Instructions
1. Step 1
- Analyze the current marketing strategy . Research the company and the history of the project to gain a thorough understanding of the situation and strategies that have been employed. A common mistake in marketing proposals is the failure to gain a complete understanding of the major milestones and concepts behind a project.
2. Step 2
- Perform a market analysis. What are the company’s competitors doing? Where are they successful, and where have they encountered problems? A thorough understanding of the market is key to writing a solid marketing proposal, because your materials and strategies will need to be better in order for the client to do well.
3. Step 3
- Analyze the audience. Who is the company trying to reach? What are the ages, occupations, geographic locations, social status, economic status and perceptions of their audience? You can come to these conclusions by studying the company’s current marketing materials and events, or by asking a company representative directly.
4. Step 4
- Define problem areas. Why is the current marketing strategy not working? What are the specific problems causing the marketing to fail? Common mistakes to look out for include materials targeted to the wrong audience, materials without a specific focus, too much information, vague concepts and incomprehensible copy.
5. Step 5
- Identify target audience groups. Consider what demographic would be an appropriate target audience. For example, a fun new cell phone networking application might not be interesting if marketed to an elderly audience, but would succeed with young audiences. A company that is requesting a marketing proposal is looking for fresh ideas and will likely be open to new potential customer groups.
6. Step 6
- List new strategies and improvements to the current plan. Armed with your list of problem areas and target audiences, write down the solutions to each problem and unique ways to reach new audiences. Be innovative, create clear connections and present new, specific ideas that will have a genuine impact on the company’s bottom line.
7. Step 7
- Format the marketing proposal. First, write an executive statement that summarizes the project and your proposed solutions. Include sections titled: Market Analysis, Target Audience and Proposed Marketing Strategies. The Market Analysis section should include a brief summary of competitors’ strategies, market needs and any other pertinent information. The Target Audience section should include your proposed audiences and relevant details from your audience analysis. In the Proposed Marketing Strategies, outline each of your proposed activities, relating each to a problem or weakness you identified in the current marketing plan.
8. Step 8
- Read carefully through your proposal, editing for spelling and grammatical errors. Place the proposal on your professional letterhead and submit by mail or the company’s preferred digital format.