How to Create a Digital Marketing Plan from Scratch

Launching a new brand requires a structured approach to reaching potential customers in a crowded online environment. For new entrepreneurs, creating a digital marketing plan serves as a technical roadmap that aligns business objectives with specific promotional activities. Digital advertising and marketing expenditures reached an estimated $667 billion globally in 2024 and are projected to exceed $786 billion by 2026. This growth underscores the necessity of a data-backed strategy over speculative actions.

Defining Business Objectives and Key Results

The first step in building a digital marketing strategy involves identifying what the business intends to achieve within a set timeframe. Organizations often use the SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound) framework to ensure these goals are functional rather than aspirational.

Standard objectives for a new brand include:

Lead Generation: Increasing the number of potential customers who provide contact information. Customer Acquisition: Converting leads into paying users. Brand Awareness: Expanding the reach of the brand name to a wider audience. Revenue Growth: Increasing the total dollar value of sales over a specific period.

Data from the CMO Survey indicates that 30.55% of marketers use data to determine their most effective strategies, while 29.59% use it to improve return on investment (ROI). Establishing baseline metrics before starting campaigns allows a business to measure progress with certainty.

Building Data-Driven Customer Personas

Marketing to a general audience often leads to inefficient spending. A customer persona is a profile representing a segment of the ideal customer base. According to research from Ceros, companies that segment their database by persona are 93% more likely to exceed their lead and revenue goals. Furthermore, personalized marketing strategies can deliver up to eight times the ROI of unpersonalized campaigns.

Researching the Target Audience

To build a persona, gather information on the following:

1. Demographics: Age, location, gender, and income level.

2. Psychographics: Interests, values, and lifestyle choices.

3. Behaviors: Platforms they use, how they research products, and their preferred payment methods.

4. Pain Points: Specific problems the product or service will solve for them.

Statistical evidence shows that 63% of content marketers create persona-centric content to increase engagement. Using these profiles leads to a 171% increase in marketing-generated revenue by ensuring the messaging resonates with the specific needs of the viewer.

Analyzing the Competitive Landscape

Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of direct and indirect competitors allows a new brand to find its unique market position. A competitive analysis involves auditing the online presence of at least three to five main rivals.

Review these areas during the analysis:

Channel Presence: Which platforms do they use most frequently? Content Quality: Are they publishing videos, blogs, or whitepapers? Ad Spending: Are they running Google Ads or social media advertisements? Customer Feedback: What do customers praise or complain about in their reviews?

Market data reveals that 97% of consumers check a company’s online footprint before making a purchase. Identifying gaps in a competitor’s strategy, such as poor mobile optimization or lack of video content, creates an opportunity for a new brand to capture dissatisfied users.

Selecting Effective Digital Marketing Channels

A digital marketing plan must prioritize channels based on where the target audience spends time and the historical ROI of those platforms. Not every channel is suitable for every brand.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

SEO involves optimizing a website to rank higher in organic search results. BrightEdge reports that search engines drive 93% of all website traffic and produce 1,000% more traffic than organic social media. While SEO takes time to produce results, it offers long-term sustainability. Leads from SEO have a 14.6% close rate, significantly higher than the average for outbound marketing.

Paid Search and Display Advertising

Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising through platforms like Google Ads provides immediate visibility. On average, PPC returns $2 for every $1 spent. Many businesses allocate 30% to 40% of their digital marketing budget to Google Ads during the initial launch phase to capture high-intent searchers.

Email Marketing

Email marketing remains one of the most profitable channels. Current benchmarks show that email generates approximately $36 for every $1 invested. For B2C brands, the conversion rate for email is roughly 2.8%. Using buyer personas in email campaigns can improve open rates by 2x and click-through rates by 5x.

Social Media Marketing

Social media accounts for 33% of all digital ad spending. Facebook remains the dominant platform with over three billion monthly active users, while LinkedIn is cited by 40% of B2B marketers as the top source for high-quality leads. Short-form video is currently the most engaging format; 91% of businesses now use video as a marketing tool.

Content Strategy and Brand Messaging

Content acts as the vehicle for a brand's message. A successful plan defines the types of content required to move a customer through the buying journey.

Awareness Stage: Informative blog posts, short videos, and infographics. Consideration Stage: Case studies, product comparisons, and webinars. Decision Stage: Free trials, demos, and discount codes.

Long-form content generates 77.2% more backlinks than short articles, which aids in SEO rankings. Additionally, infographics are 30 times more likely to be read than plain text and can increase website traffic by up to 12%. Businesses that publish consistent content see 55% more organic search traffic than those that do not.

Allocating the Marketing Budget

Budgeting for a digital marketing plan depends on the growth stage of the business. Gartner’s 2024 data shows that the average marketing budget is approximately 7.7% of total company revenue. However, for startups and new brands focused on rapid scaling, the recommended allocation is often higher, ranging from 10% to 25% of projected revenue.

A standard budget distribution for a new digital brand might follow this pattern:

40-60%: Paid media (PPC, Social Ads). 20-30%: Content creation (Video, Design, Copywriting). 10-15%: Technology and software (CRM, Email platforms, Analytics). 5-10%: Analytics and market research.

Allocating at least 5% to 10% of the budget specifically for measurement ensures that the business has the tools necessary to track performance.

Implementing Analytics and Performance Tracking

Without measurement, it is impossible to determine the success of a digital marketing plan. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) provide the data needed to optimize campaigns in real-time.

Crucial metrics to track include:

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): The total spend required to acquire one new customer. Return on Ad Spend (ROAS): The revenue generated for every dollar spent on advertising. Conversion Rate: The percentage of website visitors who take a desired action. The average e-commerce conversion rate is currently under 2%.

• Bounce Rate: The percentage of visitors who leave the site after viewing only one page. The average bounce rate is 37%.

Google Analytics 4 is the industry standard for tracking user behavior. Setting up conversion tracking before the first ad goes live prevents data loss and allows for more accurate attribution.

Maintaining and Scaling the Plan

A digital marketing plan is a living document. Consumer behaviors and platform algorithms change frequently. For instance, 63% of consumers now prefer finding information via mobile devices, requiring brands to maintain a mobile-first approach to web design and advertising.

Review the plan’s performance every month to identify high-performing channels. If a specific social media platform produces a lower cost-per-lead than paid search, reallocating funds to that platform will improve overall efficiency. Successful brands update their customer personas every six months to reflect current market data and feedback from the sales team. This iterative process ensures that the marketing efforts remain aligned with the evolving needs of the audience.