Ten Step Marketing Plan Template

Created bySequent Learning NetworksNew York, NY www.sequentlearning.com(800) 606-2777 or (212) 647-9100

This Marketing Plan Template is provided by Sequent Learning Networks in the interestof marketing education. Building the skills of those responsible for creating, managingand marketing products & services can contribute to improvements in teamcommunication, business decision making, product profitability, and marketplacesuccess.For further information and guidance, or if your company needs assistance in productplanning, product strategy, training or consulting services, please call Sequent LearningNetworks at 212-647-9100.

Introduction

The purpose of this document is to provide you with the basic framework for creating amarketing plan by describing the intent of the marketing plan and describing the generalsteps you’ll need to take to create a marketing plan.Marketing planning is a complex, cross-functional process. It is made up of a series of interlocking activities and tasks. It should not be a hastily assembled set of programsthat are easy or convenient for the organization to carry out. For example, it is veryeasy to have a marketing communications group design and conduct a series of advertising activities to drive lead generation because the sales teams don’t haveenough prospects. However, if this lead generation activity is not considered within abroader context of marketing strategies, the outcomes may not yield results of anysignificance to the firm.It should be understood that in marketing planning should be conceived and executedwithin a broad corporate or organizational strategic context. Whether you’re running asmall business or you work in a big company, all businesses have some kind of strategy. To that end, if you are in a big company, there are typically higher levelstrategies (‘to grow our revenue by 25% in Europe within three years’), to business unitstrategies (‘to create two new product lines to sell to consumers in France and one newline in the UK’), to product line strategies (‘to use the new abc platform and designs toacquire new customers in market segment A and to target replacement purchases tomarket segment B).In an ideal world, strategies at all levels of the organization should be well articulatedand understood. Interpretation of these strategies can then result in realistic, well-defined marketing plans and programs which can be created and acted upon. In somefirms, strategies are not fully understood or are misinterpreted, leading to ill conceivedmarketing plans and programs.In today’s competitive marketplace, consumers and businesses have many choicesavailable to them to solve personal or business problems. Organizations can have agreater chance of being successful if they develop deep understanding of markets andthe customers within those markets. Successful companies are expert at identifyingcustomer needs in a variety of ways. They just don’t ask customers about their problems – they observe, probe, and draw inferences from those observations. Thesesuccessful companies are acutely aware of their competitors and try to figure out, not just how to beat them but how to better satisfy the needs of those customers whoseneeds they believe are paramount. Market focus, therefore, is critical in the formulationof marketing plans. Deciding who to pursue runs as an undercurrent to all plans andprograms.

The marketing plan then, is a dynamic document which focuses on bringing marketingstrategies to life, serving as a roadmap for carrying out marketing activities andimplementing marketing strategies. It is a multi-step process, which considers thefollowing:1) Formulating a strategy of your company or your division and making sure thatappropriate linkages are made between company strategy and marketingactivity planning.2) Analyzing the environment within which you do business to make sure youconsider the marketplace, the industry, competitors, and other influences.3) Carrying out market profiling, enabling you to identify market segment, targetcustomer types, and overall demand. Additionally, analysis of the industry andcompetitors, coupled with analysis of customer types, enables the creation of demand possibilities and the resulting forecasts. It also allows you to formulateappropriate value propositions, and to position the product’s key benefits to thetarget audience, and finally, why a customer would choose your solution versusthe competition. and expressing key values and benefits to the target audience4) The marketing mix, which considers a combination of activities which cometogether harmoniously, in bringing the product to market and sustaining it whilein the market, which includes:i. Deciding on which products meet the need of identified market targetsii. Pricing those products so that the true, competitive value is recognizedby the market targets.iii. Defining promotional programs to reach those targets, which can includecommunications and advertising programs.iv. Creating channels to effectively distribute your products to your targetaudience.5) Determining who you’ll need to work with in successfully bringing the product tomarket, including sales teams (to make sure that volumes can be attained),6) Launching new products or product line extensions as needed.7) Training the sales force to competitively position the product or service.8) Budgeting of marketing programs so that the appropriate sales goals andcorporate strategies can be attained.9) Executing on the plan - creating marketing project plans, and understandingdependencies on other organizations. Also included are measurements todetermine the success of your marketing activities.10) Identifying risks.