Half of small businesses don’t have a marketing plan

A new study carried out in the USA has revealed that more than half of small businesses don’t have a marketing plan – meaning there is little structure or strategy behind their marketing activity and spend.The survey was carried out by Outbound Engine and spoke to 350 small and medium American businesses. It concluded that over 50% hadn’t created a 2019 marketing plan. The poll also questions them about revenue growth and goals, key sources of stress and the most effective marketing tactics they employ.

So how do small business owners feel about their marketing? The survey paints a bit of a stressed picture, with many SME owners saying that they’re dealing with limited budgets and are short on time, meaning many are feeling the pressure. 62% of small business owners said that they were more concerned about being in business this year than last year and as a result, marketing activity and marketing planning is getting pushed down a long list of to dos.A quarter of owners said that they weren’t sure what their approach to growth would be in 2019, while a whopping 89% said that they preferred to spend their time on business things rather than dealing with marketing. Of course, this approach means that the input needed to generate leads, raise profile and make sales simply isn’t coming through, creating a vicious circle of worry and stress.By failing to prioritise marketing activity, small business owners Stateside are increasing the pressure on themselves and leaving themselves without a solid plan or the resources needed to meet growth targets.Over half of business owners spend less than 5% of their annual income on marketing costs as a result – a figure which in practise, equates to less than five hours per week spent on marketing activities. Looking at the positives While the above is pretty downcast, there is good news for business owners open to the idea of restricting their approach to market just a little to help build their overall business confidence and better meet sales targets. The study showed that even a small increase in budget and effort yields notable results for SMEs, with an increase in marketing investment directly correlating to an increase in revenue.Those SMEs who increased their marketing spend to 5-10% of annual revenue also witnessed clear improvement, with 81% saying it led to revenue growth.