As a marketer, you’re always looking for the next big thing. What’s in, what’s out. Today, the term “digital marketing” can mean different things to different people. To some, it might mean getting online and using social media to promote your brand. To others, it might mean getting on Google and using key words to find your products.

While each form of digital marketing has its perks, none of them can do everything that a business might need.

That’s where the capability sheet for online marketing comes in. Here, you’ll define your digital marketing strategy and outline your plan to achieve your goals. You’ll also list the tools you’ll need to make it happen. At the end, you’ll have a ready-to-go template that you can customize for your own needs. Whether you’re just starting out or you’re already well into your digital marketing journey, this sheet will come in handy.

The Benefits Of A Capability Sheet

A capability sheet for online marketing is akin to a business plan for entrepreneurs and startups. Like a business plan for startups, it’s a detailed document that lays out your strategy and objectives. Unlike a business plan, it’s designed to be used and updated over time.

The benefits of a capability sheet are numerous. First off, it helps you define your strategy and objectives. Second, it’s a ready-to-go document that you can update as needed. Third, it has sections that can be pulled and customized to fit your specific needs. Finally, it’s a living document that you can continue to grow and change as your business evolves.

What To Include In Your Capability Sheet

Include the following in your capability sheet:

• A description of your company
• Your marketing vision and mission
• An outline of your product/service offering
• Your target audience
• Keywords (these will be important to find the right people, as you’ll discover later on in this guide)
• Your competitive analysis (this should include your competitors, as well as their strategies)
• Operations (this includes things like pricing, distribution, and so on)
• Financial analysis (this is where you’ll define your profit margins and project how much you’ll need to earn)
• A short summary of your company’s history
• Activities, initiatives, and plans for the near future

How To Present Your Capability Sheet

How you present your capability sheet is up to you. You could create a simple Word document and add some charts and graphs to show your analytics data or create an Excel spreadsheet and add some fancy charts to it to make it look professional.

You’ll want to take your pick here. The most important thing to keep in mind though is that you want to make sure that your sheet is easy to understand and to digest for anyone who’s reading it. When creating your sheet, use plain English and keep it short and sweet. Think of these sheets as performance reports for your business.

Creating A Successful Capability Sheet

With a little bit of work, you can make your capability sheet into a winning document. Start by taking a survey of your existing customers, gaining valuable insights into their needs and expectations. This will help you create a document that accurately reflects your target audience. From here, take some time to brainstorm different marketing strategies that you can use to reach your audience.

Your marketing strategy should align with your overarching business goals. For example, if you’re looking to expand your reach, then marketing campaigns that bring in new, as well as existing, customers are your best route to success.

Make sure to put yourself in your customer’s shoes for a moment. What would you want to read about your brand? What kinds of content are you most likely to engage with?

To answer these questions, you can use analytics to track the content that your customers are interacting with and the actions that they’re taking (such as buying products or signing up for email lists). This will help you identify the types of content that you should be creating, as well as the platform (e.g., blog posts, social media ads, etc.) that you should utilize to reach your audience.

Marketing Vs. Advertising

The terms “marketing” and “advertising” are used synonymously in the capability sheet for online marketing. However, as you might assume, they have different meanings. Marketing is the process of disseminating information about your product or service to consumers. Advertising is the process of getting people to notice you, your product, or your service.

In marketing, you’ll use a variety of tools and methods to achieve your goals. These might include TV ads, radio spots, billboards, bus tours, or even a blog post. Here, though, you’re focusing more specifically on online marketing. With online marketing, your approach will be much more digital.

In online marketing, the most important thing to keep in mind is that you’re trying to reach potential customers who are actively seeking your products or services. With that in mind, focus on using digital mechanisms to connect with consumers, such as:

• Blog posts
• Product reviews
• Product comparisons
• Videos
• Social media accounts
• Online stores
• And the list goes on

Each of these digital mechanisms will help you connect with your audience so that you can promote your brand and drive sales.

What Is Digital Marketing?

Put yourself in your customer’s shoes for a moment. What do you know about digital marketing?

Most business people will tell you that digital marketing is marketing done digitally. In other words, it’s an approach that uses digital tools and platforms to reach consumers and potential customers. Here are the defining features of digital marketing: