IntroductionComplete a brief, 2,500 word marketing plan for eith.docx

Introduction
Complete a brief, 2,500 word marketing plan for either a
business you wish to start, or an existing business of your
choosing.
Learning Outcomes
· Apply the concepts of the marketing mix to the
formulation/evaluation of marketing strategies relative to
particular target markets, environments (economic,
technological and competitive), and desired positions in market
places (both local and global). Aeas to be addressed include an
integrated communication strategy, branding, packaging,
pricing, product/service design, methods of delivery and
product life cycle.
Directions
1. You must not violate The University’s guidelines with
respect to plagiarism.
2. Your plan must contain the following required headings and
subheadings for the marketing plan.
· Executive Summary
· Situation Analysis
· Company analysis
· Customer market analysis
· Competitive market analysis
· External market environment
· SWOT analysis
· Marketing strategy
· Target Market
· Product
· Place
· Promotion
· Price
· Implementation and control

3. Review the marketing plan template (attached) in the files
area (This template is for a much more extensive plan than the
one you will write) to assist you with preparing the plan.
4. You must not violate school Policy and Plagiarism!!!
5. Format:
· Name your file with your name, and paper 1 i.e. Jones paper 1
or Brown paper 1.
· Your file should be in either Microsoft word (.doc or .docx) or
rich text (.rtf) format.
· After you submit your plan to Turnitin, you must then make
the necessary edits, such as adding citations and paraphrasing,
to ensure the originality of your plan. Multiple submissions are
allowed up till the due date; however, the final version should
have an originality report from Turnitin that is not higher than
15%.
Your Company Name Marketing Plan
Your Company Name Marketing Plan
Company Name
Marketing Plan
Company Address
City, State, Zip
Phone: 123-456-7890
Fax: 123-456-7890
Email: [email protected]
Web Site: www.company.com

Contact: Jack Smith
Table of Contents
3Executive Summary
Marketing Objectives
3
Goods or Services
3
Resources Needed
3
Projected Outcomes
3
Company Description
3
Strategic Focus and Plan
3
Mission/Vision
3
Goals
3
Core Competency
3
Situation Analysis
3
Internal Focus
3
External Focus
3
Industry Analysis/Trends
3
Competitor Analysis
3
Company Analysis

3
Customer Analysis
3
SWOT Analysis Summary
3
Market – Product Focus
3
Marketing and Product Objectives
3
Target Markets
3
Points of Difference
3
Positioning
3
Marketing Program
3
Product and Product Strategy
3
Price
3
Promotion
3
Place
3
Data and Projections
3
Sales Forecasting Methods Used
3
Sales Data
3
Costs
3
Financial Projections
3
Financial Information Systems Needs

3
Organization
3
Implementation Plan
3
People Required
3
Manufacturing, Financial and Other Resources Needed
3
Timing
3
Evaluation and Control
3
Marketing Information Systems Needed
3
Criterion Measures with Objectives
3
Appendix A: Biographical Sketches of Key Personnel
3
Appendix B: Support Material
3
Executive Summary
MACROBUTTON NoMacro [Click here to enter your own text]
The executive summary is a concise overview of the marketing
plan. It is often the last section of the marketing plan written.
Its purpose is to provide the reader with enough information to
quickly judge whether or not the plan is feasible. This section
of the plan should address, with brief summary statements,
items such as your marketing objectives, goods or services
included in the plan, resources required and projected outcomes.
Remember that the purpose of a marketing plan is to serve as an
internal sales document. Take your time when developing the
Executive Summary: many experts consider it to be the single
most important element of the marketing plan.
Marketing Objectives

In this section, briefly describe your marketing objectives. Ask
yourself why is it important to market your goods or services?
What do you hope to accomplish? What image does your good
or service have in the eyes of the consumer? What marketing
channels will you use to offer your product? How will your
current customers react to a new product offering? State your
marketing objectives in a format that is measurable. Are you
seeking to increase gross sales? What are your market share
objectives?
Goods or Services
In this section, briefly describe your products, product lines,
and services. What are you selling? Is it a good, a service, or
more commonly, a combination of the two? What are the
product’s benefits? What makes you think that this good or
service is in needed in the marketplace?
Resources Needed
In this section, briefly describe the technological, financial and
human resources needed to execute your plan. What are the
costs associated with these resources? Who is responsible for
covering these costs? Do you have the resources in place or will
you have to obtain them? When considering human resources,
can you out-source by hiring consultants, are you re-assigning
current employees, or will you need to hire new employees?
Projected Outcomes
In this section, briefly describe what the projected outcomes of
your marketing efforts will be. Is there a payback period? When
will your proposed marketing plan produce a profit? Describe
the type of outcomes you expect to achieve in both the short

term and the long term? Essentially, you are presenting
compelling evidence that your plan will work.
Company Description
In this section of the marketing plan, provide a brief overview
of the company, its product lines and its overall marketing
strategy. Remember that many readers of the marketing plan
will be company employees as well, so keep your descriptions
brief and concise. In addition, highlight the company’s recent
history and successes –use these to build the reader’s
confidence that your company and its current marketing plans
are on the right course.
Strategic Focus and Plan
The Strategic Focus and Plan sets the strategic direction for the
entire organization, a direction with which proposed actions of
the marketing plan must be consistent. This section may or may
not be included in the marketing plan, depending on the plan’s
intended audience. The components of this section of the
marketing plan consist of the mission/vision, goals, and core
competency/sustainable competitive advantage.
Mission/Vision
Concisely define the mission/vision of the company. This
qualitative description focuses on the fundamental activities the
company will undertake in order to best serve its stakeholder
groups. Describe in general terms product, price and place
strategies and how these will maximize shareholder value and
build relationships with stakeholder groups.
Goals
The Goals section sets both the financial and non-financial

targets – where possible in quantitative terms – against which
the company’s performance will be measures. It is acceptable to
use lists or other information presentation techniques to
improve the readability of this section of the marketing plan.
Core Competency
Discuss the company’s core competency and any sustainable
competitive advantages accrued. Your core competency is your
unique ability to do something that your competition cannot or
does not do to meet consumer needs. Core competencies yield
competitive advantages. These competitive advantages allow
you to more effectively and efficiently compete in the
marketplace. Competitive advantages include items such as
lower cost factors of production, unique products, unique
technologies, unique marketing expertise, protected access to
markets, etc. Ultimately you should envision competitive
advantage as layers of an onion: you need multiple and fluid
layers of competitive advantage to sustain long-term economic
health. A single competitive advantage is not defendable in the
long-term unless it provides you with a monopoly on one of the
factors of production.
Situation Analysis
Most marketers use a form of situation analysis called a SWOT
analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) to
assist them in conducting a company analysis. The Strengths
and Weaknesses usually have an internal focus (within the
company) and Opportunities and Threats have an external focus
(outside of the company). Many companies seek to match
strengths with opportunities while managing weaknesses and
containing threats. A balancing act to be certain and one that
requires brutal honesty in order to be effective. The Situation
analysis is a snapshot to answer the question “Where are we

now?”
Internal Focus
In this section of the SWOT analysis, describe the current state
of the Strengths and Weaknesses of the company. Internal
factors to consider when developing a SWOT analysis include
items such as Management, Offerings, Marketing, Personnel,
Finance, Manufacturing, Research & Development, Information
Systems, etc. The goal is to provide an overview of the
management team, the product offerings, and the functional
areas of the organization and their ability to react to
opportunities in the external environment.
External Focus
In this section of the SWOT analysis, describe the current
and/or anticipated state of Opportunities and Threats outside the
control of the organization. External factors to consider include
the Consumer/Social environment, the Competitive
environment, the Technological environment, the Economic
environment and the Legal/Regulatory environment.
Consumer/Social
Describe and opportunities and threats perceived in the
consumer and/or social environment such as changing consumer
tastes, changing social perceptions of the product class or
product, etc. Illustrate that you understand the fluidity in the
consumer and social environments and that you’ve determined
the direction of future changes in preference. Think about who
your current customers are and what your current product
offerings are and how these present both opportunities and
threats. Provide an analysis of the cultural and social
environments in which you’ll be operating and discuss the

potential impact that these environments may have on the
success of your marketing plan. How culturally or socially
sensitive is your product? Discuss cultural or social constraints
placed on marketers in this product category. What are cultural
or social trends in this market and how will this impact your
marketing plan?
Competitive
In this section, describe any competitive opportunities and
threats that you foresee in the future. Is your product or process
patentable? Do you have a strong brand name, brand equity or
other unique competitive advantage that will be hard for
competitors to negate?
Technological
In this section of the marketing plan, discuss the technological
environment as it concerns the product or products contained
within the scope of this marketing plan. How critical of a role
does technology play in the successful marketing of your
product? Are any of your core competencies technologically
dependent? What technological developments do you foresee on
the horizon and how might they impact your marketing plan?
Likewise, describe any technological threats looming on the
horizon and how they may impact your company’s situation.
Economic
Describe the current economic environment in which you’ll be

competing. What is its scope (local, regional, national or
international)? What trends are observable (economic
contraction, expansion, etc.)? What are the economic
projections for the near future and the long-term? Do current or
future economic conditions present opportunities and threats?
For instance, is there seasonality in your industry? Is there a
predictable business cycle? Describe the current state of the
economy in which you’ll operate and your expectations for the
future.
Regulatory
Describe any legal or regulatory factors that present
opportunities or threats for your company. Is there a changing
legal or regulatory statute that presents new opportunities for
how you conduct business or what products you sell? Is there
increasing regulation in your industry? Provide an overview of
the political and legal environments in which you’ll be
operating. Discuss any regulatory issues that impact how and
where you will market your product. Are there regulations
regarding product, price, place or promotion that impact how
you intend to market your product? Analyze the stability of the
political and legal environments in which you plan to operate.
Industry Analysis/Trends
The Industry Analysis section provides the backdrop for the
subsequent, more detailed analysis of competition, the company,
and the company’s consumers. Without an in-depth
understanding of the industry, the remaining analyses may be
misdirected. Use this section to demonstrate to the plan’s
readers that you understand the industry in which you compete
and that you are cognizant of trends impacting the industry.
Competitor Analysis

As with the Industry Analysis, the Competitors Analysis
demonstrates that the company has a realistic understanding of
who it’s major competitors are and what their marketing
strategies are. The beauty of our free market system is that
consumers have choice. And that open competition ultimately
leads to higher quality, lower cost goods for the market. In this
section of the marketing plan, describe who your current
competitors are, predict who any likely future competitors will
be, and discuss the differences in competitive advantages or
core competencies that exist among the competitors in the
marketplace.
Nature of Current/Likely Competitors
Knowing as much as you can about your competition allows you
to make informed decisions when it comes to implementing
your marketing plan. Define who your current competitors are,
what their position is in the market, and how much of a threat
they are to your success. Again, this section of the marketing
plan is highly dependent on the current stage of the product life
cycle. If your product is in the introduction or growth phase,
there are probably fewer current competitors and many likely
competitors. If you are in the maturity phase of the PLC, the
competition is fairly well defined. Gather as much information
about the competition as possible. Much of it can be used in the
following two sub-sections.
Current Status of Prospective Competitors
Are you competing with companies comparable in size? Or are
they much larger? Are you competing against much smaller
companies or boutiques? Are your competitors profitable? What

do you do better than your competitors can do? What do your
competitors do better than you can do? Can you anticipate the
emergence of new competitors? Use the table below or one that
you modify to summarize these core competencies.
You
Competitor 1
Competitor 2
Competitor 3
Competitor n
Core Strength
Secondary Strength
Next Strength
Biggest Weakness
Second Weakness

Next Weakness
Core Competency Comparison
Competitive Barriers
Discuss any competitive barriers that you need to overcome, any
barriers to entry that exist in the market and any sources of
competitive advantage that you enjoy. Competitive barriers
include items such as economies of scale and scope that must be
reached in order to be profitable in the market, access to
distribution channels, access to customers, etc. Barriers to entry
may include items such as high levels of capital investment,
long payback periods, proprietary technology, legal or
regulatory restrictions, etc.
Company Analysis
The Company Analysis provides details of the company’s
strengths and marketing strategies that will enable it achieve the
mission, vision and goals identified earlier.
Company Strengths and Overall Marketing Strategies

Define the overall company objectives in terms of return on
investment, long-term financial health, growth expectations, and
the focus on building shareholder equity. Historically, how well
has the company met its objectives? Are there noticeable
trends? What is the current economic status of the company and
what is the target economic status?
Discuss the company’s overall marketing objectives for the
products it sells. Potential objectives include, but are not
limited to, capturing and defending market share, reaching
target levels of gross sales, reaching target levels of net sales,
building brand name recognition and/or brand equity, inventory
turnover targets, etc.
Company Resources
All marketing decisions are constrained by resource
availability. In this section of the marketing plan, discuss
company financial, technological and human resources that
impact your marketing plan. Creatively determine how you can
overcome resource limitations to leverage the best possible
performance given these limitations.
Customer Analysis
Marketing decisions should always be made with the consumer
in mind. The marketing concept dictates that marketers focus on
meeting consumer needs in order to build successful long-term
exchange relationships. Satisfying customers and providing
genuine value to them is why organizations exist in a market
economy. In this section of the marketing plan, demonstrate that
you’ve performed a detailed analysis of your potential market
for the products included in the marketing plan, how the

consumers in the defined markets typically purchase your
product and for what reason, and what type of relationship you
plan to establish with these consumers. Whereas the previous
sections provide the foundation on which to build a marketing
plan, this section provides you with an opportunity to
demonstrate the reason why the plan exists: to serve the needs
of potential customers.
Customer Characteristics
In this section of the marketing plan, discuss who makes up the
market for your product. Remember that there are three
conditions for being considered as a viable market: consumers
must have the ability, willingness and authority to purchase
what you are selling to be considered a market for your product.
Provide evidence that you’ve sufficiently researched who meets
the three criteria to be considered a market for your product,
how you’ve determined this, and describe the demographic
and/or psychographic characteristics of a “typical” consumer.
Keep in mind that while there is typically overall or general
market for your product (the three criteria from above), there
may be multiple customer profiles that can be generated from
this market based upon demographic and psychographic reasons
for purchase.
Furthermore, knowing that there are three general strategies for
applying the marketing mix to defined markets
(undifferentiated, concentrated and differentiated), discuss
which of the three general strategies that you intend to utilize
and justify your decision. This general strategy decision will
strongly influence the following two sub-segments of the
marketing plan.
Possible Segmenting Dimensions

Based upon your selection of a general marketing strategy in the
section above, and on the premise that you can’t be everything
to everyone, describe possible market segmentation variables
that you plan to use individually or in combination to break
down the overall market into potential segments. Typical
segmentation dimensions include items such as demographics,
psychographics, geo-demographics, and behavioral factors.
However, the beauty of segmentation is that you as the marketer
have the opportunity to define segments as you see fit. Not all
competitors in your product category or class will have defined
identical market segments. Marketing in general, and
segmenting specifically, is an art. The only guidelines for
selecting segmentation dimensions are that the dimensions are
observable, consistent and logical. Ideally market segments
meet the following four criteria: they are homogeneous within,
heterogeneous between, substantial and operational.
Key Influences on the Buying Process
In this section of the marketing plan, discuss the key influences
on the buying process. Why do the consumers in your target
market(s) purchase the product? How does the level of
involvement associated with the product (high involvement
versus low involvement) impact the information search and
buying process? Are there elements of the marketing mix that
influence how or where the product is purchased? Knowing the
key influences on the buying process allows marketers to
develop a marketing mix that is better able to satisfy consumer
needs.
Type of Buying Situation

What is the typical buying situation for your product? What
needs must the customer have identified to begin the purchase
process? Describe the typical buying situation or situations that
consumers can expect to experience when they purchase your
product. Who, what, where, when and why, the five W’s of
journalism, may provide you with a basic framework with which
to describe the types of buying situations that you foresee.
Nature of Relationship with Customers
Discuss the nature of the relationship with your customers that
you wish to establish. Remember that customers and their needs
drive our business. And that it is easier to sell more to existing
customers than it is to acquire new customers. What type of
customer loyalty programs do you envision establishing for the
product(s) being marketed? Do loyalty programs make sense for
your product? Are there peripheral ways of generating customer
loyalty such as building a strong brand identity that meets the
needs of the customers? Take the time to demonstrate that
you’ve considered how the nature of your product dictates the
nature of your potential relationships with your customers.
SWOT Analysis Summary
A SWOT Analysis is a specific type of situation analysis
designed to gauge the competitiveness of a company given its
limitations. The strengths and weaknesses are usually thought of
as internal to the company and the opportunities and threats are
usually thought of as external to the company. In order for a
SWOT analysis to be useful, the information it contains must be
brutally honest. This is not the time to gloss over weaknesses or
to minimized threats. Complete each section separately

(Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) and to
summarize your findings in the table provided below.
Strengths
Weaknesses
· Strength 1
· Strength 2
· Strength 3
· Strength 4
· Strength n
· Weakness 1
· Weakness 2
· Weakness 3
· Weakness 4
· Weakness n
Opportunities
Threats
- Opportunity 1
- Opportunity 2
- Opportunity 3
- Opportunity 4
- Opportunity n

· Threat 1
· Threat 2
· Threat 3
· Threat 4
· Threat n
SWOT Analysis Matrix
Market – Product Focus
This section of the marketing plan highlights your
understanding of the market in which you compete, its possible
segments and/or sub-segments and how your product serves
unmet consumer needs in the market. This is the “meat and
potatoes” of the marketing plan
Marketing and Product Objectives
Concisely define the market in which you will be competing.
Remember that to be considered a market for your product(s),
potential customers must have the ability, willingness and
authority to purchase your product(s). Concisely define the
product offering. Determine which stage of the product life
cycle the market is in and discuss how this impacts your
marketing strategy. For instance, if you are introducing a new
product class to consumers your initial task will be to build
primary demand for the product class. If you are introducing a
new product into an existing, mature, market your goal may be
to acquire market share at the expense of your competition.
Properly defining the market in which you’ll compete is the
foundation of the marketing plan.
Target Markets

After regrouping the heterogeneous overall market into smaller
homogeneous market segments, and depending on the general
strategy for applying the marketing mix that you’ve selected,
discuss which segments that you’ll pursue with your marketing
efforts and why. Typically the target markets selected have the
following characteristics: they are large enough economically to
warrant attention and they are stable. If you focus all of your
marketing efforts on one market target market, you are using a
concentrated strategy or a single target market approach. If you
select multiple segments and develop different marketing mixes
for each segment, you are using a differentiated or multiple
target market approach. If you treat the entire market as your
target market, you are using an undifferentiated strategy. A
compromise to the former may be to combine two or more
segments and to target the combined segments with one
marketing mix. Each strategy has its associated plusses and
minuses. It is up to you to justify which approach that you
intend to use and why.
Points of Difference
An organization cannot grow by offering only “me-too”
products. The greatest single factor in a new product’s failure is
the lack of significant Points of Difference that set it apart from
competitors’ substitutes. How does your product compare to
competitive offerings vis-à-vis features and benefits? Use the
table below or one that you modify to show this competitive
comparison.
Good/Service Comparison
Your Product
Competitor 1
Competitor 2
Competitor 3

Competitor n
Price
Perceived Quality
Marketing/sales
Advantages
Feature 1
Feature 2
Feature 3

Benefit 1
Benefit 2
Benefit 3
Competitive Comparison Matrix
Positioning
A positioning strategy helps communicate the company’s unique
points of difference of its products to prospective customers in
a simple, clear way. Describe how you currently or propose to
position your product(s) vis-à-vis the competition in the minds
of consumers. Proper positioning leads to competitive
advantages and the development of brand equity.
Marketing Program
Everything contained in the previous sections of the marketing
plan serve to set the stage for this section in which you present

the marketing mix actions – the 4 Ps – covered in the marketing
program. Describe in detail how your manipulation of the
marketing mix variables will serve consumer needs while
simultaneously maximizing shareholder equity.
Product and Product Strategy
Use this section to describe in detail the key elements of the
company’s product strategy. Provide an overview of the product
class, the product’s stage in the Product Life Cycle, any
warranties or guaranties associated with the product, etc.
Product Class
Describe the general product class in which you will be
competing. What type of consumer or business product are you
proposing? What, if any, consumer preferences must be
addressed in order to succeed in this product class?
Current Product Life Cycle Stage
In what stage of the product life cycle is the overall product
class: Introduction, Growth, Maturity or Decline? Has the
industry gone through turbulence (a hypothetical stage of the
product life cycle just after growth and before maturity during
which there is an industry shake-up and non-profitable
competitors drop out)? Is there an opportunity for arbitrage
(introducing the product into a new market in a different stage
of the product life cycle)?
Specification of Core and Augmented Product

In this section, describe the product(s) that you will be
marketing. The core product is the basic physical good or
service being marketed. The augmented product is the
combination of goods and related services combined to provide
a competitive advantage in the marketplace. Very few items are
“pure goods” or “pure services.” Discuss the combination of
goods and services you are offering. Most offerings are a
combination of the two: some mix of good and service.
Bundling goods with service can be a source of competitive
advantage. Sears’ appliances are a good example: there are
better appliances on the market, but few can match Sears’ level
of after-sale service.
Supporting Customer Services Needed
Whether you use the concept of an augmented product or not,
all products need a certain level of service support. In this
section of the marketing plan, describe all levels of customer
service needed to launch and support your product. Where will
you locate customer service centers? How many do you need?
What services will they provide and who will pay for them?
Warranty
Describe the warranty, if any, provided with this product. What
is covered under the warranty? How long will the warranty last?
Is it renewable or are service contracts offered? Who will
support the warranty (will it be handled internally or contracted
out)?

Branding
Brand image is something that is built over time. Today’s
communications-oriented society, however, doesn’t provide
marketers with the luxury of time. In this section, you want to
answer the following questions:
What type of branding will you use? (Manufacturer versus
dealer, family brand versus individual brand, etc.)
How do you plan to create a brand image?
How will you make yourself distinct from the other
businesses/products?
These questions take on more importance in an environment
where time is a luxury.
In this section, give some thought to how you will build your
image in the mind of the customer. The goal is to develop a
product/service that delivers what it promises consistently over
time. By doing so, you hope to build brand equity, or a value
above and beyond the economic value of the brand.
Traditionally, brand equity is built incrementally over time.
Building brand image and equity is analogous to filling an in-
ground swimming pool with a shot glass. Only through a
consistent effort over time can one hope to accomplish this task.
And once completed, it is easier to maintain than it is to start
over again.
Describe how you will build brand image. How do you plan to
create a brand image that is consistent with what you are
delivering? Is there something unique about your product
offering that you can use to your advantage in terms of

branding? If you are offering something that is not unique, how
do you differentiate your product or service from your
competitors in the eyes of the consumer?
Discuss how you will maintain your brand. Are you delivering
what the customer expects or are you making promises that you
can’t keep? For example, if you are offering fast delivery, are
you keeping your promise? How do you plan to keep your brand
“fresh” in the eyes of the consumer? How do you propose to
consistently maintain your brand image?
Packaging
Describe the general packaging format of the overall product
class. Are there customer expectations with regard to packaging
that must be met? Are there promotional and/or labeling needs
that are a result of consumer preference or government
regulation? What are the protection needs/concerns associated
with this product class and your product in particular? Can you
use packaging as a source of competitive advantage?
Cultural Sensitivity of Product
What, if any, issues of cultural sensitivity must you be aware of
when marketing this product? If launching globally, are there
differences in the core or augmented product and/or packaging
necessary because of cultural sensitivity?
Fit with Product Line

How does the proposed product fit within your existing product
line? Is it a complementary or supplementary product? Is this a
new product line? Illustrate that you’ve thought about how this
product fits with your current business, or if it is for a new
product and a new business, how you can build your future
business around this product.
Price
Price is the element of the marketing mix that generates funds
for the company. Price also influences how the brand is
perceived. Typically, a high price connotes high quality.
Consumers search for some combination of price and quality
that allows them to maximize their utility. Pricing strategies can
be static or dynamic. Static pricing strategies include Cost Plus
Pricing (cost of production per unit plus a profit margin),
Return on Investment Pricing, Price Skimming (charging what
the market will bear), Price Penetration (using a low price to
penetrate the market), and Break-Even Pricing (price to just
break even with regards to fixed costs and variable costs).
Dynamic pricing strategies are non-traditional or innovative
ways to generate sales. With a dynamic pricing strategy, the
only criteria is that you exceed your break-even point per unit
in either sales or based upon the net present value of a revenue
stream generated by the product’s use. Dynamic pricing
strategies include auctions, reverse auctions, ”free” products
that help build market share and/or generate targeted e-mail
lists.
This section should focus on what type of pricing strategies you
will use based upon the demand for your product(s), the
available supply and the typical markup chain in your industry.
Nature of Demand

What is the nature of the demand for your product(s)? Is the
demand cyclical or seasonal? Or is it constant? What is the level
of demand versus the supply – that is, is there enough supply to
satisfy demand? Describe how demand impacts price and quality
in your market. Is demand for your product elastic or inelastic?
Is demand for your product dependent upon or tied to the
demand for another product?
Demand and Cost Analysis
What is the break-even point in units? Is there sufficient
demand to allow you to reach your break-even point? How do
economies of scale and scope impact your break-even point?
What is your fixed cost per unit, your variable cost per unit and
your total cost per unit for different levels of projected demand
(conservative, average, optimistic)? Discuss the relationship
between demand and cost and how you will manage this
relationship.
Markup Chain in Channel
Given your desired return on investment, channel type,
customer demand and manufacturers suggested retail price, what
are the markup percentages and margins that each member of
the marketing channel can expect to make? Is the markup chain
reflective of the risks assumed by each channel member (i.e.,
the channel member who assumes the most risk receives the
highest margin)? The perception of an inequitable distribution
of channel profits creates channel conflict. Describe who can
expect to make what.

Price Flexibility
In this section, describe whether you are using static pricing,
dynamic pricing or a combination pricing strategy. How
structured are your prices? How much latitude do you have in
setting price?
Price Levels
Are you planning to use a price lining strategy where you have
a range of prices for varying degrees of product quality (low,
medium and high price points)? Will you be using a skimming
strategy or a penetration pricing strategy? Is it possible to use a
market basket pricing approach, where you take a loss for one
or a few products in order to make a profit for the entire basket
of profits offered?
Adjustments to List Price
Under what instances will you offer adjustments to the list
price? Will you have trade discounts, quantity discounts,
seasonal discounts or any price reduction promotions? Many of
these adjustments may have been covered in the sales promotion
and/or push and pull marketing sections of the marketing plan.
Promotion
To be successful you must have a focused and coordinated
promotion and advertising plan. Without focus or goals,
promotion and advertising useless. In addition, how will you

reach potential customers?
Rather than aiming for “pie-in-the-sky” projections, try to
remain reality based. Success won’t happen overnight and it
won’t happen with one advertising or promotion campaign.
Advertising and promotion require a consistent effort over time
in order to work effectively for you.
Promotion Objectives
Use this section to define how you will promote your business.
How will you promote your product or service? How will you
induce trial? How will you convert trial users to customers?
How will you keep your promotional message “fresh” and
pertinent to your customers? How will you reach former
customers or stay in contact with current customers? What are
your promotional goals? Some potential goals are to stimulate
sales, increase awareness, generate interest, remind consumers
to purchase and/or to persuade consumers to purchase.
Major Messages/Themes for IMC
Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) is the intentional
coordination and effective blending of all of the firm’s
promotion efforts to convey a consistent and complete message
to the company’s intended market. Possibly the most successful
application of IMC in recent history has been Nike’s “Just Do
It” campaign. All messages from Nike have used this central
theme to promote the link between the company’s athletic
footwear, clothing and accessories and good health through
exercise. This three word play on words based on our propensity
to put off exercise has been, and remains, highly successful.

What type of theme or message makes sense for your product?
To be effective, it has to communicate something about your
product and how it fits the needs of the consumer.
Promotion Blend
Successful promotion requires a blend of the promotional mix
(advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, publicity and
interactive media). Your specific promotional blend is product
and industry dependent. For instance, high involvement
products require higher levels of personal selling than do low
involvement products. And an increasing percentage of the
promotional budget is being spent on sales promotion over
advertising in consumer goods markets. As with most other
marketing decisions, promotion and the allocation of resources
across the promotional blend is constrained by the financial
resources of the company.
Advertising
In this section discuss the type, amount and cost of advertising
that you need to accomplish your marketing objectives. How
much money do you have to spend on advertising and how will
it be used to maximize exposure given the budget constraint?
How often will your advertisements run and where? What are
your advertising goals? Remember that there is no linear
relationship between advertising dollars spent and sales:
therefore the best we can do is to use the objective-task
budgeting method to determine how much it will cost to achieve
a desired, measurable, objective.
Personal Selling

What level of personal selling is needed to stimulate the sale of
your product(s)? This is strongly correlated to the degree of
involvement associated with the product: high involvement
versus low involvement. Higher involvement products, those
with higher risks associated with making a poor purchase
decision, require higher levels of personal selling than do low
involvement products. Technological complexity also influences
the degree of personal selling needed for a product, with highly
complex products requiring more personal selling. In this
section of the marketing plan, define the desired level of
personal selling needed to ensure the success of your marketing
plan and determine the budget necessary to accomplish your
objectives.
Sales Promotion
The goal of sales promotion is to increase sales in the short-
term. Cooperative advertising, Point-of-Purchase displays,
coupons, rebates, etc. are the means by which companies engage
in two broad types of sales promotion: push and pull marketing.
Push marketing consists of sales promotion activities designed
to push the product through the marketing channels to the final
consumer. Pull marketing consists of sales promotion activities
designed to pull the product through the distribution channel
from producer to consumer by stimulating consumer demand.
Although sales promotion is currently the largest percentage of
the consumer goods promotional budget, one must remember
that the costs of sales promotion are bourn by the company.
Consumer goods companies tend to prefer sales promotion to
advertising for one reason: the link between sales promotion
and sales is direct and measurable.
Publicity
Publicity is any non-paid mass communication message initiated
by the company. The goal of publicity is to attract the firm and

its offerings without having to pay media costs. How does
publicity fit into your marketing plan? How do you plan to
manage publicity? Is there a publicity schedule that fits well
with your promotion plan? What are the costs associated with
publicity and what percentage of your overall promotion budget
should be spent on publicity?
Interactive Media
What level of interactive media, such as Internet marketing,
instant couponing, interactive kiosks, CD-ROM promotional
disks, do you plan to use to support your product(s)? Is it
possible to use the Internet as a distribution tool? Is an Internet
presence required for your product even if you don’t plan to sell
direct to the customer via the Internet? How can you use
interactive media to increase your level of perceived customer
support? In this section, discuss the importance of interactive
media in the success of the marketing plan. What are the costs
associated with using interactive media as part of the
promotional mix?
Mix of Push and Pull Required
Push and Pull marketing (sales promotion) are not mutually
exclusive decisions. Most marketers use a mix of push and pull
marketing to stimulate sales. What mixture of push and pull
marketing do you plan to use to stimulate sales? Who will the
target audiences be (consumers, wholesalers, channel members,
sales people)? What is the cycle or schedule of push and pull
marketing required to meet your marketing objectives?
Who Will Do the Work

In this section of the marketing plan, describe who will do the
promotion work discussed above. Do you have in-house
expertise or will you need to job-out elements of the promotion
mix? What type of compensation do you envision paying your
promotion partners? The most common elements of the
promotion mix to job-out are advertising, sales promotion,
publicity, and interactive media. How does the in-house versus
job-out decision impact the promotion budget?
Place
Place, or distribution, pertains to how and where the product is
delivered to the consumer. In this section, discuss your
distribution strategy. What intermediaries will be used? What
method of delivery do you plan to use? Who will you partner
with to facilitate the flow of goods? How will the flow of
information and funds work? Identify the trade intermediaries
that you’ll work with to facilitate the exchange. If you are
selling a product, how will you ship the product to the
customer, who may be the end-user or one of the trade
intermediaries? Discuss your distribution objectives, types of
distribution channels to be utilized, the degree of value chain
coordination needed, transportation, product handling and
storage facilities required as well as any reverse channels that
are being proposed.
Objectives (degree of market exposure)
Define your distribution objectives in terms of the degree of
market exposure desired: Intensive, selective, or exclusive. The
goal of intensive distribution is to be in as many locations as
possible to provide consumers with easy access to your
product(s). Selective distribution limits the number of locations
in which a consumer has access to your product to a defined

number per geographic location. Whereas the focus of intensive
distribution is to be everywhere, the goal of selective
distribution is to be in locations that make sense for the product
and its desired brand image. Exclusive distribution seeks to
limit distribution to very few locations in a defined region and
works best with prestige items. For instance, Rolls Royce has a
formula for locating its dealership franchises based upon the
population and other demographic factors in a given area.
Type of Channel(s)
What type of distribution channel(s) do you intend to use given
the degree of market exposure desired? Direct distribution
refers to products delivered to the end user directly from the
manufacturer or service provider. Indirect distribution refers to
products delivered to the end user through the use of trade
intermediaries such as distributors, wholesalers, retailers, etc.
Remember that this is not a mutually exclusive decision: one
may use multiple types of distribution channels containing
multiple levels depending on the product being offered and the
location of the customers. If you plan to use multiple
distribution channels, care must be taken to avoid direct
competition between the channels.
Value Chain Coordination Needed
In this section of the marketing plan, describe the type of value
chain coordination needed to transform raw materials into
finished goods delivered to customers in an effective and
efficient manner. Concepts such as just-in-time delivery,
materials and process flow, inventory management, Economic
Order Quantity (EOQ), Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and
Efficient Consumer Response (ECR) all allude to the type of

value chain activities that need to be coordinated. By managing
these activities as a system, rather than as discrete occurrences,
allows a company to remain price competitive and/or more
profitable in the long-term.
Transportation Requirements
Transportation and delivery requirements are highly correlated
with the type of product being sold and the desired degree of
market exposure. What combination of rail, truck, ship, airplane
or pipeline is needed to deliver your finished products to the
intended market? Some items, such as computer software, do
not need transportation services to deliver them to the final
consumer: they can be delivered directly to the consumer via
the Internet. As with other elements of the marketing plan, the
selection of the best transportation option is dependent on the
budget constraints of the company.
Inventory/Product Handling Requirements
What are the inventory and/or product handling requirements
that are unique to your product? Is it perishable? Does it require
special licenses for handling? The level of inventory by any
member of the distribution channel is related to the economic or
opportunity costs associated with not having sufficient
inventory on-hand to handle demand. Therefore, projecting
inventory requirements requires one to have a good
understanding of the nature of the product’s demand.
Facilities Required

In this section, describe the types of facilities required to
facilitate the distribution of your product to the consumer. For
instance, combining this section with the above section, once
can see that an ice cream manufacturer needs adequate freezer
space to store its finished product on-site before shipping,
refrigerated shipping (truck, rail, boat or airplane), distributors
with refrigerated warehouses and retailers with refrigerated
facilities in order to ensure that the product doesn’t melt before
it reaches the hands of the final consumer.
Reverse Channels (Optional)
Reverse channels are channels used to retrieve products that
consumers no longer want. Not all products require reverse
channels and government regulation/legislation has a direct
impact on the existence of reverse channels. For instance, if you
live in a state that requires a deposit on soda bottles and cans, a
channel for returning your bottles or cans must be developed.
To ignore the requirements of a reverse channel is a certain way
of alienating and losing customers. If this section is pertinent
for your product, describe the reverse channel requirements
necessary to facilitate the return of products from the consumer.
Data and Projections
This is the section of the marketing plan where you attempt to
predict the sales that will be generated from your marketing
efforts. Several approaches to forecasting exist. The key is to
pick the one that makes the most sense for your product or
industry.
Sales Forecasting Methods Used

How do you develop your sales forecast? If you have valid
assumptions, and are conservative in projecting expected sales,
you have a fair chance of developing a realistic sales forecast.
This is much easier if you have historical data from earlier
operations or from your competitors. In many cases, this
information can be gleaned from secondary data sources. For
many firms, industry sales averages exist in publications such
as the Robert Morris data.
In this section discuss the sales forecasting method that you are
using. Choose a forecasting method that makes sense for your
business and include this sales forecast worksheet in the
appendix of this plan. Think about if it makes sense to forecast
your revenue streams by product (or product line or service
description), by sales channels (direct marketing, distribution
channels, channel partners, strategic alliances, etc.), or by both.
Think about what drives your revenues. Are you operating under
a standard business model whereby you need to predict the
number of units you will sell and at what price? Or are you
operating under a different model where some other criteria or
variables generate revenue? No matter what method or
approaches you use to forecast you sales, consider this word of
caution: be conservative in your estimates. Success is built
slowly.
Sales Data
Estimate the level of sales expected as a result of this marketing
plan. Having settled on a sales forecasting method as defined
above, generate the same multiple scenarios as you did for cost:
low sales, medium sales and high sales projections. The value
of developing three sets of estimates is that you provide the
reader of the marketing plan with a range of potential results.
One key indicator of what future sales will be is to look at what
past sales have been. Provide readers with a summary chart of

the past few years sales results and projected future results.
Costs
Estimate to the best of your ability the costs associated with
each of the activities proposed in the marketing plan. Each
section of the plan has costs associated with the activities
proposed. Develop a summary of costs and include a total
estimated cost figure. You may want to develop multiple
scenarios: low cost, medium cost and high cost estimates with
the understanding that the costs will most likely be somewhere
between the low and high estimates.
Financial Projections
Using the information from the cost section and the sales
section, develop a pro-forma operating statement (profit and
loss statement). The operating statement allows for a manager
to quickly judge the attractiveness of a marketing plan by
showing the gap between expected sales and costs. Astute
managers request a minimum of three pro-forma operating
statements based upon the different levels of expected cost and
sales defined above. Other pro-forma statements requested by
marketing managers include an income statement and balance
sheet. Again, common-sized industry sales averages exist in
publications such as the Robert Morris data. You can use this
information to judge the viability of your projections.
Financial Information Systems Needs
Discuss what type of financial information system that you
currently use and what type of information system that you need
in order to adequately process the data collected above. Do you
have the systems in place or do they need to be developed?
What are the hardware and software needs? Can you purchase

“off-the-shelf” systems or do you need customized systems? As
with the data collection phase, estimate the cost of the financial
information systems needs. These costs, however, differ from
the above costs in that they can be allocated over multiple
projects – that is, they are infrastructure investments – rather
than being project specific investments. The key is to illustrate
that you have the capability to monitor sales projections and
cost estimates provided above.
Organization
In this section of the marketing plan, discuss the way in which
the company is currently organized and how the organizational
structure allows it to respond to opportunities in an effective
and efficient manner. Use or develop an organizational chart to
illustrate the chain of command/control in the organization and
how the different functional areas of the business are linked
together in a cohesive environment. Often a more elaborate
marketing plan will show the new positions expected to be
added as the firm grows – or as defined as necessary for
implementation as described in the next section of the
marketing plan. Attach biographical sketches of key personnel
in Appendix A if the marketing plan’s goal is to obtain external
funding.
Implementation Plan
The Implementation Plan shows how the company will turn
plans into results. Gantt charts are often used to set deadlines
and assign responsibilities for the many tactical marketing
decisions needed to enter a new market. Discuss any special
implementation problems to be overcome in order for the
marketing plan to be successful. Are there any human,
manufacturing, financial or other resources that you need in
order to succeed? Describe in detail your requirements in each
of the sections below and estimate the costs associated with

each activity.
People Required
In this section, describe the personnel required to successfully
implement the marketing plan. Do these people already exist in
the organization or do they need to be acquired. If the need to
acquire extra personnel exists, do these people need to be full-
time employees or are there consultants that can be hired for the
short-term who have the expertise needed to carry out the plan.
Estimate all costs associated with hiring or contracting
additional personnel.
Manufacturing, Financial and Other Resources Needed
Describe any additional manufacturing, financial or other
resources needed to make the marketing plan a success. If
manufacturing or other resources are requested, the same
guidelines as outlined above pertain: purchase or rent? Estimate
all costs associated with additional manufacturing and other
resources needed.
If additional financial resources are needed, define how much
and in what form. If your goal is to raise capital, determine
whether it is best to seek a loan, float a bond or release
additional shares of stock for sale. What is the payback period?
Is this reflected in the financial projections? What is the risk
associated with each option for raising capital? What are the
market conditions and rates? Leverage is a useful financial tool.
Over indebtedness is not.
Timing
In this, the final section of the marketing plan, discuss the
plan’s overall time frame and the timing of each of the activities

that need to be performed in order to ensure the success of the
plan. Define the sequence of the activities and events and any
foreseeable changes in marketing activities as they relate to
changes in the stages of the product life cycle encompassed in
the plan.
Specific Sequence of Activities and Events
Provide a detailed list of the beginning and ending dates for
each of the specific activities and events proposed in the
marketing plan. This should be a linear presentation,
progressing from the plan’s start date to finish date. A visual
summary of the information provided in the form of a Gantt
chart or some other similar presentation style may make
monitoring the specific sequence of activities and events more
manageable. Make certain to build in sufficient lead times for
things such as advertising production and placement as well as
for publicity or public relations efforts.
Evaluation and Control
There is a large difference between well-conceived plans and
well-executed plans. In a perfect world, yours is both. In
reality, the difference between success and failure lies in the
execution of the plan. The key to successful implementation is
to have a method of keeping your finger on the pulse of the
project and the diagnostic tools that you need to accurately
measure results. Once the plan is implemented and you start
seeing the results of your initiatives, it is important to review
what has been accomplished. It is best to think of marketing
plans as living documents. They aren’t carved in stone: they can
be adjusted, or tailored, after implementation. The essence of
Evaluation and Control is comparing actual sales with the
targeted values set in the plan and taking appropriate actions.

Finally, no plan is perfect. This is a direct result of developing
the plan with less than perfect information. Even with the best
research and the best projections, plans fail. However, on
average it is better to operate with a well-conceived plan than it
is to fly by the seat of your pants. Structured plans allow you to
keep track of your decisions, monitor the results, and establish
an institutional knowledge base of what works and what
doesn’t. To embrace a philosophy of continuous improvement,
you have to know what has happened in the past. In other
words, you need to know where you’ve been in order to get to
where you’re going.
Marketing Information Systems Needed
What additional marketing information systems needs do you
have for controlling the marketing plan? How will data be
collected and transformed into information? What types of
databases do you need? This is in part determined by what type
of business you are engaged in, what your transformation or
value-added processes are and your plans for implementing
relationship and/or database marketing efforts in the future. Any
system that you develop or propose to develop should be
expandable to accommodate future marketing information
systems needs and business growth. Can these needs be
incorporated with the financial information systems needs
previously discussed?
Criterion Measures with Objectives
In this section of the marketing plan, revisit your corporate and
marketing objectives associated with this plan and discuss the
specific criterion measures to be used. How do the measures
reflect the success or failure of meeting the objectives? How are
the measures calculated? What are the baseline measures for
success – the minimum level of acceptable performance for each

criterion measure?
Appendix A: Biographical Sketches of Key Personnel
This section of the marketing plan is where you’ll attach all of
the support material that you’ve referenced in the marketing
plan such as your sales projections, etc. Use this page to
separate the appendices from the text. Make certain that you
update the table of contents to include the title of each exhibit
in the appendix and its page number.
Appendix B: Support Material
This section of the marketing plan is where you’ll attach all of
the support material that you’ve referenced in the marketing
plan such as your sales projections, etc. Use this page to
separate the appendices from the text. Make certain that you
update the table of contents to include the title of each exhibit
in the appendix and its page number.
1
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