Understanding the Marketing Plan

Characteristics of a Marketing Plan

It must be aligned to the goals of the organization as it is expected to provide a strategy to meet
company mission or goal.

It must be based on proper facts acquired from prudent marketing research and it must contain
valid assumptions that considers available the resources such as finance, equipment, human
resource, technology, and others.

It must state a clarity in the organization of the plans for implementation of marketing activities.

It must provide for continuity means of short-term goals which should be aligned to achieve the
long-term marketing objectives.

It must be simple and short, but the plan should not be so short that details on how to accomplish a
goal is excluded. This means that only the essential information is included.

It must be flexible which means that if scenarios change then plan should have the enough flexibility
to incorporate counter strategies.

It must specify the organization’s performance criteria that could be monitored, measured, and
evaluated for control purpose.

Marketing Research

 Before making a marketing plan, the marketer needs to do some marketing research for the
new business venture which involves the four steps process:
o Step One: Defining the Purpose or Objectives
 The marketer must make a list of the information that will be needed to prepare
the marketing plan. This includes the objectives which are set to determine the
following:
 How much potential customers would be willing to pay for the product
or service?
 Where potential customers would prefer to purchase the product or
service?
 Where the customer would expect to hear about or learn about such a
product or service?
o Step Two: Gathering Data from Secondary Sources
 Secondary sources are data that already exists. These can include trade
magazines, newspaper articles, libraries, government agencies, the internet,
universities and commercial data.
 Data presented from secondary sources have to be screened as some of it may
be not be updated. Though some updated data may be useful, the market must
carefully check on its viability.
o Step Three: Gathering Information from Primary Sources
 Primary sources give information which is relatively new. Data collection
procedures are can be made through the following:
  Observation. In observing potential customers and recording some
aspect of their buying behavior, a marketer will be able to understand
the target market better. Observation is usually done in an uncontrolled
environment.
 Networking. In networking, the marketer attempts to gather data from
experts in the field. This is a much more informal way of data gathering.
 Interviewing. The formal method of collecting data in person is through
interviewing. This may be done by telephone, through mail or e-mail.
 Focus groups. In focus group discussions, the marketer invites a group
10 to 12 people participate in a discussion related to research objective.
 Experimentation. This is done in a controlled environment usually in a
laboratory setting observing a certain phenomenon by controlling
specific variables in the research process.
o Step Four: Analyzing and Interpreting the Results
 Results are gathered, evaluated, and interpreted. Again, it should be based on
research objectives. Cross-tabulated data can provide more focused results.
 The Marketing System
o (see next figure)
o

 In preparing the marketing plan, it is important to define the business situation. This helps
describe the past and present business achievements of the organization. Regardless if the
organization is old or new, it is essential to always keep in mind the purpose of developing the
product or service. The business situation comes from the internal and external environment of
the business. Information should be related to the presented market conditions, the
performance of the company’s products and services, and the future opportunities or prospects.
The target market is the specific group of potential customers toward which the venture aims its
 marketing plan. Market segmentation called for the division of the market into definable and
measurable groups for purposes of targeting the marketing strategy. Segmentation helps define
the opportunities and threats that the organization may face through deciding on the general
market or industry to pursue. All marketing efforts of the organization must be grounded on its
established goals and objectives created early on.
 To measure the success of the marketing plan, monitoring the progress on the marketing actions
is a must. This is to help ensure that all efforts are able to contribute in achieving the goals and
objectives are determined by the plan. In monitoring the progress, it includes tracking of the
marketing effort. It also includes having contingencies incase plans do not work as expected.
Minor adjustments of the plan are normal; however, significant changes may be indicative of a
lackluster prepared plan. Moreover, some weakness in a marketing plan be come from a poor
analysis of the market and competitive strategy, unrealistic goals and objectives, poor
implementation of action plans, and unforeseen and uncontrollable forces of nature.

 Defining Marketing Strategy and Action Programs (Develop a marketing plan integrating
product, price, distribution (placement), and promotion)
o Product/service
 May consider more than the physical characteristics.
 Involves packaging, brand name, price, warranty, image, service, delivery
time, features, style, and even the website (IBM, DELL).
o Pricing
 Costs - Material costs, labor costs, cost of goods from suppliers, labor and
overhead expenses, etc.
 Margins or markups - Expected to cover overhead costs and some profit.
 Competition.
o Distribution
 Provides utility to the consumer (internet, retail stores, home delivery, bulk
purchase).
 Must also be consistent with other marketing mix variables (e.g. sending
expensive products through registered mail services).
o Promotion
 To inform potential consumers about the product’s availability or to educate
the consumer.
 Methods include print, radio, or television advertising, Internet, direct mail,
trade magazines, or newspapers.
 The entrepreneur should consider costs and effectiveness of the medium both
in meeting the market objectives.
o Marketing Strategy: Consumer versus Business-to-Business Markets
 Business-to-business markets involves selling of products or services to
another business.
 Usually aims at selling a large volume in one transaction.
 Involves a more direct channel of distribution.
 Use trade magazine advertising, direct sales, and trade shows.
 Consumer markets involve sales to households for personal consumption.
o Budgeting and Implementation
 Budgeting
 Business operational and production costs should be reasonably clear.
 Assumptions if necessary, should be clearly stated.
 Useful in preparing the financial plan.
 Implementation
 The plan is meant to be a commitment by the entrepreneur to a
specific strategy.
 Entrepreneur should ensure coordination and implementation of the
plan.