What Should Be in a Small Business Marketing Plan?
Let’s just start here: most small business “marketing plans” aren’t plans at all. They’re more like vague to-do lists scribbled in a notebook after one too many coffees. You know the ones — “Get more followers,” “Run an ad,” “Do marketing.”
Technically, those are ideas. But they’re not a plan.
A real marketing plan is a roadmap. One that helps you stop guessing, start prioritizing, and actually move your business forward. It doesn’t need to be 47 pages long or formatted like a UN report. But it does need to make sense. So, let’s talk about what should actually go in it — and what can stay in the land of good intentions.
Start With What You’re Actually Trying to Do
Yes, I know — groundbreaking advice. But you’d be amazed how many marketing efforts start without a clear goal. Are you trying to increase foot traffic to your shop? Book more service calls? Launch a product? Prove to your accountant that your Instagram efforts are “strategic”?
Your marketing plan needs to be built around actual business goals — not just activities that look productive on the surface. If you’re spending money, time, or energy on marketing, it should point to a clear outcome. Otherwise, it’s just digital busywork.
Know Who You’re Talking To (Hint: It’s Not Everyone)
If your target audience is “anyone with money,” we need to talk. Marketing to everyone is a great way to connect with no one. A plan should zero in on your actual customers — the ones who get what you do, need what you offer, and don’t make you want to crawl under your desk every time they call.
You don’t need a 12-page persona with stock photos and fake names. You just need to understand what your ideal customer cares about, where they spend their time, and how you can help them in a way they’ll care about.
Say Something Worth Hearing
Your brand message is more than just your tagline and colour palette. It’s how you talk about your business, what you believe, and how you want people to feel when they interact with you. It’s the difference between sounding like a real person and sounding like ChatGPT got into the corporate buzzword drawer.
You don’t have to be clever — just clear. If your website says one thing, your social media says another, and your in-store signage is still referencing an event from 2019, it’s time for a little message clean-up.
Pick the Right Channels (Not All of Them)
Here’s where most small business owners burn out: trying to be everywhere, all the time. Instagram. Facebook. LinkedIn. TikTok. Blog. Podcast. Newsletter. Pigeon mail.
You don’t need every platform. You need the right ones — the ones where your audience actually pays attention. Choose a few, show up consistently, and focus on quality over quantity. It’s better to do three things well than ten things that make you question your life choices.
Content: The Stuff That Fills the Internet (and Your Marketing Plan)
Once you know your goals and your channels, you need content — the stuff that tells your story, shares your expertise, and reminds people you exist. But this doesn’t mean posting just to check a box. If your plan is “post when I remember,” you won’t.
Create a schedule you can actually stick to — even if it’s just one blog a month and a few social posts a week. And please, for your own sanity, make sure the content serves a purpose. Not every post needs to go viral. But it should show your value, educate your audience, or move someone a step closer to buying.
Budget: The Part No One Likes Talking About
Marketing costs money. Even when you’re doing it yourself, your time is part of the equation. A real plan includes a real budget — not just “we’ll figure it out as we go.”
Whether it’s $500 a month or $5,000, be honest about what you can invest. And if you’re planning to outsource, budget for that, too. (Side note: if your plan is to hire one magical marketing unicorn to do everything for $20/hour, you’re going to have a bad time.)
Don’t Forget the Metrics
This is where marketing either proves itself or quietly slips into the abyss. What are you measuring? What does success actually look like? Hint: It’s probably not just “more likes.”
Tie your metrics back to your goals — website traffic, leads, sales, bookings, email signups. Whatever matters to your business. Then track them consistently. If you’re not checking in on performance, you’re not marketing. You’re just guessing.
The One Thing Most Plans Leave Out
Who’s actually doing all this? Because a beautiful plan means nothing if no one executes it.
Be honest: Are you doing it? Is your admin doing it between answering phones and booking appointments? Are you outsourcing to a team like ours? It doesn’t matter who does the work — it just matters that someone does. Otherwise, your marketing plan is just a very expensive PDF.
Final Thought
At the end of the day, your marketing plan should feel like a tool, not a burden. It should help you make decisions faster, stay focused, and avoid chasing shiny objects. And it should reflect your actual business — not some idealized version you think you’re supposed to be.
If all of this feels a bit overwhelming, that’s normal. Most small business owners are already wearing too many hats, and “marketing strategist” wasn’t the one you signed up for.
That’s where we come in. Charcoal Marketing helps small businesses build and execute real plans — the kind that don’t collect dust or rely on your niece who’s “good at social media.”
Need help? Let’s build something that actually works.