Especially in these tough economic times, effective advertising is essential to get the most bang out of your

reduced advertising budget. Whatever the product you're backing is, you need to reach your customer in the
best way you can with the least amount of spending. This article will give you the most basic tips to getting
started with an advertising strategy, or modifying the one you already use. This article will assume that your
advertising budget needs to include both the media dollars and the costs associate with the creative (ie cost of
printing, cost of graphic design, cost of production for TV or radio, etc)

Without a proper marketing plan, you may end up with a well-made washing machine that no one wants to
buy. Your product could be excellent, but if you don't plan out your advertising you won't end up with the kind of
sales you're hoping for. A washing machine marketing plan can turn that around. Plan your advertising
strategies, consider your target market and finally get the sales your washing machine deserves.

 Budget - The first thing you need to know is how much money you have to spend. You truly can't make any other decisions
until you know this. It will determine how broad your reach can be, which media you will consider using, and what you can
afford to do creatively and media wise.

Audience - Next you need to know who you are trying to reach - also known as your "audience" in advertising terms,
or your "customer" when talking shop. You should already have a pretty good handle on the types of people that are
buying your products simply by way of being an expert in what it is that you're selling. Often times, your audience is a
lot like you. Bear in mind that you should define your audience by several basic demographic factors including:
gender, age, location and income level. Depending on your product, other important indicators may include race,
occupation, presence of children in the home, and activities they participate in. A quick example: if you're selling a
high-end dishwasher, you would do good to target women, over age 25, possibly with children, who make $50,000
plus and have expressed an interest in home appliances or decorating. Location, race and occupation aren't essential
indicators in this example. 

 There are lots of ways you can use research to help determine who is buying your product, but experience tells
me that much of it is simply common sense. You don't market Big Wheels to high-school aged boys who make
$8,000 a year by putting your ad in a skateboarding magazine- you sell them to parents, moms and grandmothers
who read parenting publications and websites. However, if you're a big company (chances are, you're not reading
this story) and you have access to research, by all means, USE IT!

Media - Once you have your budget and audience figured out, you'll need to decide which media are the most
appropriate for your product and message. Again, common sense is a huge asset here. You're not going to sell your
hiking equipment buying a bunch of spots on the Jerry Springer show. But you might have some luck selling an at-
home DNA test to this audience. (hardy har har) 

The medium or media you choose will be determined greatly by your advertising budget. Certain media are more cost
prohibitive than others - your local grocery store can't afford a TV spot to run during the Superbowl (a huge waste for
a small fry anyhow), but they could certainly afford a local mailing, ad in a local paper or newsletter, or even a local
TV spot. Just remember the production costs when you're considering your medium, too. Can you afford to put
together a TV commercial? If you need a broadcast message, perhaps radio would be a more affordable option. If
print is where you're headed, bear in mind that many publications offer in-house design services (usually for a small
fee) that you might be able to take advantage of. Be sure the medium fits your message. There's no point in trying to
sell strollers on the DIY mechanics website. While you might hit a few super involved dads, you'll do better to get that
message to the people who actually BUY strollers. Catch my drift? Waste not
 Most media sources (print, outdoor, TV, radio and Internet) also have a really good handle on their audience. And part of the
service they offer to you in exchange for your advertising dollars is the research that they've conducted. Most hire third parties to
do this research so that you have an easier time believing that the data they provide is unbiased. Most of the time, all you have to
do is ask. Call up the sales department and say "Hey, I'm selling this product. I have a hunch that your medium can really reach
my target audience. What can you tell me about your reach to such and such demographic?"

The Plan - Now it's time to make your plan! Your plan needs to consider the following: budget, media, reach,
frequency, timing and impact. A simple calendar will help you greatly in this endeavor. If you have a seasonal
product, you know that you'll need to concentrate your media dollars in the time period most appropriate for the
buying season of your product. Meaning, you don't want to blow half your budget trying to sell lawn mowers to
Michigan residents in the middle of February! Your calendar will also help you track spending, deadlines and
"flighting" in a visually easy-to-follow manner. 

Ideally, your media plan will get you the best reach with the most frequency for the highest impact of your message.
Internal sales figures out to help you determine the best times to reach your customer. Perhaps your business isn't one
affected so much by timing and you need a plan that just keeps the message consistently reaching your audience
with no great-big punch needed. Again, these are things you should be able to figure out with your staff or with a little
research into your sales figures.

 Consider trying to reach your target audience in several different ways. If you're selling the newest snack cracker to moms, get
to them on the websites they're reading, put your coupon in the inserts they're clipping, get a page in the appropriate magazine,
put that cracker up on a billboard to catch them in the commute, hit em with a commercial during a cooking show or Oprah, etc.
Frequency of the message is important and an old advertising rule of thumb is to try to get your message to the customer 3 times.

 Tracking - If there's any possible way to do so within your budget, I highly recommend tracking! There are tried and true
ways to get actual views of and responses to your advertising. Websites count clicks, mail-back cards track responses and 800
numbers track calls - you can assign a unique one to each ad that will tell you who is seeing you where. Very cool and very
helpful when it comes time to review and possibly revise your plan. The smaller the budget, the more important this feedback
will be. You have to know what's working so you can keep doing it!

Review & Revise - Keep in mind, you'll need to give your advertising plan sufficient time to work. Think about how
many times in a day you are inundated with advertising messages. Your customers experience that same overload.
That doesn't mean that your message is lost in the sea of others out there. Maybe today I don't need to worry about
buying your new washing machine. But if I see your ad a few times over the next few months and it intrigues me
enough to remember the great new features you've told me about, when my washer dies 3 months down the road,
your ad is going to come flying at me out of my memory bank and I just might go buy your washer!

Basically what I'm saying is that some products aren't immediate response types of things. For those that are, you'll
know right away if your plan is working. Therefore, based on your industry and product, you'll need to determine what
a good length of time for review and revision is for your advertising campaign. Is it yearly, quarterly, monthly? 
Bear in mind that most media buys involve a contract with a discount rooted in frequency. So if you pull out before that
contract is up, you may be penalized!
How to Write a Marketing Plan for a Washing Machine

Without a proper marketing plan, you may end up with a well-made washing machine that no one wants to buy.
Your product could be excellent, but if you don't plan out your advertising you won't end up with the kind of
sales you're hoping for. A washing machine marketing plan can turn that around. Plan your advertising
strategies, consider your target market and finally get the sales your washing machine deserves.

Instructions
 Begin your washing machine marketing plan with a summary and introduction. It should
introduce what the reader will find within the marketing plan and summarize your strategy.
Include an overview of the main points of the marketing plan along with what you intend to
achieve. In this case, you want to improve washing machine sales.

 Outline your plans in a section titled "Marketing Objectives." List exactly what you want to
achieve with your marketing plan, without yet detailing how you plan to achieve these goals. For
example, you could write "Increase washing machine sales for people under 25," since this isn't
the typical target market for a standard washing machine. You could also say, "Promote washing
machines in five different magazines throughout the coming year."

 List your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) under the heading
"Situation Analysis." While it's good to focus on the positive aspects of your washing machine
with strengths and opportunities, listing weaknesses and threats will avoid repeating previous
mistakes in marketing. A strength could be exceptional washing power, while a weakness could
be an easily clogged lint trap. Under Opportunities, list the many ways you can advertise your
washing machine, such as in radio advertisements or at home show conventions. Under Threats,
list the reasons why someone in your target market might not buy your washing machine, such as
competition from a lower-priced competitor.

 Write down who the target market is for your washing machine under "Target Markets."
How old is your average customer? Is it a woman or a man? Does your washing machine
typically sell to single people or people with large families? Consider all of these aspects when
developing a target market for your product. Each washing machine is different, so consider your
model very carefully when coming up with an answer. A stackable washer and dryer will have a
different target market than a high end, large capacity washing machine.
 List your plan of action for marketing and selling your washing machine under "Strategies."
Consider your customers and competitors when figuring out your marketing strategies. Consider
the product, price, place of distribution and how you plan to promote it, especially in relation to
your washing machine's target market. If you plan to start a newspaper marketing campaign, list
the overall feel of the advertisement, who it targets, where it will be published and for how long.

 Add your plans for tracking your sales and successful marketing programs under
"Tracking." For instance, if you start an Internet marketing campaign with a banner
advertisement showing your washing machine, program a tracking code into the banner
ad. This way, if someone purchases a washing machine by clicking the ad, you will know
where they came from. By tracking, you can determine which marketing
methods work best, which will help in future promotions.