Hello, and welcome to my BLOG. My name is Rebecca, and I’ve been a tax professional for more than a decade. I have extensive knowledge of tax laws and regulations, and I love to share that knowledge with others. In today’s blog post, I’ll walk you through the steps of creating a marketing plan for your copywriting business, including how to find a steady flow of paying clients, what to include in your marketing collateral, and how to effectively price your services.
Find A Niche
Before you can write your first winning tax proposal, you need to find a niche. What does that mean? It simply means you need to find a group of people, called your target audience, who have money problems and are in need of your services. To identify your target audience, ask yourself:
- Who is my ideal client?
- What problems do my ideal clients have that I can solve with my services?
- Where do my ideal clients hang out online?
- What are my ideal clients reading right now?
- What topics do my ideal clients ask about on social media?
- What questions do my ideal clients have about taxation that I can answer?
- What would my ideal clients say they value most in a tax professional?
If you can answer yes to all these questions, then you’ve found your niche. Chances are, there are at least a few other tax professionals out there who can also help them solve their problems. You can specialize in helping high-net-worth individuals manage their superannuation, or you can broaden your scope and help small businesses save a few hundred dollars a week on their payroll taxes. It’s all about identifying your strengths while also considering your limitations.
Grow A Testimonial Curriculum Vitae
The next step in your marketing plan is to develop a testimonial curriculum vitae (CV). A testimonial CV is a list of your testimonials, which are case studies or examples of your work. These are the stories of your past clients, which you can use to describe your services. You can also include any awards you’ve won, relevant certifications, and any editorial or media coverage you’ve had.
The best way to grow your testimonial CV is to gain and maintain strategic partnerships with top-notch businesses and organizations. In exchange for your help, they’ll often agree to reference you in their press releases, blog posts, and even social media posts. They might also offer you the opportunity to become a brand ambassador for their company, which could result in more business opportunities. The beauty of forming strategic partnerships is that you’re not simply relying on one or two clients to pay your bills. You have a stable flow of income, which you can then use to support your lifestyle.
Create A Marketing Plan
A well-organized marketing plan is vital to the success of your copywriting business. It will help you identify the most appropriate platforms for the type of content you create, and it will guide your decision-making process regarding new clients. A marketing plan can also be an excellent tool for determining your pricing strategy, creating content schedules, and measuring the performance of your marketing efforts.
Your marketing plan should include the following:
- An objectives section, which sets a specific purpose for your plan (e.g., to generate 25 new leads by the end of the month).
- An analysis of your competitors’ strategies (e.g., what are their prices, what platforms do they use, and what are their strategies for generating business).
- An analysis of your own strengths (e.g., what makes you special, and how can you offer a unique value proposition to prospective clients)
- A strategy for reaching your goals (e.g., how will you achieve your monthly lead generation objective).
- An action plan, which includes the specific steps you’ll take to achieve your goals (e.g., devise a plan to increase your social media presence, develop a content calendar, and conduct business development activities).
- An evaluation of your plan, at the end of each month (e.g., did you meet your goals, and if not, what will you do to improve your strategy).
- An annual review (to ensure that you’re constantly evaluating your strategy and making the necessary adjustments).
- A review of your plan at least once a year, and possibly more frequently based on changes in the market (e.g., the constant flux due to the COVID-19 pandemic means that you should review your plan more frequently than usual to determine whether your approach still fits).
- A review of your plan at least once a year, and possibly more frequently based on changes in the market (e.g., the constant flux due to the COVID-19 pandemic means that you should review your plan more frequently than usual to determine whether your approach still fits).
- Some form of stakeholder identification, such as a stakeholder map (i.e., who will be involved in the process, and how will they interact with you?).
- An implementation plan, which includes things like a list of the specific materials you’ll need to effectively carry out your plan (e.g., a laptop, phone charger, etc.).
- A periodic review of your plan, to ensure that you haven’t drifted from your original strategy (e.g., due to a lack of attention, or because a new competitor has emerged).
When developing your strategy, bear in mind that your objectives are rarely going to be straightforward, and achieving them might not be either. Instead, you’re aiming to move toward a better place, a more advantageous position. This is why a plan is a superior instrument for taking strategic direction—it gives you the flexibility to consider a number of variables, and determine the best course of action. For instance, you might want to write off the last three months of rent as a business loss, in order to take a more generous deduction on your income tax return. Alternatively, you could use the opportunity to further develop your business, by undertaking an equity stake purchase in a small business, in partnership with a financial institution.
If you’re looking to create a marketing plan for a new business, or if you’re currently working with an agency but are looking to bring in more clients on your own, contact me for a free, no-obligation consultation.