According to CoSchedule, marketers with a comprehensive plan are 331% more likely to succeed than those who don’t. Mortgage and real estate industry companies work in an incredibly competitive environment, which makes this statistic even more impactful and relevant.
The cost of poor planning, or lack of planning, doesn’t just show up in the bottom line, but also in company morale. Think about your sales team trying to hit unreasonable quotas without a solid strategic plan that would pave a pathway for success.
A solid plan goes a long way to replace anxiety with confidence!
What are the 6 components of a great marketing plan?
Let’s review each of the key components of any good marketing plan…
Competitive research: This is the backbone of any decent marketing plan. It is the process of gathering and analyzing information about your target audience, competitors and industry trends. Research will identify how your competitors are positioning themselves to win, identify positioning opportunities that you can take advantage of and threats that need to be mitigated.
There are several types of research that can be used, including:
Primary research: This is research that is conducted specifically for the marketing plan. It can include surveys, focus groups, and interviews with clients, potential clients, and industry experts. This type of research allows businesses in the mortgage and real estate industries to gather firsthand information about their target audience and competitors.
Secondary research: This is research that has already been conducted by others, such as industry reports, government statistics, and information from trade associations like the Mortgage Bankers Association or the National Association of REALTORS®. This type of research is useful for gaining a general understanding of the industry and market conditions.
Qualitative research: This type of research seeks to understand the attitudes, opinions, and behaviors of the target audience. It often involves focus groups and in-depth interviews to gain a deeper understanding of the target audience’s needs, wants, and motivations.
Quantitative research: This type of research seeks to measure the target audience’s attitudes, opinions, and behaviors. It often involves surveys and polls to gather large amounts of data that can be analyzed statistically.
- Audience identification: For most B2B products, services or technology, there is more than one person responsible for the purchase decision. This is also often the case for very large, considered purchases in the B2C realm, like a home, that will usually require some level of financing.
Therefore, understanding the demographics, psychographics and behavior patterns of your audience is critical so that your messaging can be tailored to the greatest extent possible, speaking to their individual needs.
Remember, we all get bombarded with irrelevant messages throughout the day. The right messaging is essential so that you don’t get lost in the spammy mix of marketing we all receive in a typical day.
- Identify your current market position: Do you know what the perception of your brand is in the marketplace? Unless you’re a startup with a clean slate, you would do well to understand how you’re viewed by your target audience, whether they be lenders, Realtors®, loan officers, or anyone else. This understanding will allow you to identify areas where your brand may be thriving or lacking so you can capitalize on your strengths or address your weaknesses.
- Go to market strategy: Your go-to-market (GTM) strategy should outline how you will communicate and sell your mortgage or real estate-related services to your target audience, how much you will charge and what your promotional tactics will be. The goal of your GTM strategy is to effectively and efficiently reach and acquire new clients and drive revenue growth.
Specifically, your GTM strategy should include the following elements:
Target market segmentation: Identifying specific groups of clients to target based on factors such as demographics, behaviors, and needs.
Value proposition: Clearly articulate the unique value that you bring to your clients.
Pricing strategy: Determine the price points for your products or services, taking into account factors such as cost, competition, and perceived value.
Promotion and marketing: Develop a plan for how you will communicate your value proposition and promote your products or services to new clients. Identify your advertising channels on and off-line, inbound and outbound marketing tactics, public relations tactics, media relations activities, and events you will sponsor or attend.
Sales strategy: Outline how you will sell your products or services, including identifying the target clients, and how you will reach them, and what message will be conveyed.
Metrics and measurements: Identify your key performance indicators (KPIs) that will be used to measure the success of the GTM strategy.
- Budget: If you’re a CEO asking your marketing person to develop a strategy without a budget, do them a favor and at least give him or her a range. And if you’re a marketing person…you should insist on one. It’s great for morale knowing that the plan that is developed can be implemented. This also allows you to identify budgets for various tactics and adjust them as you learn more about what’s working throughout implementation.
- Metrics: Marketing metrics are quantitative measurements used to evaluate the effectiveness of marketing campaigns and strategies. They provide data-driven insights that can inform decision making and help you optimize your efforts. Some common marketing metrics include:
- Conversion rate: the percentage of website visitors who take a desired action, such as filling out a form.
- Cost per acquisition (CPA): the cost of acquiring a new client or converting a lead.
- Return on investment (ROI): the profitability of a marketing campaign, calculated as revenue generated divided by the cost of the campaign.
- Click-through rate (CTR): the percentage of users who click on a link or ad.
- Bounce rate: the percentage of website visitors who leave the site after only viewing one page.
- Client lifetime value (CLV): the estimated revenue a client will generate over the course of their relationship with you.
- Engagement rate: the percentage of people who engage with your content, such as likes, shares, and comments.
- Traffic: the number of visitors to your website.
There are many other metrics that can be used to evaluate different aspects of a marketing campaign, depending on the goals of the campaign and the specific metrics that are most relevant to you.
A solid marketing plan is crucial for the success of your business. By including these key components, you will greatly increase the odds of having a successful campaign while building confidence across your team.
Would you like a customized plan for your company developed by mortgage and real estate industry experts?
Contact us today for a free consultation!