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Marketing Plan Instructions
TITLE PAGE
This may seem to be a minor matter, but it is important to have a clear and error-free title page.
A mistake at this stage can reflect poorly on the writers and the overall content of the report. On
this page you should include the title of the project, the names of those who wrote the plan, who
the plan was written for and the date it was submitted.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The executive summary is found at the very beginning of the report, usually after the title page,
contents and acknowledgments, and just before the introduction. Not all managers or executives
have a large amount of time to read the whole report word for word, nor would they like to read
a brief overview of the plan to obtain a perspective of it before reading the details. The executive
summary provides the reader with a brief summary of the whole report, including what the report
is about, how the writers obtained the information used in the report and the final
recommendations. It is different from the introduction, which is discussed in the next section.
If you are just starting your marketing plan, it is too early to write the executive summary
properly, therefore it is best to save writing this section until the end, when you know what you
are planning. Or, you can start writing a few dot-points noting important information that must
be in the executive summary anyway.
INTRODUCTION
As with all business reports, it is important to begin the body of the marketing plan with an
introduction. The introduction sets the scene for the whole plan. It establishes what is being
marketed, who is doing it, where they are doing it, when they are doing it, why they are doing it
and how long the campaign will be. As with all aspects of the report, the wording of the
introduction must be clear, direct and straight to the point. The introduction provides a solid
beginning for the whole report by clearly stating to the reader what the report is about.
Even if you are the Managing Director of an organisation, you will most probably have to show a
marketing plan to someone, for instance other managers, marketing staff, an advertising agency
or a business consultant. In years to come, this report will become an historical record of what
has been planned in the past. It is therefore important to have as much relevant information about
the particular plan or campaign, so that future managers can use the report to assist them when
preparing any future marketing plan.
In the space provided below you can begin drafting your introduction. Remember to include
clear statements of what good or service is being marketed (scope), who is responsible for this
plan (responsibility), why they are doing this campaign (purpose), where they are running the
campaign (location), when they are running the campaign (timing) and whether there are any
issues that the reader should be aware of (limitations). Some introductions include a ‘vision
statement’ or the company mission statement to set the direction of where the marketing plan
should be heading in the context of the wider organisation.
SITUATION ANALYSIS
Before presenting the detailed plan of objectives, activities, and so on, the reader must know
what has happened so far and be aware of the current position or situation of the organisation or
product. This is done through the use of a situation analysis.
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A situation analysis briefly reviews and analyses the current market, the marketing environment,
the company, the customers and the competitors—all of which can influence how the firm will
undertake its marketing plan. The analysis finishes with the writing of a SWOT (strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis.
It is very hard to plan future marketing activities effectively if you have no knowledge of such
things as what the market for your product is like, what factors can affect the marketing of your
product, what your company, competitors and customers are like, and what has worked
successfully in the past and what has failed.
Some of these questions may be hard to answer. It is therefore extremely important to do your
research before trying to answer these questions. Secondary data on your market can be found in
government departments (via government reports, industry statistics and council plans), industry
bodies (often published in industry magazines or association journals), libraries (local, industry
and university), company web sites (on the Internet), syndicated data services (such as private
market research companies) and even in your own organisation (sales records and accounting
reports). Primary data can be obtained from activities like personal, telephone or mail surveys,
focus groups, experiments and observation.
Remember, it is important to be brief and to the point. This means that you should really
crystallise your thoughts on the current position of your product before presenting your ideas in
the marketing plan. Begin by reviewing your current market.
MARKET ANALYSIS
Business/market definition
To assist in preparing your detailed marketing plan, it is important to look at the current market
situation to determine whether continued effort is desirable. Based on the previous 12 months of
business, briefly answer the following. (Some information might not be readily available, which
may mean some research is needed, or you can use your knowledge of your business to make
some realistic estimates.)
To what business, market or industry are you marketing your product?
Market size
What is the current size of the market for your product? Is the market growing or declining?
What could be the reasons for any changes?
Market potential
What is the future potential for the market for your product? Is the market potential growing or
declining? What could be the reasons for any changes?
Market structure
How many other firms are in your market? Write down the names of your direct and indirect
competitors. What is the approximate market share of each of the firms in the market? A more
detailed competitor analysis will follow.
Market trends
Can you see any trends occurring in the market? Are some products or features gaining more
interest or sales? Is the demand for some products growing while that for others is declining?
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ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS
The marketing environment includes various factors that cannot be controlled by the manager
and that can affect how marketing activities are undertaken. This includes demographic,
economic, technological, natural, cultural and legal or political factors. How can each of these
impact the marketing of your good or service? What are the implications for your marketing
plan?
Some of these factors should be included in the ‘Opportunities’ and ‘Threats’ sections of the
SWOT analysis.
COMPANY ANALYSIS
When preparing a marketing plan, there are a number of internal factors that can influence how
you market your product. Take time to think about the following and how they will influence the
implementation of your plan.
Company mission statement
Write down your company mission statement. Keeping this in mind will help guide the new
marketing plan.
Assessment of the company’s marketing mix
The company’s promotion has been on an ad hoc basis to date. Those responsible for the marketing
activities are the owners, who have not had much experience with, or interest in, marketing or
advertising. Such activities are usually left to the last minute, and are often formed from suggestions
by family and friends. However, the owners want sales to increase, and see that more efficient
marketing planning will help increase sales. This year the budget has increased to $22,000.
Product
What is the product that is the focus for this particular marketing plan? Is it a physical good, a
service, an idea or a combination of these? What are its key features and benefits? What
competitive advantages does it have? What stage in the product life cycle is it in currently? Is
there a product range? Have there been any recent product launches or product changes? How
does it compare with your competitors’ products?
Price
What is the price of the product? What pricing strategy are you using (e.g. price skimming or
market-penetration pricing)? Are there different prices for different products? Has the price
changed recently? How is the price perceived in the marketplace (e.g. high priced, good value,
market average or cheap)? How does your price compare with your competitors’ prices?
Place (distribution)
How is your product made available to your customers? Is there more than one channel of
distribution or intermediary? What is the distribution strategy (i.e. intensive, selective or
exclusive)? How do sales compare between the various locations? How does your distribution
compare with that of your competitors’? How do your distributors view your product?
Promotion
How much is spent on promoting your product? How much effort is placed on advertising, sales
promotion, direct marketing, publicity/public relations and personal selling? Have there been any
changes in your promotional effort? Have the promotional strategies and tactics been successful
in assisting the company to achieve its objectives?
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Assessment of the company’s brand image
How is your company perceived in the marketplace? Friendly? Good value? Cheap? How does
this compare with how your competitors are perceived? Can you visually represent the
positioning of your product compared to those of your competitors on a perceptual map?
Assessment of the company’s relative strengths and weaknesses
What do you think are your company’s main strengths and weaknesses? This is to start you
thinking about your company. Some of the factors here may appear in the ‘Strengths’ and
‘Weaknesses’ sections of the SWOT analysis, which will be prepared after you have completed
your customer and competitor analysis.
CUSTOMER ANALYSIS
Who are your customers? Is it a consumer or industrial/business-to-business market? What are
your customers like? What are the market segments for your product? You can segment the
market using demographic, geographic, psychographic or behavioural characteristics, or a
combination of these approaches. Remember, there is no single way to segment your market.
Approximately how big are these market segments, and, relatively, which are the most important
segments?
Who makes the decision to buy? When do they purchase? What factors influence their purchase?
Are there any customer segments with different needs and wants? Are they satisfied customers?
Do they make repeat purchases? What is your relationship with your customers? Are there any
future changes in preference that you can predict? Who plays the various roles of initiator,
influencer, user, decider, buyer and gatekeeper?
COMPETITOR ANALYSIS
In the market analysis you named your competitors. Now look at your competitors and analyse in
more detail how they affect the marketing of your product. Who are your direct competitors and
who are your indirect competitors—that is, which companies sell the same product as your
product and which sell a product that would be a substitute for your product? What are the
various strengths and weaknesses of the individual competitors? Do they have any distinct
competitive advantages? What is their current marketing strategies and is there a likelihood for
change in the near future?
SWOT ANALYSIS
The SWOT analysis is an important tool for managers to identify the main internal and external
factors related to their company or product. In a way a SWOT analysis assists you to construct a
‘strategic balance sheet’. It brings together some of the issues raised in the situation analysis, and
identifies and evaluates the main issues relating to the company’s strengths/weaknesses and
possible opportunities/threats in the marketplace. This will become the basis for strategic
planning in the future.
When you are preparing your SWOT analysis it is important that you identify the most relevant
issues related to the four headings, and not a lot of incidental ones. The issues may relate to a
number of areas, including product features, location, distribution, personnel, technology,
finance, and so on. After brainstorming these issues, you should prioritise them to see which are
the most important, which are next in importance, and so on. Also, analyse the issues to
determine whether any issues might balance out other issues—for example, a strength might
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eliminate a particular threat, or a weakness might (with improvement) become a new
opportunity.
It is vital that you are honest when identifying the various issues. Be objective and report the
weaknesses rather than trying to hide them. Identify strengths only if they are strengths, not
because you would like them to be strengths.
Now, after some thought, identify and prioritise the main internal strengths and weaknesses and
external opportunities and threats for the product for which you are preparing this marketing
plan.
Strengths
Strengths are those areas that you are good at and that have a competitive advantage that you
should capitalise on.
Weaknesses
Weaknesses are those areas that you are not good at and that may hinder your business. These
areas need improving.
Opportunities
Opportunities are those areas that could benefit your business but have not been acted on. These
areas should be monitored/evaluated.
Threats
Threats are those areas that could hurt your business and should be eliminated.
OBJECTIVES
What are the main objectives for your company and this marketing campaign? Think about what
you intend for your business during this campaign period and for the overall marketing of your
product. Clear, easily understood, reachable, measurable objectives are extremely important
when you are planning. Your objectives set the course for what you want to achieve, they
become a target to aim for and provide the measure to determine whether they have been
achieved. Therefore, it is important that your objectives are realistic and achievable, specific and
measurable.
Objectives should be set carefully and thoughtfully. You do not have to have an objective for
everything your company does, but they are helpful as guides for the campaign. To help you,
your objectives should be in line with your company’s overall objectives and should logically
follow the information written in the situation analysis. From the objective, you need to plan a
strategy that uses various tactics to achieve that objective.
When setting your objectives, you should express them pro-actively. They should be written as,
for example, ‘To achieve ...’, ‘To maintain ...’ or ‘To improve ...’. Also, make sure that the
objectives are measurable, and clearly determine how they will measured—for example, profits,
sales, market share, customer traffic, brand awareness, product trial, repeat purchases and
customer satisfaction.
TARGET MARKET
When marketing a good or service, it is vital to be very clear on who you are marketing to.
Therefore, you must be very, very clear on who your target market is for this marketing plan.
Look back at your customer analysis, where you identified your customers into smaller,
manageable and recognisable market segments. Of those market segments, which group(s) will
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you target with this particular marketing plan? What are the primary target markets and what are
the secondary target markets for this planning period?
Finally, how will you position yourself—that is, how do you want your target market to see you?
Now, state your market segments, your target markets and your position in the marketplace.
MARKETING STRATEGY
In this section you should develop the appropriate marketing mix (product, price, place and
promotion) for your target market(s). This will become your marketing strategy. It is therefore
time to plan the tactics to be used to make up the strategy that will be aimed at the target market
and will achieve your marketing objectives.
For each section of the marketing mix you should study the possibilities and new opportunities
that are available to you. Textbooks will have a number of chapters on each element of the
marketing mix, and these should be read and related to your product before you decide on the
final tactics and strategic plan. All of the marketing activities must be well thought out and
thorough, to ease the implementation of the campaign.
Product strategy
Product strategy includes activities relating to the physical good or service, branding, packaging,
features, accessories, instructions, product lines, and so on. Remember that the tactics you
present in your product strategy should be consistent with your overall marketing strategy, which
is aimed at achieving your objectives.
Price strategy
Price strategy includes activities relating to price flexibility, price over the product life cycle,
discounts and allowances, geographic pricing policies, and so on. Remember that the tactics you
present in your price strategy should be consistent with your overall marketing strategy, which is
aimed at achieving your objectives.
Place (distribution) strategy
Place (distribution) strategy includes activities relating to type of distribution channel,
intermediaries, location, transportation and storage, channel management, and so on. Remember
that the tactics you present in your distribution strategy should be consistent with your overall
marketing strategy, which is aimed at achieving your objectives.
Promotion strategy
Promotion strategy includes activities relating to advertising, direct marketing, sales promotion,
publicity, public relations and personal selling. Remember that the tactics you present in your
promotion strategy should be consistent with your overall marketing strategy, which is aimed at
achieving your objectives.
BUDGET
The budget is, of course, extremely important when it comes to preparing a marketing plan—
especially if you have a small budget. The smaller the budget, the more important it is to plan.
Don’t allow your creative marketing ideas to cost you more than what you can afford, otherwise
you can end up in financial difficulties.
Once you have decided on all the marketing activities to be undertaken during this campaign,
they should be costed with the objective of staying within the marketing budget. You should
include all the major costs, such as production, provision of services, physical distribution,
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advertising, wages, and so on. Below, you can list the expenses and the actual cost for the
marketing plan. Be aware of your company’s accounting procedures, as these may influence how
you prepare your marketing budget.
IMPLEMENTATION
The implementation of a marketing plan is where you put your plans into action. Some people
actually refer to this section of the marketing plan as the action plan. A timetable giving details
of the activities, when they will be acted on and who will be involved can increase the likelihood
that a marketing plan will be properly implemented and successful.
Don’t forget to include important dates or events that can have an effect on your marketing
plan—for example, New Year’s Day, St Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, school
holidays, sports finals and religious holidays.
CONTROL PROCEDURES
After preparing an effective strategic marketing plan and then implementing it, all your efforts
may be wasted if you don’t keep an eye on what is happening in the marketplace. A good
marketing plan can be made worthless if there is a change in the marketing environment that
needs corrective action from your company. Measuring and evaluating the performance of the
marketing plan against your objectives is extremely important if you want your plan to be
effective. This may also include having alternative or contingency plans, just in case your plan
does not meet your objectives.
Below, begin writing ways you can monitor the progress of your marketing plan after it has been
implemented. When it comes to measuring the effectiveness of your plan, there is no definite
activity. Measurement will quite often depend on what the main objectives of the plan are and
the abilities of the organisation. Go back to your objectives and think about how you can
measure whether you have achieved them. Remember, it is very important to make sure that your
objectives are measurable.
You cannot underestimate the value of good, valid, reliable market research for the planning
process. A market research company or a marketing consultant can undertake some of these
monitoring and evaluating activities or establish a system within your organisation, while some
simple techniques can, and should, be done by the company. Monitoring sales, customer
inquiries and customer complaints can all be done easily within the company. Some attempts
should be made to monitor changes in internal and external environment factors as these can
affect how you market your product. A regular marketing audit should be implemented to watch
for any such changes.
If your objectives are aiming to increase awareness or brand recall, market research can be used
to gauge customer/target audience attitudes towards your company’s product. How have the
activities undertaken in your marketing plan resulted in any changes in inquiries, sales or
attitudes? Will there be regular checks on the marketing activities? Will you undertake an annual
marketing audit?
What are your plans for measuring the effectiveness of your activities in the marketing plan?
CONCLUSION
Once you have completed the report setting out your marketing plan, you should finish with a
conclusion. This shows that the body of the marketing plan has a clear, logical flow with a
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beginning, a middle and an end. The plan should not suddenly stop, leaving the reader wondering
whether it is the end or something has been left out.
The conclusion sets the scene for the end of the written plan. It should state clearly that it is the
end of the report, briefly summarise the main points and make recommendations in an action
plan to encourage the successful implementation of the marketing plan.
It is important to note that management’s acceptance of the marketing plan and the successful
implementation of the marketing plan are largely dependent on the quality of the written plan. If
the written plan is not clear, but rather is contradictory, inconsistent or confusing, management
will not be confident in its decision to go ahead with the plan’s implementation, even if it is an
excellent plan of activities. If you have been working through this workbook you should now
carefully read over your marketing plan and make any changes or refine your responses so that,
finally, you will have a clear, flowing, practical marketing plan.
Finally, this should not be the end of planning, or specifically marketing planning, for your
company. The marketing plan is a detailed expansion of part of the company’s business plan,
while a promotional plan is a detailed expansion of part of the marketing plan. To be effective,
these plans should be continually reviewed and evaluated and corrective action should be
prepared for the next plan. This should be done at least annually.
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