How to Create a Killer Marketing Plan Using OGSM Methodology

Creating a marketing plan can seem overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. With the right framework and approach, you can create a killer marketing plan that aligns with your business goals and objectives.

Creating a killer marketing plan is crucial to the success of any business. Using the OGSM methodology aligns the marketing plan with the overall business objective and goals and details clear strategies and measures for successful implementation.

In this article, we’ll walk you through the OGSM methodology, which stands for Objectives, Goals, Strategies, and Measures, how to apply it to effective marketing plans and provide relevant examples for each element of the plan.

What is a marketing plan?

Before we dig in, what is a marketing plan anyway and why do I need one? A marketing plan is a comprehensive document that outlines a company’s marketing efforts including how to achieve business goals such as increasing sales, expanding the customer base, and launching new products.

The benefits of a marketing plan therefore include aligning marketing goals with business objectives, identifying potential opportunities and threats, allocating resources effectively, and measuring the success of marketing efforts. In other words, by creating a killer marketing plan, you can stay ahead of your competition and achieve your desired business goals.

OK, so how do we go about creating a killer marketing plan using the OGSM methodology?

Objectives

The first step in creating a killer marketing plan is to define your objective. Objectives are the big picture goals you want to achieve with your marketing plan. These could include increasing sales, expanding your customer base, or launching a new product. To define your objectives, ask yourself:

• What is my business’s mission and vision, and how can my marketing plan support these?
• What are the top three to five goals I want to achieve with my marketing plan?

When you are clear on your mission and goals, write an objective statement using the “what-by-how” method. The “what-by-how” method includes in one statement both what you aim to achieve and clarity how you are going to achieve it.

Example:

Let’s say you’re the marketing manager for a fashion brand whose vision includes becoming the most desired online fashion brand. Your objectives might include increasing brand awareness, driving more traffic to your online store, and boosting sales. Your marketing plan should support these objectives and align with your brand’s mission and vision.

Your Objective could read:

Become the most desired online fashion brand by increasing brand awareness, driving more traffic to our online store, and boosting sales.

You can read more about drafting effective objective statements in this dedicated article.

Goals

Once you’ve defined your objective, the next step is to set specific, measurable goals that support your objectives. Goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).

For example, if your objective is to increase sales, a SMART goal could be to increase sales by 10% in the next quarter. To set your goals, ask yourself:

• What specific metrics do I want to achieve with my marketing plan?
• How will I measure my progress toward these metrics?

Example:

Continuing with the fashion brand example, let’s say your objective is to boost sales. Your SMART goals could include

• increasing online sales by 15% in the next six months,
• generating 1,000 new email subscribers, and
• increasing social media engagement by 20%.

You can read more about setting SMART goals for your marketing plan in this article.

Strategies

With your objective and goals in place, it’s time to develop your marketing strategies. Strategies are the actions you will take to achieve your goals. Your strategies should be specific, actionable, and aligned with your goals. To develop your strategies, ask yourself:

• What specific tactics will I use to achieve my goals?
• How will I allocate my resources (budget, time, etc.) to support my strategies?

Aim to select no more than 3-5 specific initiatives in order to allocate your resources to the most effective activities. Similar to your objective statement, consider writing your strategies using the “what-by-how” method to make them as specific and actionable as possible.

Example:

For the fashion brand, your strategies could include

• Raise brand awareness by launching a new influencer marketing campaign,
• Increase website traffic by optimizing your website for search engines, and
• Boost web traffic conversion rates by creating targeted email campaigns.

You could allocate your resources as follows: 50% of your budget to influencer marketing, 30% to website optimization, and 20% to email campaigns.

Read more about making strategic choices and allocating resources in this dedicated article about selecting effective strategies.

Measures

Finally, it’s essential to measure the effectiveness of your marketing plan to determine whether you’re on track to achieving your objective and goals. Measures are the specific metrics you will use to evaluate the success of the strategies in your marketing plan. To define your measures, ask yourself:

• What metrics will I use to track the effectiveness of my marketing plan?
• How will I use this data to make informed decisions and adjust my marketing plan as needed?

Select specific metrics for each of your strategies or initiatives. While the strategies are qualitative statements, the metrics should be quantifiable data and figures.

Example:

For the fashion brand, your measures could include

• tracking website traffic,
• conversion rates,
• email open rates and click-through rates, and
• social media engagement.

You could use this data to make informed decisions about which strategies are working and adjust your marketing plan as needed.

More about setting specific measures here.

Use our OGSM Template for your Marketing Plan

Creating a killer marketing plan using the OGSM methodology takes time and effort, but it’s well worth it in the end. Using a template can help you get started and accelerate your progress. Here are templates for Excel and Powerpoint to give you a leg up:

By aligning your marketing plan with your business objectives, setting SMART goals, developing actionable strategies, and tracking your progress with specific measures, you can create a successful marketing plan for your business.

As you spring into action, plan ahead to regularly review the effectiveness of your marketing plan and to make needed adjustments to keep you on track. Read more about regular reviews here. Rock on!