Many organizations struggle with limited resources and in today’s economy, time is money. A strategic marketing communication plan can help an organization focus resources on the important tasks and set priorities. Without a plan, an organization generally becomes reactive instead of proactive with their communications. Reactive communication leads to wasted time and often dilutes the message the organization is trying to achieve.
Strategic planning helps an organization integrate all of its communications and will ensure that everyone in the organization is on the same page and understands the goals to be achieved. It should not be an afterthought.
To create an effective plan it requires a broad participation internally. Before developing the communication plan, form a planning committee and involve staff, board members and volunteers in the process. Once a committee has been formed consider how the organization is currently positioned within the community. This will help the committee to define goals and objectives.
Marketing communication plans are action documents and should help to clarify the organization’s goals, objectives and target audience. Plans must be flexible enough to accommodate change as the organization evolves.
Lastly, a plan should be measurable. Evaluation is an important step in the communication planning process. It not only allows for an assessment of the communication exercise but also contributes to continuous improvement in the design and implementation of the marketing communication plan.
Outline of a Typical Marketing Communication Plan:
- Introduction
- Communication goals
- Objectives
- Positioning statement
- Key message
- Key audiences
- Communication strategies
- Evaluation measures
Does your organization participate in strategic planning? If so, what are the steps they take to define their goals and objectives?
- Krista Robertson, President-elect, AMA
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