Your Marketing Plan Needs 3 Lines- Not 37 Pages

A Simple 90-Day Plan for Small Businesses

In my Stop, Start, Continue post, I asked you to identify the ONE thing you want your marketing to help your business accomplish in the next 90 days.

Now comes the slightly less glamorous part: What are you actually going to do about it?

Because "increase sales," "get more clients" or "be more consistent with marketing" is not a plan. It is a wish wearing business casual.

The good news is that a small business marketing plan doesn't need 37 pages. It needs three lines. Before the next quarter gets swallowed by holidays, deadlines and whatever else lands on your calendar, take five minutes and fill out your 90-Day Action Card.

Two people reviewing printed charts at a desk while setting a specific small business marketing goal.

Line 1, Outcome:

What needs to be true 90 days from now?

Make it specific enough that you will know whether you did it.

Not: Get more clients.
Try: Book three new consulting clients in the next 90 days.
Not: Do more email marketing.
Try: Send one useful email to my list every two weeks.
Not: Work on the website.
Try: Update the three pages responsible for most of my inquiries.

Write yours down: In 90 days, I want to ________________________________.

Stone steps leading up a green garden path, representing one clear next step in a marketing plan.

Line 2, Action:

What ONE activity is most likely to move that goal?

This is where we resist the urge to create a 14-part marketing plan.

If you need three clients, maybe the answer is following up with 20 warm contacts.
If you want repeat customers, maybe it is a re-engagement email campaign.
If your website gets traffic but not inquiries, maybe you should fix the offer and call to action on your highest-traffic pages.
If you need year-end donations, maybe you should tell one compelling donor story really well instead of posting seven generic fundraising reminders.

Write yours down: The action I am going to prioritize is ________________________________.

A hand writing on a paper calendar, scheduling time for small business marketing work.

Line 3, Calendar:

When is it actually happening?

If it is not on your calendar, it is still just a good intention.

Pick the first block of time now.

Write yours down: I am working on this on __________________ at __________________.

That's it.

One outcome. One action. One appointment with yourself to make it happen.

You can always build from there. But you have now done something most businesses skip entirely: connected a business goal to a marketing action and made room to actually execute it.

Need help with the next part?

If you already know what needs to get done but need help getting it across the finish line, email me and tell me the project. Website updates, email campaigns, SEO, content, strategy, or the thing that has been sitting on your list for three months, glaring at you.

And if you fill out your Action Card, send me your three answers. I would genuinely love to see what you are working toward.

Here's to fewer good intentions and more things actually getting done.

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