Marketing plan





A Marketing Plan is a written document that details the actions necessary to
achieve a specified marketing objective(s). It can be for a product or
service, a brand, or a product line. It can cover one year (referred to as
an annual marketing plan), or cover up to 5 years. In general terms, it
must:

   * describe and explain the current situation
   * specify the expected results (objectives)
   * identify the resources that will be needed (including financing, time,
     and skills)
   * describe the actions that will need to be taken to achieve the
     objective(s)
   * devise a method of monitoring results and adjusting the plan where
     necessary

There are many formats for marketing plans and every company does it a
little different, but the outline that follows is a very complete format.
Using this format will produce a 30 to 40 page plan. Many companies prefer
an abridged format that would yield a 10 to 20 page plan.

   * 1 Title page
   * 2 Executive Summary
   * 3 Current Situation - Macroenvironment
        o economy
        o government
        o legal
        o technology
        o ecological
        o sociocultural
        o supply chain
   * 4 Current Situation - Market Analysis
        o market definition
        o market size
        o market segmentation
        o industry structure and strategic groupings
        o Porter 5 forces analysis
        o competition and market share
        o competitors' strengths and weaknesses
        o market trends
   * 5 Current Situation - Consumer Analysis
        o nature of the buying decision
        o participants
        o demographics
        o psychographics
        o buyer motivation and expectations
        o loyalty segments
   * 6 Current Situation - Internal
        o company resources
             + financial
             + people
             + time
             + skills
        o objectives
             + mission statement and vision statement
             + corporate objectives
             + financial objective
             + marketing objectives
             + long term objectives
        o corporate culture
   * 7 Summary of Situation Analysis
        o external threats
        o external opportunities
        o internal strengths
        o internal weaknesses
        o key success factors in the industry
        o our sustainable competitive advantage
   * 8 Marketing research
        o information requirements
        o research methodology
        o research results
   * 9 Marketing Strategy - product
        o product mix
        o product strengths and weaknesses
             + perceptual mapping
        o product life cycle management and new product development
        o Brand name, brand image, and brand equity
        o the augmented product
        o product portfolio analysis
             + B.C.G. Analysis
             + contribution margin analysis
             + G.E. Multi Factoral analysis
             + Quality Function Deployment
   * 10 Marketing Strategy - Price
        o pricing objectives
        o pricing method (eg.: cost plus, demand based, or competitor
          indexing)
        o pricing strategy (eg.: skimming, or penetration)
        o discounts and allowances
        o price elasticity and customer sensitivity
        o price zoning
        o break even analysis at various prices
   * 11 Marketing Strategy - Promotion
        o promotional goals
        o promotional mix
        o advertising reach, frequency, flights, theme, and media
        o sales force requirements, techniques, and management
        o sales promotion
        o publicity and public relations
        o electronic promotion (eg.: Web, or telephone)
   * 12 Marketing Strategy - Distribution
        o geographical coverage
        o distribution channels
        o physical distribution and logistics
        o electronic distribution
   * 13 Implimentation
        o personel requirements
             + assign responsibilities
        o financial requirements
        o management information systems requirements
        o month-by-month agenda
             + pert or critical path analysis
        o monitoring results and benchmarks
        o adjustment mechanism
        o contingencies (What if's)
   * 14 Financial Summary
        o assumptions
        o pro-forma monthly income statement
        o contribution margin analysis
        o breakeven analysis
        o Monte Carlo analysis
   * 15 Appendix
        o pictures and specifications of the new product
        o results from research already completed