many former managers can you give that would say nice things about you? The more you have, the better off you’ll be long term. You don’t need to talk to them every day, week or even every month however, you should be just touching base once every quarter or two, JUST in case you need them or, get this…..maybe they need you. That’s right, your former boss may be looking for a job and need a “former direct report” to say nice things…next think you know you guys are colleagues again. So, trust me on this one, figure out who will give you a stellar reference and then maintain and build on that relationship.That’s it, nothing crazy, nothing complicated. Follow these simple tips and I can guarantee you’ll have much more success converting those interviews into offers.