What to consider for your 2023 marketing plan

If your Christmas flew by (just as much as ours!) and suddenly you’re in January with no clue how to start your 2023 marketing plan, don’t worry, we are here to help. We’ve curated this blog to cover some key factors to consider when pulling together a marketing plan.

Alongside a checklist, we’ve broken down each section into actionable points and thought-provoking questions to help get your ideas bubbling, so grab a pen and notebook (or open a Google doc in a separate tab if you’re anything like us), and get ready to start your 2023 marketing plan!

Social Media Strategy

Over the past decade, it has become increasingly important for businesses to be present on social media. If your business is not yet on social media, you can sure bet your competitors are, and using it to reach the 4.62 billion social media users* worldwide, many of whom will be your target market.

Just because social media is a key factor in any marketing strategy, it doesn’t necessarily mean that your business needs to be present on every single platform on offer. The social media channels you choose to use will depend on a multitude of factors, here are some for consideration in the first instance;

• Are you targeting B2B or B2C?
• How would you identify your target audience?
• Where is your target audience most present on social media?
• How much time do you have to manage social media?

These questions are a good starting point to help you figure out what platforms will work best for your business, and how many you should be on. It’s ok to start small, don’t be put off by thinking you have to do it all right away.

Promotional Print and Advertising

Don’t get us wrong, social media and the internet are very important places for your business to be in 2023, but that doesn’t mean you should abandon the more traditional methods of marketing. Last year, we actually saw a rise in demand for print and promotional products, and it’s certainly not something you should leave behind in 2022.

Whether it’s a door-drop campaign, business cards for on-the-go, or an exhibition stand for a business convention, promotional print and advertising are key to forming your marketing strategy this year.

Brand identity

Brand identity may not have been something that you expected on this list, with most businesses establishing a brand and never looking back – but it’s not something to completely forget. We wouldn’t recommend changing your logo every other week, but it is important to keep your brand identity relevant and modern to make sure it accurately reflects the message and story behind your business.

Take Hootsuite for example, a well-renowned business, primarily known for their hit social media scheduling tool. Within the marketing world, Hootsuite is a household name, and everyone knows and loves them for their owl logo. Last year, Hootsuite underwent a rebrand and complete social media audit, starting their Instagram again from scratch. If you go to their page now, you’ll find posts consisting of memes, trending content, facts and statistics, all relevant to the target audience of the company. The iconic owl branding remained, but can now be identified by its new red colour. The rebrand got people talking and the new content resonated more with the audience using Hootsuite.

So, what can we learn from Hootsuite?

• It’s never too late for a rebrand!
• Be big, be bold, and be brave.
• Consider if your current branding resonates with your audience and the audience you’d like to attract.
• Reflect your business values within your branding.

Website and SEO

Last, but certainly not least, you need to think about your website and SEO strategy. As we kick off 2023, ask yourself, when was the last time your website had a proper update? Is it running on the latest versions, is your website compatible with all devices, and is there anything more that can be done to make your website perform better for your audience? 

Taking a look through your competitor’s websites can be a great way to understand where everyone else is at, so you can get ahead. When people find your website on a search engine, it has to do the speaking for you – people will only reach out if they are impressed by what they see and it speaks to their needs.

Linking to the importance of an up-to-date website, it is vital that you also stay on top of your SEO strategy. For some businesses, SEO takes a backseat, but in reality, there is almost no point in having a website without successful SEO working in the background. Why have a perfect-looking website if no one is able to find it! Think about how many relevant keywords you feature on your website. Do you often post long-form content to help lead people to your pages? Are your product or service descriptions detailed and accurate?

What to take away from this…

Of course, the above isn’t everything included in the marketing mix, and there are certainly other activities you can consider for your 2023 marketing plan, but hopefully, this blog will help identify some good places to begin. We know it can seem like a lot, but you don’t need to tackle it all at once – or on your own. If you’re not sure where to begin, get in touch for a chat. We offer a free initial consultation to help you identify what areas of your marketing strategy to focus on, and if you’d like, we can then work with you to implement that over the coming months! Contact us to find out more.

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*Figures from DataReportal