While some people may think that artists have the luxury of solely creating all day, artists are businesspeople too. Their careers don’t just take off by themselves – it’s the result of a lot of hard work, thinking about their goals and strategically and deliberately planning on how they’re going to achieve them. Whether you’re just starting off or have been on the scene for years, knowing how to market yourself and your work is paramount to your success – and that all starts with a marketing plan. Andrea Brocklehurst, Senior Marketing Manager at KPMG, will lead a workshop on this topic on April 4 at St. John’s City Hall (Foran-Greene Room). Andrea spoke with Business & Arts NL about what a marketing plan should look like and why it’s so important.
Business & Arts NL: Some may think that a marketing plan is only needed if they’re part of a larger organization with many voices, opinions and goals. Why is a marketing plan just as important for a solo artist who operates independently?
Andrea Brocklehurst: Although at different stages, a large established company, an independent entrepreneur or a solo artist have marketing objectives that they want to achieve. A marketing plan can help identity those objectives and define the strategies and tactics that may be employed to achieve them. It can also help measure the results of marketing efforts that can be tracked and compared for future plans.
Business & Arts NL: How is a marketing plan different from a business plan?
AB: A marketing plan is a component of a broader business plan. A business plan could include items such as competitive analysis, product descriptions, corporate structure, marketing plan, financial statements and revenue targets. A marketing plan may be more effective when its objectives are aligned with business objectives. It may also be helpful to review the marketing objectives throughout the year to ensure they are still in alignment with business objectives.
Business & Arts NL: What are some of the things that an effective marketing plan should include?
AB: An effective marketing plan may include the following:
Objectives: Marketing objectives may not be the same as the business objectives, but alignment with financial/or business goals may result in better outcomes. Examples of marketing objectives could include: ‘to increase awareness of a product or service’ or ‘increase the number of followers on social media.’’
Strategies: Marketing strategies describe how the objectives will be achieved, for example: a digital campaign on social media to help reach a target audience, a Facebook page to help attract more followers, or an investment in a strategic industry association membership to help build awareness.
Tactics: The tactics are what you are going to do. Some examples could be: update Facebook page daily with fresh content, attend networking events monthly or print business cards.
Measurement: It is beneficial for the strategies and tactics to be measurable, so that progress may be tracked and measured, for example: number of new followers, business cards collected or number of clicks on a landing page.
Artists may want to also include in their plans a description of their unique product or service (what makes them stand out), identify the audience they are targeting and include a budget for paid tactics and campaigns. The size and scope of a marketing plan can vary depending on the needs of the organization or individual.
For more information on Andrea’s session “Developing a Marketing Plan,” click here.
