The most common reason small business owners don't have a marketing plan?"I barely have time to do the marketing, let alone plan it."We get it. When you're already stretched thin, the idea of stopping to create a strategy feels like a luxury. You need results now, not a planning session.
But here's the thing: the planning is what creates the time.
Let's talk through the real objections, because they're worth addressing honestly.
You might be thinking: "I don't need a formal plan. I know I should post on social media, send emails, and maybe run some ads. The problem is finding time to actually do it."
Fair. But here's what the research shows:
Small businesses with a marketing plan are 6.7 times more likely to report marketing success. Among businesses with a plan, 87% rated their marketing as successful. For those without? Just 13%.
That's not because having a plan is magic. It's because a plan removes decisions.
Without a plan, every marketing session starts with "what should I post about?" and "which platform should I focus on?" and "is this even worth my time?"
With a plan, you already know the answers. You just execute.
The planning doesn't add work. It removes the mental overhead that makes marketing feel so draining.
You might be surprised how flexible a plan can be.
We're not talking about a 50-page marketing strategy that takes weeks to create. We're talking about simple answers to simple questions:
Who are my best customers? Where do they spend time online? What do I want them to do? What's the one channel I'll focus on this month?
That's it. Four questions. Takes 30 minutes to answer. And suddenly you have a filter for every marketing decision.
Should I start a TikTok account? Check your plan. Is that where your customers are? No? Skip it without guilt.
Should I send that email? Check your plan. Does it move people toward the action you want? Yes? Send it.
The plan doesn't lock you in. It gives you permission to say no to the stuff that doesn't matter.
Start with email. Here's why.
Email marketing returns $36 for every $1 spent. That's a 3600% ROI, the highest of any marketing channel. And 41% of marketers say email is their most effective channel overall.
Meanwhile, social media algorithms change constantly. Organic reach keeps declining. You're at the mercy of platforms you don't control.
Email? You own that list. You control when and how you reach people. And the ROI speaks for itself.
If you can only focus on one channel, focus on email. Build your list. Send consistently. Everything else is secondary.
You don't need to become an AI expert. You just need to use it for the parts that slow you down.
59% of small businesses are already incorporating AI into their marketing. And here's the interesting part: businesses using AI are 5.7 times more likely to report marketing success.
The most common uses? Drafting social posts. Writing email subject lines. Brainstorming content ideas. The stuff that used to take 30 minutes and now takes 5.
33% of small businesses save more than 40 minutes a week on marketing using AI and automation. That's over 30 hours a year from one change.
You don't need to automate everything. Just the parts that slow you down most.
Marketing efficiency is about focusing your limited time on what actually works. The same principle applies to running your business.
Every hour you spend comparing vendor prices, negotiating terms, and managing supplier relationships is an hour you're not spending on growth.
That's why Mighty uses group purchasing. When you're saving 10-25% on supplies you're already buying, and you're not doing the legwork to get those prices, you've bought back time and money at once.
Less time on procurement. Less time on marketing busywork. More time for the work that actually matters.
The question isn't whether you have time to plan your marketing.
It's whether you have time to keep doing it without one.
87% of businesses with a plan say their marketing is successful. Just 13% without one can say the same.
A plan doesn't add work. It removes the decisions that make marketing feel so exhausting.
30 minutes of planning. Months of clarity.
What's stopping you from starting?
Mighty leverages the buying power of millions of small businesses to unlock significant savings and deliver growth for its members.
