Marketing plans are marketing constructs and procedures designed to achieve the marketing goals and also help achieve the business and corporate goals/objectives of organizations. The marketing plan is a subset of the business plan and it helps in realizing the mediate, long and short term business objectives while also achieving the overall corporate vision and mission of the organization. Why do we need marketing plans? The marketing plan is what gives purpose to the marketing activity, it also helps the organization to set and evaluate its marketing goals and objectives, applying strategies that effectively achieve the various goals. Of all the various marketing planning models, marketers and business strategists have often favored the model designed by PR Smith(), the SOSTAC model.

– S – SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS

– O – OBJECTIVES

– S – STRATEGY

– T – TACTICS

– A – ACTONS

– C – CONTROL

Situational analysis: this ask “where are we now?” it involves an analysis of the present situation/position of the organization’s marketing efforts and activities using tools like the Mckinsey’s 7s, Micheal Porters value chain etc. for internal analysis while the analysis of the external environment involves the micro (customers, competitors, distributors, suppliers etc.) and the macro (political, economic, socio-cultural, technological, legal and ecological (PESTEL)). The end result of the situational analysis is a description of the organization’s SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats), this gives the organization a description of the company’s stand, defects and helps in charting the way forward.

Objectives: the objectives ask the question “where do we want to be?” Based on the description of the organization’s SWOT obtained from the situation analysis. The organization sets objectives that it intends to achieve in the nearest future, it may be long-term or short-term and it is influenced by the corporate objectives, business objectives and the SWOT of the organization. Objectives must be SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound). The marketing objectives will be used in designing other marketing programs such as marketing communications plan, sales strategy/plan, digital marketing plan etc.

Strategy: the strategy ask “how do we get to where we want to be?” this involves the overall styles and strategies that will be used in realizing the objectives of the marketing plan, it starts with identification of the market segments, choosing which of the marketing segments to target and choosing the basis of the brand/product positioning in the minds of the target market

Targeting should be based on:

– the size of the segment

– the growth of the segment

– competition

Products/brands can be positioned based on:

– price

– quality

– features

– occasion

– Against competition etc.

Tactics: this involves the various tools and techniques that will be used in reaching and applying the broad strategies of the organization. Examples are the 4P’s of marketing (price, product, promotion and place), the marketing communication mix (sales promotion, advertising, direct marketing, public relations and personal selling).

Actions: this involves the specific actions that will help achieve implementation of each tactic and strategy of the marketing plan. This can e scheduled as a marketing project using tools like Gantt chart, critical path analysis etc. it involves the

– Men: who will do what?

– The money: how much is needed for each activity

– The minutes: when will the actions be carried out and how long will it take

Control: this involves formative and conclusive evaluation of the marketing plan and implementation to assess the extent of the marketing plan and its ability to achieve the set objectives.

[Nexus Marketing Solutions] [2 Vina Street, Badore, Ajah, Lagos, Nigeria] Telephone [+2348023420701] Email [info@innovativenexus.com] Website http://www.innovativenexus.com see our online and offline marketing and advertising services at http://www.innovativenexus.com/index.php/services

[Nexus Marketing Solutions] [2 Vina Street, Badore, Ajah, Lagos, Nigeria] Telephone [+2348023420701] Email [info@innovativenexus.com] Website http://www.innovativenexus.com see our online and offline marketing and advertising services at http://www.innovativenexus.com/index.php/services

Author Bio: [Nexus Marketing Solutions] [2 Vina Street, Badore, Ajah, Lagos, Nigeria] Telephone [+2348023420701] Email [info@innovativenexus.com] Website http://www.innovativenexus.com see our online and offline marketing and advertising services at http://www.innovativenexus.com/index.php/services

Category: Marketing
Keywords: marketing strategy, marketing plan, business success models, marketing communications, marketing