Marketing Strategy Workbook
for Startups and Small Businesses
The “Marketing Strategy Workbook” is a comprehensive guide designed to help entrepreneurs and small business owners build a successful marketing strategy from the ground up. Authored by Anzhelika Tauber, a digital marketer and communication expert, the workbook combines practical advice, detailed explanations, and a complete toolkit—including Excel sheets, checklists, and templates—customizable to any business.
49,99 €
Chapter 1
What Will Your Business Journey Be Like?
Every business is unique, but all businesses typically go through four main phases at the beginning of their journey:
- Discovery Phase (about 1-3 months): This is when you first come up with your business idea and begin researching it. You define what your business will offer and to whom. Think of it as laying the foundation for your future business.
- Development Phase (about 3 months): Here, you create your business model. This means figuring out how your business will make money and what resources you’ll need. A business model is essentially the plan for how your business will operate and generate revenue.
- Implementation Phase (about 2 years): In this phase, you start marketing your product or service and acquiring customers. This is when your business starts to become real as you begin interacting with customers and making sales.
- Growth Phase (after the first 2 years): After you’ve established your business, this phase involves scaling, which means expanding your customer base, increasing revenue, and possibly growing your team. Scaling is about taking your business to the next level by growing beyond the initial setup.
The Discovery Phase is the most critical stage for any business. It’s where you identify the problem your offer will solve, making it the essential first step in the new business development process.
Let’s take a closer look at these stages of business development:
- Discovery Phase
During this phase, your business vision is translated into a workable roadmap with clear business goals and a focus on your target customers. We conduct market research and develop your business idea, core offer, business plan, marketing strategy, and content strategy. This phase lays the foundation for a smooth development process.
- Development Phase
In this phase, we outline the company structure and processes, and finalise the following:
- Business plan
- Digital marketing and sales strategy
- Content strategy
- Business and financial model
- Implementation plan (including organization, processes, and measures)
- Business partners and investors
- Implementation Phase
This phase focuses on optimising and executing your business strategies:
- Optimization of digital marketing and sales
- Development of a search engine optimized website
- Content marketing and social media (creating profiles, launching campaigns, and implementing tools for regular content marketing)
- Marketing automation (including freebies and lead magnets, design and creation of landing pages, and setting up email funnels)
- Networking
- Growth Phase
Once you have established a solid operational system and have sufficient resources (both financial and human), you can enter the growth phase. This phase will allow you to scale your business by increasing the number of employees, expanding your customer base, and, of course, boosting revenue.
Planning every step of your business journey in Phases 1 and 2 will help you select only the most relevant activities for Phase 3. In Phase 3, you’ll then focus all your attention on implementing those selected activities, acquiring customers and earning first money. This approach will help you stay on track without wasting resources or time.
Here’s a good way to remember this principle:
- Phases 1 and 2: Do the right things.
- Phase 3: Do things right.
- Phase 4: Grow.
This book is designed to guide you through the Discovery Phase, ensuring you lay a solid foundation for your business. Everything you read, write, and do in this book will benefit you in the future. It will influence your business decision-making, marketing activities, and content selection. That’s why it’s crucial to take this phase of your business journey seriously and spend the necessary time on the activities and exercises in the book, to ensure you are well-prepared for the future.
Overview & Preview
7 Chapters
91 Pages
Key Themes and Learnings:
Business Journey Phases
The book outlines the four essential phases every business typically undergoes. Each phase is crucial for laying a strong foundation, building a business model, acquiring customers, and scaling operations.
Discovering your Business
The book focuses on thorough research to understand the market, identify customer pain points, and define a clear business idea. It provides guidance on conducting market gap analysis, competitor analysis, and customer research to create a business idea that resonates with the target audience.
Business Idea and Offer
The workbook emphasizes the importance of narrowing down business ideas to create a focused and unique offer. Through introspective exercises, readers are guided to identify their strengths, align them with market needs, and develop a compelling offer that differentiates them from competitors.
Market Research
Detailed strategies are provided to analyze the target audience and competitors, ensuring that the business is well-positioned in the market. The book highlights the significance of understanding customer behavior, preferences, and challenges to tailor products and services effectively.
Brand Development
The workbook delves into creating a strong brand identity, including defining the brand’s mission, vision, values, and messaging. It also covers the development of visual elements such as logos, color palettes, and typography, which are crucial for creating a memorable and cohesive brand image.
Offer Definition and Offer Suite
The book helps entrepreneurs refine their core offer and develop a suite of offerings at different price points to maximize revenue potential. This includes strategies for creating freebies, low, medium, and high-ticket offers, ensuring a balanced and scalable business model.
Marketing Plan
The workbook guides readers through the creation of a detailed marketing plan, including scenario planning, risk analysis, and the development of a business model canvas. The plan is broken down into actionable steps, from foundational activities like branding and website development to implementation strategies such as campaign planning and partner outreach.
Sample Pages
Transform your business ideas into an actionable plan