I. Executive Summary A high-level summary of the marketing plan.

II. The Challenge Brief description of product to be marketed and associated goals, such as sales figures and strategic goals.

III. Situation Analysis Company Analysis

y y y y y y

Goals Focus Culture Strengths Weaknesses Market share

Customer Analysis
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Number Type Value drivers Decision process Concentration of customer base for particular products

Competitor Analysis
y y y y

Market position Strengths Weaknesses Market shares

Collaborators
y

Subsidiaries, joint ventures, and distributors, etc.

Climate Macro-environmental PEST analysis :

y y y y

Political and legal environment Economic environment Social and cultural environment Technological environment

SWOT Analysis A SWOT analysis of the business environment can be performed by organizing the environmental factors as follows:
y y

The firm's internal attributes can be classed as strengths and weaknesses. The external environment presents opportunities and threats.

IV. Market Segmentation Present a description of the market segmentation as follows: Segment 1
y y y y y y y

Description Percent of sales What they want How they use product Support requirements How to reach them Price sensitivity

Segment 2 . . .

V. Alternative Marketing Strategies List and discuss the alternatives that were considered before arriving at the recommended strategy. Alternatives might include discontinuing a product, re-branding, positioning as a premium or value product, etc.

VI. Selected Marketing Strategy

Discuss why the strategy was selected, then the marketing mix decisions (4 P's) of product, price, place (distribution), and promotion. Product The product decisions should consider the product's advantages and how they will be leveraged. Product decisions should include:
y y y y y

Brand name Quality Scope of product line Warranty Packaging

Price Discuss pricing strategy, expected volume, and decisions for the following pricing variables:
y y y y y

List price Discounts Bundling Payment terms and financing options Leasing options

Distribution (Place) Decision variables include:

y y y y y

Distribution channels, such as direct, retail, distributors & intermediates Motivating the channel - for example, distributor margins Criteria for evaluating distributors Locations Logistics, including transportation, warehousing, and order fulfilment

Promotion
y y y y y

Advertising, including how much and which media. Public relations Promotional programs Budget; determine break-even point for any additional spending Projected results of the promotional programs

VII. Short & Long-Term Projections

The selected strategy's immediate effects, expected long-term results, and any special actions required to achieve them. This section may include forecasts of revenues and expenses as well as the results of a break-even analysis.

VIII. Conclusion Summarize all of the above.

Appendix
Exhibits Calculations of market size, commissions, profit margins, break-even analyses, etc.

A marketing plan is an essential planning element for a new small business. The marketing plan describes the products and services of the business, identifies the customers and creates a strategy by which to market the business. A marketing plan generally covers the business one year at a time, though it is an ever-evolving document that changes as industry circumstances merit. In order to write a marketing plan for a new business, the writer must first have an indepth understanding of the business as well as the business budget.

Identify the Market Situation

The market situation for a business includes analysis of the industry as a whole. In order to write an effective marketing plan, the business must be able to identify its competitors. The business should be able to point out the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of each of the main competitors. Identifying this will help the business recognize its own competitive advantage. This is an area where it is stronger or better able to serve the market than the competition. It is what will set it apart in the market.

Identify the Target Market

An important element of the marketing plan is to identify the target market of the business. Many businesses make the mistake of identifying a market that is too broad, such as all residents within a 100 mile radius. The target market must be broken down; the marketing plan should identify potential customers based on certain parameters. For instance, if the business is marketing foreign language software, the primary target market may be college-educated men and women aged 25 to 54 who are required to travel internationally for business or travel internationally for pleasure on a regular basis.

Identify the Four P's of Marketing

The four p’s of marketing are product, place, price and promotion. The product is what the business is selling and may be a tangible product or a service. The place describes how the product will be distributed to the customers. An example would be selling to retail boutiques through direct salesmen and merchandise marts. The price of the products is based on the attributes of the product, and what is needed to make a profit as well as what the market will bear. This will be largely based on prices of similar products in the market. If your company's prices will be different from similar products, the business should be prepared to distinguish why in product promotions. Promotion is how the products and services will be promoted to the target markets. This could include a combination of publicity, traditional advertising and newer methods such as social media.

Create the Marketing Strategy

In the next section of the marketing plan, the strategy for how to promote the products and services of the business will be outlined. It will specify exactly how the products will be marketed. Instead of just identifying magazine advertising, this section of the plan will state the name of the magazine, demographic information, pricing, issues when ads will appear and mockups of advertisements. The marketing strategy should be detailed enough to be able to be turned over to an agency and be executed without further input if necessary. Though businesses rarely operate in this manner, this is how specific the strategy should be.

Formulate the Marketing Budget and Timeline

The final section of the marketing plan should provide an overview of the marketing budget. This should include any direct or indirect expenses that will be charged to the marketing department. This part of the plan should also include methods of measurement and timelines. For instance, it may state that within 30 days of a magazine ad, the company should sell a certain number of products through that specific channel. This section may also include a weekly or monthly calendar that shows the promotions the business will implement.