What is marketing planning? Simply put, it is the thought process that results in creating a comprehensive outline, which details an organization’s efforts to grow the business. It involves a complete understanding of the environment in which the company operates and takes into consideration a realistic assessment of the company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, opportunities and threats (SWOT analysis).
Using this information, companies are ready to start developing the marketing plan. A well written plan will include these key components:
- Company vision and mission statement. This sets the direction for the plan and ensures that all planning participants are on the same page.
- Specific quantifiable growth goals and qualitative objectives. This data can be broken down into revenue and profit figures, number of new customers and retention of current customers, new markets to enter, additions, enhancements and modifications to products and services and other corporate mandates.
- Strategies for achieving the goals and objectives. Here is where management uses data, research, competitive information and thought-leadership to set the direction for the tactics that will follow.
- Tactics to support marketing strategies. Tactics take many forms and can include advertising, direct mail, tradeshow participation, webinars, videos, SEO, public relations, corporate communications, social media, and a variety of other promotional activities.
- Without a budget, marketing planning is moot. There has to be an approved funding source to support the plan.
- Timetables and responsibilities. Once the plan is written and funded, the next step is to create a schedule and assign responsibilities to the team members who will implement the plan.
- Review and refinement process. As a working document, the marketing plan needs to be reviewed and refined throughout the year. In this way, companies can fine-tune and modify the plan as needed. This proactive process prevents major disappointments or surprises at the end of the year.
To ensure success, the marketing plan should be short, concise, practical and easy to understand. A 25-page document that gets put on the shelf is not likely to be implemented and therefore has little value. On the other hand, an effective marketing plan that serves as a living, breathing document is more likely to support the business development team and achieve the desired outcomes.
Marketing Tips
Many in the marketing profession are familiar with the 4 P’s of marketing (also known as the marketing mix). These include Product (or Service), Place (and Time), Price and Promotion. The list has grown to 8 P’s, all of which are important components of a strategic marketing plan. Here are brief explanations of each P:
- The product or service must satisfy a need for the client. Understanding tangible and intangible benefits of the product or service is essential for successful marketing and sales plans.
- In today’s fast-paced and highly technological market, clients want items and services immediately. If this isn’t possible with this particular product or service, create a compelling explanation for the delay and the benefits of waiting for the product or service.
- If the product or service is the lowest in the market, explain why and what this means to the client. If the product or service is the most expensive, again, explain why. The price also determines the profit margin of the product/service.
- Through the marketing campaign, educate clients as to why this product or service is necessary for boosting their sales, productivity, employee engagement or business in general. Branding, messaging and media application occur in this step.
- Every poor customer service interaction drives away potential clients. Ensure that the buying experience (and any future client interactions) is satisfying for every client.
- Physical Environment. Many executives wrongly believe that this step does not apply to them as they do not have a physical store or clients do not visit their offices. However, this P includes the company’s web site. Ensure that the web site is organized and easy to navigate.
- Everyone in the company impacts clients’ interactions. Provide all employees with the proper tools to provide quality experiences for all clients.
- Performance (Productivity). This describes how well the product/service competes in the market, how to measure the company’s financial goals and if they are being achieved.
Quarterly Quote
“The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits him and sells itself.”
–David Ogilvy, advertising executive, known as “The Father of Advertising.”
Business Resources
For additional information, contact these professional marketing organizations:
- American Marketing Association (AMA), which was established in 1937 and today has over 30,000 members across the globe. The organization offers training, tools and knowledge to help members excel in their marketing careers.
- Direct Marketing Association. The DMA is the world’s leading independent organization for data-driven marketers. The organization provides advocacy, networking, education, insight and business services. Additionally, DMA offers professional certification programs and industry-specific research.
- Sales & Marketing Executives International (SMEI) is the only worldwide organization dedicated to sales and marketing executives and offers continuing professional development and leadership training, seminars and lectures and knowledge sharing and networking opportunities.
Recommended Reading
- Blue Ocean Strategy: How To Create Uncontested Market Space And Make The Competition Irrelevant, W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne
- Marketing Plans: How to Prepare Them, How to Use Them, Malcolm McDonald and Hugh Wilson
The Last Word
How do you know when it is time to revamp the company’s marketing plan? Consider if any of the following apply:
- The company’s marketing materials, website and advertising don’t match.
- Company personnel are building relationships with the “wrong” people because the target audience is not well-defined.
- Marketing personnel are winging it because the company has not taken the time to understand the marketplace, talk with the sales team and get the training they need to be successful.
- Conversations with potential clients, whether through social media or in person, revolve around self-promotion of the company rather than the clients’ needs and desires.
- Clients are discovering the competition first.
If it is time to update the company’s marketing plan, contact Trade Press Services at 805 396-8850. As a marketing communications firm, we help companies evaluate, refine and create powerful marketing strategies that beat the competition and deliver the right messages, at the right time, to the right audiences.