Integrated Marketing: Developing Your Budget & Plan

Question: In today’s market, how much time should one spend each week actively working on marketing? Based on one’s previous income, how much should one budget towards multidimensional marketing?

In today’s market, putting together a marketing plan takes strategic planning backed up by individual, strict guidelines. An artist can expect to spend between 15 to 20 hours per week depending on the marketing strategies, as one strategy can be more dynamic and interactive than the next. The main thing to remember is most of your focus and set up time should be placed in the beginning phase of the marketing plan. A 3-5 year “big picture” plan should be developed, with tactics detailing specific actions to be accomplished over the course of the current year.

First Things First: Know Your Budget

Marketing should be set up based on budgets. The good thing is there is a plan for everyone no matter what your budget is! If you are starting out on a low budget you will have to factor in a strong, pro-active plan that will require more time weekly. Good time management skills can greatly affect the time spent.

In this day and age all marketing plans are multi-dimensional and consist of several avenues of media to reach your target market. They are:

• Email Marketing - A great cost effective way to get your brand out there
• Direct Mail Marketing - Can either be utilized as a follow up or a separate marketing plan throughout the year based on your budget
• Telemarketing / Follow-Up Calls - This will act as "voice branding" and provides the personal touch to your marketing
• Special Promotions - Less frequent promotions to exclusively hand-picked dream clients
• Social Media - Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Digg, StumbleUpon, and WordPress, just to name a few. Set strict time limits when utilizing social avenues as they are easiest to get lost in

Remember, Your Time is Valuable

In summary, a strict time-managed marketing plan should be set up and implemented around each artists’ time and budget needs. Figure on spending 10 to 20 hours per week on your marketing. Eventually, setting up a goal to outsource your marketing tasks with an assistant, a consultant, or a studio manager will allow you to focus on what you do best while giving you a reasonable goal to work towards.

About Heather

In 2008, Heather Lefort brought her 16 years of sales experience, leadership, and exceptional track record for client satisfaction to Agency Access. Her solid business background, expertise, and compassion allow her to provide unlimited knowledge to clients that always exceed their expectations. She is currently working towards her MBA in Advanced Marketing Strategy. Agency Access

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1. Elements of a Successful Email Campaign (Part 1)

2. Dialogues Podcast: Direct Mail, a Marketing Mix Must Have

3. Why and How Should Artists Use Social Media