Introduction

Marketing is a process of developing and implementing plans to identify and satisfy customer needs and
wants with the objective of customer satisfaction and profits making. The main elements of marketing planning
are - market research to identify and anticipate customer needs and wants; and planning of appropriate
marketing mix to meet market requirements/demands.
Definition of Marketing Planning
"Marketing Planning is the process of developing marketing plan incorporating overall marketing objectives,
strategies, and programs of actions designed to achieve these objectives."
Marketing Planning involves setting objectives and targets, and communicating these targets to people
responsible to achieve them. It also involves careful examination of all strategic issues, including the business
environment, the market itself, the corporate mission statement, competitors, and organisational capabilities.
Marketing Planning Process
Marketing planning process is a series of stages that are usually followed in a sequence. Organisations can
adapt their marketing plan to suit the circumstances and their requirements. Marketing planning process
involves both the development of objectives and specifications for how to achieve the objectives. Following are
the steps involved in a marketing plan.

1)
Mission
Mission is the reason for which an organisation exists. Mission statement is a straightforward statement that

shows why an organisation is in business, provides basic guidelines for further planning, and establishes broad
parameters for the future. Many of the useful mission statements motivates staff and customers.
2)
Corporate
Objectives
Objectives are the set of goals to be achieved within a specified period of time. Corporate objectives are most
important goals the organisation as a whole wishes to achieve within a specified period of time, say one or five
years.
All the departments of an organisation including marketing department works in harmony to achieve the
corporate objectives of the organisation. Marketing department must appreciate the corporate objectives and
ensure its actions and decisions support the overall objectives of the organisation.
Mission statement and corporate objectives are determined by the top level management (including Board of
Directors) of the organisation. The rest of the steps of marketing planning process are performed by marketing
department. All the actions and decisions of the marketing department must be directed to achieve
organisation mission and its corporate objectives.
3)
Marketing
Audit
Marketing audit helps in analysing and evaluating the marketing strategies, activities, problems, goals, and
results. Marketing audit is done to check all the aspects of business directly related to marketing department. It
is done not only at the beginning of the marketing planning process but, also at a series of points during the
implementation of plan. The marketing audit clarifies opportunities and threats, so that required alterations can
be
done
to
the
plan
if
necessary.

4)
SWOT
Analysis
The information gathered through the marketing audit process is used in development of SWOT Analysis. It is
a look at organisation's marketing efforts, and its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats related to
marketing functions.
Strengths and Weaknesses are factors inside the organisation that can be controlled by the
organisation. USP of a product can be the example of strength, whereas lack of innovation can be the example
of weakness.
Opportunities and Threats are factors outside the organisation which are beyond the direct control of
an organisation. Festive season can be an example of opportunity to make maximum sales, whereas
increasing FDI in a nation can be the example of threat to domestic players of that nation.
5)
Marketing
Assumptions
A good marketing plan is based on deep customer understanding and knowledge, but it is not possible to know
everything about the customer, so lot of different things are assumed about customer.
For example :Target Buyer Assumptions - assumptions about who the target buyers are.
Messaging/Offering Assumptions - assumptions about what customers think are the most important
features of product to be offered.
6)
Marketing
Objectives
and
Strategies
After identification of opportunities and challenges, the next step is to develop marketing objectives that
indicate the end state to achieve. Marketing objective reflects what an organisation can accomplish through
marketing
in
the coming years.
Objective identify the end point to achieve. Marketing strategies are formed to achieve the marketing
objectives. Marketing strategies are formed to determine how to achieve those end points. Strategies are
broad statements of activities to be performed to achieve those end points.
7) Forecast the Expected Results

Marketing managers have to forecast the expected results. They have to project the future numbers,
characteristics, and trends in the target market. Without proper forecasting, the marketing plan could have
unrealistic goals or fall short on what is promised to deliver.
Forecasting Customer Response - Marketing managers have to forecast the response that the
average customers will have to marketing efforts. Without some idea how the marketing will be received,
managers can't accurately plan the promotions.
Forecasting Marketing cost - To make the marketing plan stronger, accurate forecast of marketing
cost is required to be done.
Forecasting the Market - To accurately forecast the market, marketing managers have to gain an
intimate understanding of customers, their buying behaviour, and tendencies.
Forecasting the Competition - Forecast of competition like - what they market, how they market, what
incentives they use in their marketing can help to counter what they are doing.
8) Create Alternative Plan
A alternate marketing plan is created and kept ready to be implement at the place of primary marketing plan if
the whole or some part of the primary marketing plan is dropped.
9) Marketing Budget
The marketing budget is the process of documenting the expected costs of the proposed marketing plan. One
common method to allocate marketing budgeting is based on a percentage of revenue. Other methods are
- comparative, all you can afford, and task method.
10) Implementation and Evaluation
At this stage the marketing team is ready to actually start putting their plans into action. This may involve
spending money on advertising, launching new products, interacting with potential new customers, opening
new retail outlets etc.
The marketing planning process is required to be evaluated and updated regular. Regular evaluation of
marketing efforts helps in achieving marketing goals.

It is necessary to discuss strategic market planning and marketing early in the course. A strategic market plan gives
direction to a firm's efforts and better enables it to understand the dimensions of marketing research, consumer analysis,
and product, distribution, promotion, and price planning, which will be discussed in later classes.
We will look at an overview of the strategic marketing process including the development of:

SWOT Analysis

Mission Statement

Organizational Goals

Corporate Strategy

Marketing strategy

The strategic market plan is not a marketing plan, it is a plan of all aspects of an organizations strategy in the market
place.
The process of strategic market planning yeilds a marketing strategy(s) that is the framework and the development of the
marketing plan.

Developing a marketing plan is your group project assignment. A marketing plan deals primarily with implementing the
market strategy as it relates to target market(s) and the marketing mix.
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Strategic Market Planning
A Strategic marketing plan is an outline of the methods and resources required to achieve organizational goals within a
specific target market(s).
"Describes the direction [an organization] will pursue within its chosen environment and guides the allocation of
resources and effort" - Peter Bennett, Dictionary of Marketing Terms, AMA 1988
Strategic planning requires a general marketing orientation rather than a narrow functional orientation.
All functional areas must include marketing and must be coordinated to reach organizational goals. It is a heirarchal
process, from company wide to marketing specific. (Marketing concept, implemented from top down.)
A firm can be broken down into several strategic business units. Each SBU is a division, product line, or other profit
center within the parent company.
An SBU has its own strategic plan and can be considered a seperate business entity competing with other SBU's for
corporate resources.
For example Pepsico Companies SBUs include:

KFC

Taco Bell

Pizza Hut

Mountain Dew

Lipton Tea Brands

Frito Lay

IE The College of Business and Economics is an SBU of the University of Delaware.

A strategic plan gives:

Direction and better enables the company to understand mkt. function dimensions

Makes sure that each division has clear integrated goals

Different functional areas are encouraged to coordinate

Assesses SW & OT

Assesses alternative actions

It is a basis for allocating company resources

A procedure to assess company performance

The strategic planning process may include the following, although this differs from one organization to another:

Develop a SWOT analysis

Develop Mission Statement that evolves from the SWOT analysis

Develop Corporate Objectives that are consistent with the organization's mission statement.

Develop corporate strategy to achieve the organization's objectives. [if the organization is made up of more than
one SBU, then follow loop again for each SBU, then proceed]

Marketing (and other functional objectives) must be designed to achieve the corporate objectives

Marketing Strategy, designed to achieve the marketing objectives.

The strategic market planning process is based on the establishment of organizational goals and it must stay within the
broader limits of the organizations mission, that is developed taking into consideration the environmental opportunities
and threats and the companies resources and distinct competancies.
A firm can then assess its opportunities and develop a corporate strategy. Marketing objectives must be designed so that
they can be accomplished through efficient use of the firms resources.
Corporate strategy is concerned with issues such as diversification, competition, differentiation, interrelationships
between business units and environmental issues. It attempts to match the resources of the organization with the
opportunities and risks of the environment (SWOT). Corporate strategy is also concerned with defining the scope and
roles of the SBU's of the firm so that they are coordinated to reach the ends desired.
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SWOT Analysis
A SWOT Analysis examines the companies:

Strengths...Internal

Weaknesses...Internal

Opportunites...External

Threats...External

By developing a SWOT analysis, a company can determine what its distinctive competancies are. This will help
determine what the organization should be in business for, what its mission should be.
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Mission Statement
Handout Visioning Missions becomes...
Reason to be? Invisible hand etc.
Product Terms...outdated
Technology Terms...outdated

Market Terms...keep in touch with consumer's needs

i.e. AT&T is in the communications business not the telephone business.
Visa...allows customers to exchange values...not credit cards
3M solves problems by putting innovation to work.
Should not be too narrow...or...too broad
Should be based on distinctive competancies of the corporation, determined from the SWOT analysis
The following are example mission statements
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Organizational goals
Organizational goals are derived from the mission, corporate strategy is derived from the organizational goals.
Goals must specify the end results that are desired, that are measurable and within a particular time frame.
SMAC

Specific

Measurable

Achieveable

Consistent

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Corporate Strategy
Issues include:

Scope of Business-----What Business you are in??

Resource deployment----How you are going to use your resources??

Competitive advantage----What are your competitive advantages??

Coordination of Production, Marketing, Personnel etc.----

Coordination process??

Tools for strategic market planning

The following are some of the many tools that are used in developing corporate strategy, they are supplements not
substitutes for management's own judgement:

BCG Product Portfolio Management

o

Star

Cash Cow

Problem Child (Question Marks)

Dog

SWOT analysis

Product Life Cycle Concept

A separate strategy is needed for each SBU

Intense Growth-mkt penetration/development, product development in related markets.

o

Market Penetration...more products to the same market

Market Development...same product to new markets

Product Development...new products to same market

Diversified Growth-new products new markets Horizontal (unrelated products to current markets)/Concentric
(NPNM)

Integrated growth Forward/Backward/Horizontal Disney's Purchase of Capital Citys/ABC, a content provider

purchasing distribution

Handout Mattel Toy....

Handout Ben & Jerry's New CEO...
What should B&J do?
Develop SWOT Analysis
Propose Mission
Goals
Strategy:

Market Penetration

Market Development

Product Development

Diversification

Ben & Jerry's Homepage

Ben & Jerry's SWOT Analysis Return to Contents List
Marketing Planning.
Marketing plans vary by:

Duration

Scope

Method of Development, bottom up/top down

Objective is to create a Marketing plan. A plan for each marketing strategy developed.
Marketing strategy encompasses selecting and analysing the target market(s) and creating and maintaining an
appropriate marketing mix that satisfies the target market and company. A Marketing strategy articulates a plan for the best
use of the organizations resources and tactics to meet its objectives. Do not pursue projects that are outside the companies
objectives or that stretch the companies resources.
Plan includes:

Executive summary

Situation Analysis

Opportunity and Threat Analysis

Environmental Analysis

Company Resources

Marketing Objectives

Marketing Strategies to include:

o

Target market (Intended) A target market is group of persons/companies for whom a firm creates and
maintains a Marketing Mix that specifically fits the needs and preferences of that group. Does the
company have the resources to create the appropriate MM and does it meet the company's objectives.

Develop a marketing mix-how to reach the target market. The marketing mix is designed around the
buying motive-emphasizing the marketing concept. The marketing environment effects the marketing
mix, which is only controllable to a certain extent (the MM). Before developing the MM, need to
determine the needs of the target market.

Financial Projections

Controls and Evaluations

Marketing control process consists of establishing performance standards, evaluating the actual performance by
comparing it with the actual standards, and reducing the difference between the desired and actual performance.

Strategic marketing planning is the process that the operational and managerial staff of a company goes
through to create and implement effective marketing strategies. Strategic marketing planning takes
several aspects of company marketing and promotion into consideration. The aspects that contribute to
strategic marketing planning include identifying promotional opportunities and evaluating the marketing
opportunities; researching, analyzing and identifying the target markets; developing a strategic position for
the company to pursue and how to implement the strategy; preparation and implementation of the
marketing plan; and measuring and evaluating the results of the marketing efforts of the company.

Strategic Marketing Plans

Strategic marketing planning involves combining customer experiences with the overall direction the
company wants and needs to take in order to succeed. For example, market segmentation plays a vital
role in strategic marketing. Geographic and demographic differences in a companys target markets can
affect the purchasing habits of consumers. Strategic marketing planning allows companies to go through
the process of identifying what these differences are, and then adjusting marketing messages and
presentation of the company and the products and services of the business to meet the individual needs of
the different segments of the market.
For example, the Baby Boomers generation has created a surge in need for products and services that
range drastically. Some companies have adjusted existing products and services to meet the increase in
demand, while other companies with the foresight to strategically plan for the increase, developed new
products and services to meet the demand.

Use
Once a strategic marketing plan is in place, the company can use the plan as a guide in conducting its
daily business as well as making short-term and long-term decisions. Implementation of the strategic
marketing plan typically leads companies to the tactical marketing portion of conducting business. The
strategic marketing plan transitions into the companys plan for product and service development; the
communication plan on how the company intends on promoting the business offerings; developing the
sales plan; and finally putting together the customer service plan on how the company intends on
interacting with current and potential customers.
Related Reading: Business-Plan Marketing Strategy

Benefits
The primary benefit of a strategic marketing plan is that it puts a written guide in place for a business to
follow to reach its goals and objectives. The second major advantage of strategic marketing planning is
that is allows the business to create and utilize consistent messaging internally and externally. Consistent
messaging in marketing creates efficient companies because employees and customers understand what
the company offers and how the company offers it. They work toward a common goal. Efficient companies
typically see an increase in revenues and market share, while it sees a decrease in expenses. Ultimately, it
all leads to an increase in company profitability.

Time Frame
Strategic marketing planning is not a one-time action, but rather an ongoing process. Typically, a company
creates a strategic marketing plan that covers short-term (one year) and long-term (two year, three year
and five year plans) periods. When a strategic marketing plan is put in place, the company uses it as a
guide for six months to one year at a time. The company then evaluates the strategic plan by measuring
the results of the marketing programs the plan put in place. After evaluating the strategic marketing plan
on a six-month or one-year basis, the company may tweak the plan to improve efforts that didnt go as
planned or to mimic the results of plans that achieved success.

Considerations
Effective strategic marketing planning requires companies to conduct a great deal of research and to really
get to know its target market. Companies need to fully get to know who the target market is, how they
think and feel, what they do, how old they are, where they live, what their hobbies are and more.

Companies need to be able to live, think, breathe and feel like their target market to develop products and
services that fit the needs of the target market. Companies need to remember that product and service
development needs to have an existing marketing to sell, rather than developing products and services,
and then seeking out a target market in which to sell it.