Defining the Business Mission A mission statement provides a fundamental building block for the marketing plan, strategy, and communication to consumers. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Recognize the relevance of a mission statement when creating a marketing plan KEY TAKEAWAYS Key Points The strategies a business will use over a given time period to price, promote, produce, and distribute goods and/or services is called a marketing plan. A strong marketing strategy communicates the… Read More »Defining the Business Mission

Steps to Creating a Marketing Plan Defining the Vision An organizational vision should be made up of two fundamental components: a core ideology and an envisioned future. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Examine the characteristics and purpose of corporate vision KEY TAKEAWAYS Key Points The core ideology defines the character of the organization, which should endure beyond any external or environmental trends and changes. The envisioned future should be laid out as a… Read More »Steps to Creating a Marketing Plan

Steps Required to Forecast Steps of forecast include problem definition, cash flow forecast, profit forecast, balance sheet forecast and profit determination. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Describe the process for performing a forecast KEY TAKEAWAYS Key Points It is important to note those earlier identified ‘threats’ to your business to ensure that as you forecast you can see the deviation of the best and worst models. Three key forecasts include problem definition, cash… Read More »Steps Required to Forecast

Why a Marketing Plan is Essential A formal marketing plan provides a clear reference point for activities throughout the planning period. However, perhaps the most important benefit of these plans is the planning process itself. This typically offers a unique opportunity, a forum, for information-rich and productively focused discussions between the various managers involved. The plan, together with the associated discussions, then provides an agreed context for their subsequent management… Read More »Why a Marketing Plan is Essential

Purpose of the Marketing Plan A formal marketing plan provides a clear reference point for activities throughout the planning period. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Identify the purpose and use of creating marketing plans KEY TAKEAWAYS Key Points Marketing plans are included in business plans, offering data showing investors how the company will grow and what kind return they will get on their investment. Marketing plans make the marketing team look at the… Read More »Purpose of the Marketing Plan

Marketing Plan Elements A marketing plan’s elements may vary based on the organization and its industry, but readers still expect to see certain common elements. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Review the elements of a marketing plan and their relationship to the company operations KEY TAKEAWAYS Key Points The executive summary gives an overview of the key elements of the marketing plan. The situation analysis examines all the aspects that may impact sales… Read More »Marketing Plan Elements

Successful Planning However, just making a marketing plan won’t necessarily capture the above advantages. In order for the marketing plan to be effective, certain criteria must be met. Marketing plans are professional documents, usually drafted by mid-upper level marketers. Considering the wide variety of considerations, and the significant impact it will have on strategy, constructing a marketing plan carefully is critical to success. Marketers should focus on accomplishing the following… Read More »Successful Marketing Planning

Marketing Plan Advantages Creates Alignment The biggest advantage of a marketing plan is building a bridge between the vision of the organization and the marketing and sales of products and services. At the strategic (upper management) level, organizations have a mission and vision. This mission and vision must translate from the executive team to all internal and external stakeholders. This is called alignment, or having all stakeholders (along with the… Read More »Marketing Plan Advantages

Advantages of a Marketing Plan The marketing plan creates alignment between the organization’s vision and the stakeholders’ understanding of that vision. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Understand the most important aspects and advantages of a marketing plan KEY TAKEAWAYS Key Points When it comes to developing a marketing plan, the central objective and advantage is in creating alignment and communicating the organizational vision clearly and consistently. This comes with a variety of other… Read More »Advantages of a Marketing Plan

What Makes a Marketing Plan Effective An effective marketing plan conveys a sound business strategy that is aimed at a large and varied audience. The plan must be: Clear – stating exactly what is to be done in unambiguous terms. Quantified – predicting the outcome of each activity so that it is as quantified as possible and its performance can be monitored. Focused – avoiding and realistically controlling the proliferation of activities,… Read More »What Makes a Marketing Plan Effective