Review and Update Marketing Plan to Increase Success

July 20, 2011 by · Leave a Comment 

Even the best marketing plan requires review and updating.

Business climates change. The competitive landscape shifts. Communication tactics morph (Facebook, anyone?) and your business is forced to take notice.

If additional marketing focus is one of your business goals, enroll in “Four Weeks to a Master Marketing Plan,” a class series presented by the Albuquerque South Valley Small Business Development Center.

The Marketing Master Plan derives its success from facilitated sessions with small business owners. This series begins Thursday August 11, 2011 at the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce, 1309 Fourth Street SW.

Details: 1pm – 4pm, Thursdays
August 11, 2011 – September 2, 2011
Investment: $250 per attendee
Register online

Dozens of small business owners have completed this series. When asked what they liked best about the classes, previous participants said:

“Group feedback from peers who are knowledgeable and interested in class discussions”

“Directed conversation”

“The push to pinpoint your client and describe your business in seven to eight words is very helpful”

“Development of business bio”

“Goal setting”

“I enjoyed peer input as well as the introduction to many tools to assist in my marketing plan.”

“Finding out ways to multi-task”

“Feedback, helpful weblinks and utilities”

“The comfort level to ask any question”

Five reasons to consider enrolling in the Four-Week Marketing Master Plan class series:

  1. The structure of this program makes it easy to proceed. No more questions about where to start. Instead, you focus on your business, beginning with its goals, an analysis of its strengths and weaknesses and an overview of your best customer.
  2. Small groups increase your market planning effectiveness. Participants serve as sounding boards, trusted advisors and creative catalysts for brainstorming.
  3. With no ringing phones, you concentrate fully on your business and identifying the marketing tactics to make your product/service noticeable.
  4. Interactive weekly meetings hold you accountable and by the end of the four-session class series, you develop a detailed plan with time lines for each action.
  5. The workbook, 197-pages of worksheets, guides, resources and questions, is yours to keep.

Costs for the sessions is $250. Participation is limited to 10.

Sessions are presented by Mary Ellen Merrigan, author of “The Six-Week Marketing Master Plan.”

Comments from previous 6WMMP participants include:

“I found it was easier to start thinking about a comprehensive marketing plan for my own business through our sharing and feedback sessions and reviewing other class attendees’ strategy.” – Aubrey Owens, BigByte.cc Corp

“Positive ways of learning how to manage the marketing mudslide and use it to your advantage.” Jonathan Kronz, Aveda Institute New Mexico

“I love how the material holds you accountable with lists and worksheets.” – Karyth Becenti, Mark Pardo Hair Skin Body

“Mary Ellen’s program helped me focus, answer questions, and provided direction and suppork.” – Dolores Maez, Inn at the Delta

“The people you meet in class are wonderful and the synergy of ideas are mind-expanding. So much information – you leave each session bursting with new ideas.” – Margaret Onuska

“Mary Ellen’s program was very informative with many social media ideas as well as a detailed outline on developing a marketing plan.” – Janea Davis, Advanced Transcription.

Filed under: Blog, Seminars & workshops
Tagged: , ,

Marketing Master Plan Class Begins March 31

March 8, 2011 by · Leave a Comment 

Simplify, structure and solidify your marketing plan. Address the tangle of today’s marketing channels in a four week series presented by Mary Ellen Merrigan.

The hands-on workshop offers business owners an opportunity to sort, prioritize and simplify marketing tactics in an interactive, small group setting.

For four weeks beginning March 31 entrepreneurs will work on their business with customized input from other participants and Merrigan. The program includes Merrigan’s 200-page e-book, The Six Week Marketing Master Plan revised and updated in early March 2011.

The series is hosted by the South Valley Small Business Development Center. Call 505-248-0132 to register.

Details:

1pm – 4pm, four consecutive Thursdays, 

March 31, April 7, April 14 and April 21
Albuquerque Hispano Chamber, 1309 Fourth Street SW, Albuquerque

Pre-registration required. $250.00 per participant

Past participants of the Six Week Marketing Master Plan give the program high marks. See comments below:

“I feel I have gone down the rabbit hole and lord it is ALOT of info!”
Phoenix Forrester, Phoenix Forrester Fine Art

“You may feel like you are herding cats when you add constantly changing social media to your marketing responsibilities.  Mary Ellen’s book, Six-Week Marketing Master Plan, adds the right catnip to your marketing tool bag.”
Jane F. Lee, Ed.D., Vice President, TeachTown

“The training that Mary Ellen offered enabled me to develop a strategic plan for the development of a new external website which has garnered support and funding from the top executive management of my organization. Thanks to Mary’s training, I was able to develop a plan which has encompassed strategies ranging from better content oversight on thousands of outdated pages to an evolved social networking campaign as well as better marketing and communication in all aspects of the website. I continue to use the concepts that I learned in the class daily as my team moves forward with overhauling our outdated and ancient website.”
Ann Lorenz

“I feel that this is the best $$ I have spent on marketing since I started my business.”
Cindy Padilla, Kokopelli Bodyworks

To learn more contact Mary Ellen through this website form.

Filed under: Blog, Seminars & workshops
Tagged: , ,

Get Strategic, Get Results! DIY Social Media

August 9, 2010 by · Leave a Comment 

If you’ve ever asked, “What’s the point?” this seminar is for you.

If you’re positive you could do than ask people to buy, this seminar is for you.

If you’re not sure that your time online is well-spent, this seminar is for you.

In the second workshop of a three-part Do-It-Yourself series for the Albuquerque South Valley Small Business Development Center, (SBDC) Mary Ellen Merrigan discusses social media for entrepreneurs.

“Get Strategic, Get Results!” provides guidelines for business owners who want to do more than simply get on board with social media.

  • Learn why engaging customers online is a must.
  • Transform your efforts with five big “Best Practices.”
  • Build your foundation for Facebook with 10 tips for using a Facebook page.
  • Discover when to hire it out, and what you should know before you do.

To get effective you may only need to tweak your current efforts. Find out more in this free, two-hour workshop sponsored by the South Valley Small Business Development Center.

Details: 10a – 12noon, Tuesday, October 20, 2010 at the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce, 1304 Fourth Street Southwest. For additional information or registration, call 505-248-0132.

Mary Ellen Merrigan has developed successful, sales-building D.I.Y. (Do it Yourself) smart marketing strategies for a wide range of clients promotes the benefits of combining traditional and social media. She is the author of “The Six Week Master Marketing Plan: An hour a day to take your business to the next level,” available online at http://www.sixweekmarketingplan.com. Join Mary Ellen to learn how you can use smart marketing to achieve a positive bottom line.

Filed under: Blog, Seminars & workshops
Tagged: , , ,