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Planning is an essential aspect of running a successful business, and creating a marketing plan for the year is a critical part of that process. Whether you are a small business owner or part of a larger organization, having a well-thought-out marketing plan can help you achieve your business goals and increase revenue.
Get together with your business partner or trusted mentor to run through some brainstorming. (It's easier to do this in a group, but not impossible if it's just you.)
This analysis can help you determine what you are great at, what your weaknesses are, and what opportunities and threats exist within your industry.
During this brainstorming session, you can also reflect on the previous year and identify what worked well and what didn't.
Ask yourself questions such as:
Once you have answered these questions, it's essential to write your answers down on a physical piece of paper and display it somewhere you'll see it often, such as your bathroom mirror or office wall.
This simple act of writing down your goals and displaying them can help keep you motivated and focused.
Grab your business partner or trusted mentor and write the answers down.
Yes, a physical piece of paper. Then stick it up on your bathroom mirror or your office wall. Somewhere you'll see it.
You might think it is a little bit corny. But many business coaches will tell you the same thing.
Why? Because it works.
Next, consider your goals for 2024.
If you only have a small list you might want to start with a free service like Mailchimp. (Free for up to 2,000 contacts.)
We use Keap but you might also want to consider Klaviyo, ActiveCampaign, or even Hubspot.
Next, go ahead and message the people on your list!
Yep, communicate. Sounds simple, but it can be challenging to work out what to say, and when to say it.
Bravo for putting in the effort to complete the exercise. You've uncovered your accomplishments over the last year. Remind yourself that you have achieved a lot. Now, decide what areas you'd like to see growth in the next year, and the next few months.
Break it down, month by month.
Better still, go week by week.
Say you want to achieve a $100,000 turnover this year. That's a big number. But if you break it down to how much you want to bank each day, that's around $250 each day.
That might equate to one event booking per day. (Depending on how much you charge for an event.)
Or to put it another way, target four events per weekend, each for $500.
I created an easy worksheet where you can write down what you achieved each day. Then, at the end of the month, you can review what you have achieved. At the end of each month, measure your results.
Have you achieved your goal? Then re-set for next month.
Did you do it?
Did you have a "win"?
Did you achieve the thing you wanted?
Then take a little time to reward yourself!
The third step is to reward yourself when you achieve your goals.
Yep, go ahead, reward yourself.
Celebrating your successes, no matter how small can help you stay motivated and focused on your goals.
Your reward doesn't have to be extravagant; it could be something as simple as going for a walk on the beach or in a local park, watching your favorite show on Netflix, or going out to dinner with your partner.
Pretty much anything that will motivate you to stay the course.
Just time out for yourself and those you love. Time to reflect and reset for the upcoming month.
Trying to plan the entire year can be overwhelming. So let's just focus on the first quarter. Planning is vital to running a profitable battlefield business. Many battlefield businesses are seasonal.
In addition to these three essential steps, it's also important to consider your marketing strategy for the entire year. While the last few years have been unlike any other, there are still key consumer spending events that happen throughout the calendar year. By planning for these events in advance, you can help boost your marketing and increase revenue.
So, if you know that every January you are going to be quiet. Due to weather, because school's out, or because people are simply recovering from the Christmas holidays...
Then you can put some money away during the rest of the year to cover you through the slow month.
This sets you up for success.
And, it removes a lot of unnecessary stress.
Consider this: What do you want to cover during the next 12 weeks?
As the old saying goes, "Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars," Les Brown.
Accountability is a great motivator.
Battlefield Operators have a private Facebook group.
Why not post your goals (and your wins) inside the group?
Not a member? You can access this Marketing Quarterly Worksheet via this form.
Have you designed your Marketing Plan for this year yet? Your business can leverage them to help boost your marketing.
To get your creative juices flowing consider a special event for each month during this year.
Having a special event to focus on each month can also help keep your customers engaged and coming back time and time again. For example, you might offer a special promotion for Valentine's Day in February, run a Mother's Day event in May, or offer a discount for National Small Business Week in September.
A way to boost your Return on Investment is to keep your customers coming back time and time again.
Having a special event to focus on each month that your customers can relate to is a great start.
According to Viknesh Kumar Chief Marketing Officer from Neil Patel Digital, the key Top 10 triggers for Consumer Spend in North America are:
Consider how your business can leverage these special triggers.
Halloween is the obvious one, with zombie laser tag, but you might also be able to benefit from the other nine consumer spending events.
Father's Day, Graduation and even the Super Bowl are possibilities.
Locally, we have booked many, many "O" Week events (for the first week of College or University).
To kick start the year: make January your fitness boot camp season.
Get out and get active.
In February, why not have a Chinese New Year special event?
You could turn it into a treasure hunt where gamers need to find the Red Envelopes around the battlefield. Or run your own "Super Bowl" clan war/tournament-type event.
March is often the official launch of the gaming season. Select a birthday date for your battlefield business such as the last Saturday in March.
Why not add a dog tag to everyone also having a birthday booking that month?
Themed days, April in Australia means Anzac Day.
You could organize a special event for your national patriotic day or veteran's day.
May might be a chance for you to focus on the Full Moon with night fighting missions. Find out when there is a full moon at your place then create a special event around that weekend.
June depending on your country's public holidays (or bank holidays), consider promoting a special Father and Son event on Father's Day.
The fourth of July is a big day so gain momentum from your local community marketing with your event. Graduation day is a big day for students in any country. Depending on the course, Graduation could be in various months of the year. But there are usually some popular times to look out for.
August, for example, ever considered having a Michael Day, Christopher Day or Jessica Day?
Check your player database, and find out your most common gamer's first name.
We mined more than 7,000 birthday bookings to discover the most popular name in the world of laser tag.
Run a promotion on Facebook. If that's their name, they get a free mission!
Down under, September has always been our busiest month. Did you know that this is often the busiest month for maternity hospitals? The most popular month for birthdays? Have a guess why!
In Australia, September means spring. The weather is perfect for outdoor gaming. We have so many sports teams booking in to celebrate their end of the year. We like to offer a special deal to bring in sports teams, if the sports club books 20 or more gamers then the organizer plays for free!
October has to be Halloween! Bring on the zombies!
November might be a Thanksgiving theme with special missions designed around the pioneers.
December, of course, has the Happy Holiday lights and celebrations and gifts.
So why not get a red Santa hat to identify the V.I.P. for your escort missions?
The purpose of your marketing calendar is to engage your gaming community with your battlefield business. So there is always something new and exciting happening at your business all year long.
Consider what events are right for your live gaming business throughout this year's calendar.
In conclusion, creating a marketing plan for the year is an essential part of running a successful business. By taking the time to brainstorm and plan, setting achievable goals, and rewarding yourself for your successes, you can help your Battlefield Business be successful.
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