25 Things Every Marketing Department Needs

MARKETING KUNG FU:

25 Things
Every Marketing
Department Needs
Use this checklist as a guide
or as a starting point for your
complete marketing plan.

Digital Agency

1 Your Business Plan
Identify:
• How big is your market
opportunity?
• Exactly where is money being
spent in your target segment?
• What is your value proposition?
• What is your product life cycle?
• What new products will your
company offer?
TO DO:
1. Help your management team
to ensure your company's
business plan is complete
2. Research current market
projections for the business
plan
3. Produce competitive
information for the business
plan
4. Make sure the business plan
looks great

2 Market Research
Identify:
• Where and how do consumers
purchase this kind of product?
• Who are the leaders in this market
segment?
• What are your unique selling
features?
• What customer information and
support interactions are required?
TO DO:
1. Extensive research on your
industry, similar products,
pricing and sales techniques
2. Create profiles of your
customer types
3. Conduct surveys to find out
what potential buyers need
4. Produce a competitive
analysis

3 Competitive Analysis
Identify:
• Who will you take customers from
(current market leaders)?
• What are your competitors doing
well in the marketplace?
• What needs do your prospective
customers have that are not being
met by current solutions?
• How can you set the bar higher
than your current competition?
TO DO:
1. Create a spreadsheet of
competitors with feature
and price comparisons
2. Examine the leaders'
marketing material
3. Read consumer reviews
about competitors' products

4 Specific Sales Objectives
Identify:
• Company revenue objectives
• Number of customers needed to
meet the revenue targets
• Number of leads needed to
convert the desired number of
customers
TO DO:
1. Create a chart with quarterly
sales goals and the predicted
number of sales leads needed

5 Specific Marketing
Objectives
Identify:
• How many leads are needed
• Most important sales and
marketing assets
• Best channels for market
outreach
TO DO:
1. Interview each department
head about their expectations
from Marketing
2. Create a written, objectivesbased
marketing plan
outlining campaign elements
3. Establish a schedule for
delivering each asset and
program

6 Success Measurement
Identify:
• How you'll measure success
• What metrics other managers
want to see from Marketing
• How you will obtain reporting
data
TO DO:
1. Create a spreadsheet of
success metrics, including key
measurement points like total
number of customers, total
products sold, total brand
exposures in the marketplace,
total website visitors, total
leads generated, total positive
customer reviews, and
marketing assets delivered

Marketing agency
 

7 Mission Statement
Identify:
• What value you will deliver to your
customers and to the world
TO DO:
1. Create a mission statement
reflecting your broadest
objectives
2. Identify key words and
phrases to use in messaging

8 Your Brand
Identify:
• What features are unique to your
company's product and style
• What will distinguish your brand
from others in the market
• What icons, images and words
connote your industry or product
TO DO:
1. Test your brand on at least 20
representative users
2. Produce images and
guidelines for using the logo
on different media

9 Your Story
Identify:
• What started the ball rolling
• What makes your company
memorable
TO DO:
1. Create an origin story. Even if
used only internally, this
history provides clarity on the
path and can be useful in
marketing and sales.
2. Create messaging that your
audience can identify with
3. Conduct user testing and
surveys to refine your
messaging

Web Marketing

10 Product Presentation
Identify:
• Key elements of your story to
include
• The most exciting aspects of your
product (or service)
• Benefits of using your product
• All product differentiators
• Types of diagrams or infographics
that help explain your product
• Demonstration requirements and
potential demo formats
TO DO:
1. Produce excellent product
photos or screen shots
2. Create a presentation for each
environment or medium (web,
video, whitepaper, etc)
3. Test the presentations on all
devices and environments
4. Refine the presentations after
feedback from the rest of your
team
5. Solicit user feedback to help
improve presentations

11 Imagery
Identify:
• What kind of images could
represent your product (besides
actual product images)
• What kind of environments your
product will be used in
• What kinds of action shots with
people could illustrate its use
• What kinds images are cliché or
overused in your industry
TO DO:
1. Set up a professional photo
shoot with models and use
case scenarios
2. Produce or purchase highquality
connotative images
that reflect your industry,
brand and style

12 Technical Information
Identify:
• What customers have the most
difficulty with
• What technical information or
documentation is required for
your products and their support
TO DO:
1. Organize technical content
into categories that make it
easy to find
2. Simplify technical information,
avoiding jargon as much as
possible
3. Create a list of FAQs for your
sales team

Web Design

13 Intellectual Properties
Identify:
• Key names and designs to
trademark
• Documents that should be
copyrighted
• Internet domain assets
• Documents to mark as
Confidential
TO DO:
1. Submit name and logo
trademark applications
2. Submit trademark
applications for all product
brand names
3. Secure domain properties
directly related to your
product

14 Budget
Identify:
• Your ideal budget for marketing
• Your actual budget
• Top priorities of the company
stakeholders
TO DO:
1. Create a monthly or quarterly
budget spreadsheet

15 Team
Identify:
• What skills you need that you
don't have
• What you will spend the most
time on
TO DO:
1. Establish a team and assign
skills to each member
2. Determine what talent or
services should be
outsourced

16 Vendors
Identify:
• Projects requiring outside
equipment or skills
• Best candidates for outsourced
services
TO DO:
1. Keep a list of approved
vendors for each type of task
(design and production,
printing, illustrations, stock
photography, sign making,
materials and supplies, etc.)
with notes about staff and
project & payment history

 Web Agency

17 Partnerships
Identify:
• Key manufacturing partners
• Organizations that are a good fit
for your product and can benefit
from selling it
• Potential affinity groups
TO DO:
1. Make a list of companies by
category that you could
partner with for marketing
and sales programs
2. Maintain contact with
partners through a
newsletter

18 Company Documents
Identify:
• Members of your team who
create public-facing
communications
• Types of documents needed and
use scenarios
TO DO:
1. Create templates for letters,
proposals, PowerPoint
presentations and other
company communications
2. Promulgate guidelines for use
throughout your company

 Web Design Agency

 

19 Website
Identify:
• Types of audiences
• Primary messaging for each type
• Key content & sections
• Illustrative and/or demonstrative
requirements
• Testimonials you can include
• User and manager features
needed (commerce, forum,
content management, sharing, or
other apps or widgets)
TO DO:
1. Create a design around your
brand, featuring your product
clearly and prominently
2. Proof and test with every kind
of browser, platform and
mobile device
3. Set up related accounts (email
addresses, social media,
integrated cloud services)
4. Set up Google Tools,
sitemap.xml, robots.txt
5. Conduct user testing

20 Online Footprint
Identify:
• Key words and phrases use in
your market to describe your
product
• Which social media to engage in
• Your special or valuable website
content
• Press release content
• Blog/events content
• Video content
• Related social trends
TO DO:
1. Optimize web pages and
social media content for
search engines
2. Create and syndicate a blog
3. Set up social media, integrate
them with the website, and
post regular updates
4. Establish a YouTube channel
with a product overview video
5. Distribute press releases
6. Cross-promote with partners
7. Ask customers to post reviews

21 Advertising
Identify:
• The buying process
• Target audience media habits
• Best advertising media for your
market segment
• Types of ads
• Types of landing pages
• Approaches to product placement
• Community & affinity group
outreach opportunities
• Ad co-ops and PSA opportunities
TO DO:
1. Create a media kit
2. Create an advertising
spreadsheet with media types,
costs and sources
3. Establish calls to action and
incentives (e.g., special offer,
free trial) for each ad
4. Create advertisements
5. A/B and multi-channel testing
(e.g., different key phrases)
6. Establish CPM and CPC costs,
customer acquisition cost, and
minimum MER

22 Certifications
Identify:
• Certifications and professional
associations important to your
market and customers (Secure
Server, Microsoft Certified
Engineer, Certified Organic, OSHA
Compliant, Membership with BBB,
AARP, AMA, etc)
• Costs of establishing and
maintaining certifications
TO DO:
1. Create a certification list and
plan with costs
2. Obtain credentials and display
with your product material

23 Sales Support
Identify:
• Key sales collateral materials
needed (presentations, business
cards, brochures, gadgets)
• Sales-to-fulfillment process
TO DO:
1. Survey the sales team about
what they need the most to
close sales
2. Produce business cards,
brochures, presentations,
samples and other customerfacing
assets
3. Establish a system for tracking
leads, closes and losses

24 Customer Support
Identify:
• Current customer satisfaction rate
• Main customer satisfaction issues
• Primary channels for customer
complaints
TO DO:
1. Conduct customer surveys
2. Share survey results with
product dev and customer
support staff
3. Create a preferred channel for
customer support
4. Provide a support content
corridor that handles the
most common support issues
automatically or with self-help
5. Establish a closed feedback
loop

25 Investor Information
Identify:
• Information to promulgate to
investors
• Report types and dates (e.g.,
quarterly updates, annual report)
• Distribution method
TO DO:
1. Establish report type and
frequency with the
management team
2. Produce reports for
management review and
feedback prior to distribution
3. Ensure all reports to investors
from every department look
great