In most companies, the marketing plan is a part of the overall business plan; ideally, it should mesh in seamlessly into the business plan. A business plan is obviously the complete plan of the business and incorporates the plans of other functions in it. Good companies ensure that the business plan is made cross-functionally so that all functions are fully aware of the complete picture – the interconnected plans that will help a company meet its objectives for the period under consideration. You may be amazed but I can say from experience that many companies do not follow this critical principle; I have seen functions making their own plans without having a clear idea of what the other functions are doing. Finally, the Finance team collates everything and that becomes the business plan. This, generally, is a recipe for disaster. However, as is to be expected, good companies treat their planning process very seriously. In fact, many have an entire planning period during which broad goals are set and functional plans are presented to all functional heads and discussed threadbare  before the final business plan (for the coming year or years) is prepared.

Before we get to the Marketing Plan, let’s take a look at a possible Business Plan. A business plan, a sample of which is visually depicted below, covers most of the important elements that will help a company meet its goals, although these elements may differ from company to company. As you can see, the marketing plan is a critical aspect of a good business plan. While the Market Analysis, the Company Objectives and the Strategic Analysis are shown separately in the business plan, it should be noted that marketing has a very key role in preparing them. In fact, the marketing objectives and strategies are highly dependent on these elements.

A marketing plan outlines a company’s marketing objectives (for a given period), the strategies for achieving the objectives and the complete action or implementation plan based on the marketing strategies.  A good marketing plan must also have clear milestones and a process for measuring results periodically and for controlling expenses.

In most organisations, the planning process is done annually for the coming year although many companies also look at a longer time horizon (3-year and 5-year plans, for example).

Given below is a graphic showing the key elements of a possible marketing plan:

Marketing Objectives:  The marketing objectives should flow from the overall business objectives.  They must be clear, quantifiable and time bound and should include the sales targets (brand/product-wise), revenue targets and gross margin targets. The objectives could also include targets for brand scores, targets for re-launches and new launches etc. A good way to see that the objectives are good is to make them SMART – Specific, Measurable, Achievable (stretch targets, but not unrealistic ones), Reviewable and Time bound.

Situation Analysis: The Situation Analysis is a critical step in the marketing planning process. It is done to understand both the external environment and the internal strengths and weaknesses. As far as situation analysis is concerned, it should include a detailed understanding of the competition, the company’s capabilities and its consumers. Understanding the context in which your company is operating is key to developing a good marketing strategy. There are various models and methods that are used to do Situation Analysis – the 5Cs Model, Porter’s Five Forces Analysis, SWOT Analysis. Or you could use any other model, possibly the one that your company follows. The three models I have mentioned above are very well established and you would do well to read about them and understand them well. I am showing them visually below; the depiction is skeletal and I will try and cover these models in future tutorials.

Marketing Strategy:  The marketing strategy details out the strategy for meeting the marketing objectives. When working on the marketing strategy, you will need to analyse and finalise your brand’s value proposition and its positioning. You will also need to look at all the elements of the marketing mix to develop your strategies. While people talk of the 4Ps of the marketing mix – product, price, place and promotion – Booms and Bitner added 3 more Ps to create the extended 7Ps of the marketing mix (shown below).  The 7Ps model is more relevant if you are marketing a service although it works well for the marketing of anything.

While the traditional 4Ps –product, price, place and promotion – are well understood, the additional three are not.

• Physical evidence: Physical evidence is an important tool to reassure customers and includes your offices, the way your sales/service people treat customers or handle queries/complaints, the product packaging and the customers’ on-line experience
• People: People include everyone who handles the marketing of your product or service, especially the people who actually come in contact with the customers. You will need to look closely at the experience of the customers, training, remuneration etc.
• Process: Process is concerned with the processes and systems that have an impact on the execution of your product or service.

Your marketing strategies will depend upon your marketing objectives. Given below are some examples of marketing objectives; based on these, you will have to develop your strategies by exploring all the elements of the marketing mix:

• Increase sales
• Increase market share
• Add new consumers
• Get existing consumers to buy more
• Retain existing, profitable consumers
• Improve customer loyalty
• Increase your brand scores
• Introduce a new product or service

As you can see, a particular objective will have a specific strategy. You cannot have a one-size-fit-all type of overarching strategy to meet diverse objectives.

Implementation plans: Once the marketing strategy/strategies are in place, you have to execute them. For this, you will have to make detailed, time bound action plans. Many experts believe that many companies do not meet their objectives because they do not execute well. Marketing effectiveness is not just dependent upon making plans but on following through and implementing the plans flawlessly. Now this is a tedious job and requires hard work and attention to detail. The plans may include introduction of new products, geographical prioritisation, new advertising campaigns, on-ground promotions, improvements in distribution of your product or service, pricing decisions, consumer promotions…the list could go on and on. Really good marketers make detailed, well thought out execution plans and then follow through.

Evaluation and Control: To ensure that you meet your marketing objectives effectively and efficiently, you need to have controls in place to monitor your progress. As you move through the plan period, the controls are regularly analysed to keep track of how the plan’s actual performance compares with the projections (of sales, market shares, brand scores, budgeting etc.) Regular monitoring will allow you to take corrective actions or introduce tactical initiatives to see that your progress stays in line with your commitments in the marketing plan. If you are exceeding the spends outlined in the marketing budget, you could pull back some of the campaigns or activities to stay within the budget.

Companies have their own control mechanisms. Here are some that you could look at:

• Annual Plan Control: Here, you and your company will look at the figures that form a part of the business and marketing plans, especially sales and profitability. Marketers could use some of these tools to monitor performance on a monthly (or quarterly) basis:
  • Sales analysis
  • Market-share analysis
  • Marketing expense/Sales analysis
  • Brand score analysis (there are various research models available to track the progress of a brand on various parameters)
  • Gross margin analysis
• Efficiency Control: Efficiency control analyses various elements of the marketing mix. Here are some examples:
  • Sales force efficiency
  • Advertising efficiency
  • Tactical promotion efficiency

Making a good marketing plan is highly dependent on how well you understand the business environment within which your company operates, your business and brands, the consumers who consume your products or services and the key drivers that have an impact upon your business. If you are new in a company, spend quality time in understanding your business, its challenges and the opportunities. This will allow you to frame your marketing objectives well and to develop effective strategies and action plans.

Visual courtesy :  https://www.flickr.com/photos/127387888@N08/