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Definition of Marketing
Marketing is the set of strategies that guides us in promoting our product in the market and reaching target customers with our product or service by creating value. Marketing is based on extensive market research. If your market research is good, your marketing strategy will excel in the market, and in return, you will increase your sales revenue.
The term marketing derives from the English verb “to market”, or to enter and make suitable for the market, and has historically been used to indicate the company’s activity aimed at managing relations with the market and facilitating the marketing of goods and services.
Marketing typically concerns decisions relating to the product: characteristics and image, sales price, distribution channels, promotional and advertising actions, and sales network.
Marketing Process
Marketing management is the process that makes your potential customers choose you over your competitors. The term marketing is often associated with or somewhat confused with advertising, but this is incorrect.
Advertising is nothing more than a tool or a means of communication that allows us to amplify our message to many people to make us known and then allow them to remember us and buy our products and services.
What is the Marketing Plan?
A marketing plan is an integral part of the business plan, which is the roadmap to show where you come from and where you are going. It is just a process of planning step by step, which guides you in every step of your business operation.
So, in the marketing plan, we plan to promote our product or service in the market. It is a detailed and comprehensive research-based document companies use to market their products or services to customers.
It is a set of marketing strategies on target customers, value proposition, competitors, distribution channels, marketing budget, price and promotion, and SWOT analysis; the marketing plan is also known as a marketing strategy, and without a marketing strategy, your idea cannot become successful in the market, and it will die itself in a short period.
Difference Between The Marketing Strategy And The Marketing Plan?
Marketing Strategy
The marketing strategy or strategic marketing plan describes the goals we want to achieve in marketing. The business’s long-term goals shape the marketing strategy and map the relevant market components. As a rule, the organisation’s overall strategies should align with the strategic marketing plan.
Marketing Plan
What is the marketing plan accurately demonstrates how we achieve our defined marketing goals. It is the marketing strategy or the strategic marketing plan that, like a roadmap, guides us from one point to another.
Marketing Strategy: Introducing or using new segments of existing markets.
Marketing Plan: Develop marketing campaigns that target newly defined segments.
The Importance of a Marketing Plan
A marketing plan is a detailed document including all the activities which are to be done by your marketing team.
Some of the advantages of having a marketing plan are as follows.
A marketing plan provides you with a platform for
- expanding your marketing strategy.
- Assist the production team in the proper execution of affairs through the division of tasks.
- Increases your funding charges
- Saves your time and energy on useless marketing activities.
- Assist in financial planning and budgeting effectively
- Help creates a new perspective
11 Major Components of a Marketing Plan
1- Executive Summary
The executive summary is the heart of your marketing plan, as its name indicates that it summarises all the sections of your marketing plan. It highlights all the main points to attain the reader’s interest.
You should write your executive summary carefully because it plays a vital role; if it is composite and exciting, you can only go for further sections in your plan. It should be short and comprehensive; although it is the first part of your plan, it should be written in the last.
2- Mission Statement
Your company’s mission statement is a short statement consisting of the key points you have to sell. To whom do you want to sell? And what is your unique selling proposition?
3- Marketing Objectives and Goals
Your marketing plan should have smart goals and objectives; without objectives and goals, your marketing plan is worthless, and in the end, you will reach nowhere. Your goals guide you where you want to go, and your objectives help you to get there.
4- Description of Your Product or Service
In this section, you will describe your product or services, state what problems your audience faces in the current market, and how your product and service will solve that problem. What is the demand for your product in the market? What is your product’s competitive advantage, and why is your product valuable? What are you offering something special for your target customers?
5- Market Research and Analysis
With comprehensive market research, you can write a good marketing plan. The marketing plan is all about setting marketing strategies based on research only.
Do deep market research, state your problem, develop your marketing research plan, collect all relevant data and information, interpret and analyze available data, note findings, and make reports.
Market Research & Analysis
Research and analyze your competitor’s product or service, pricing policies, marketing strategies, promotions, and distribution channels. Find out your target audience and how you keep them with your product.
6- Competitive Analysis (SWOT)
Competitive analysis or SWOT analysis is a comparative study of your competitor’s marketing strategies and your own. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.
Competitive Analysis
After this analysis, you will be in a better position to know your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats and will be in a position to know where you can beat your competitors. SWOT analysis helps you to formulate better marketing strategies.
7- Your Target Market
In this section, you will find your target audience for your product or service and briefly describe them. Identify your buyer personas: age, gender, interest, needs, and location. By doing this, you come to know what problem your buyer has. What do they need? And how can you solve their problem?
8- Your Marketing Strategies
After finding your target markets, make your marketing strategies to reach your customers.
Formulate Your Marketing Strategies
Formulate your marketing strategies so that they will attract most of your customers. You have many options to reach your target customers, but you should use the most attractive ones. You can use social media marketing, email marketing, direct marketing, advertising, print media, writing articles, etc.
9- Marketing Budget
In this section, you should prepare your marketing budget, which helps you to plan for your marketing expenditures. Your marketing budget will tell you how much you can spend on your marketing. How much do you have to spend? How will you manage your marketing expenses?
10- Contingency Plan
State your contingency plan clearly; it will reduce your business risk; it gives you the answer to, what if? Simply, it is the planning for unplanned events. It guides you on what to do if an unexpected event occurs and how to manage the worst situation. How do we deal with the crisis?
11- Monitoring Your Results
In this section, you will describe the strategies by which you will monitor your marketing plan strategies. By monitoring, you can find out what is working and what is not. And you will find yourself in a better position to make adjustments where needed.
Conclusion
Hope that, I have delivered the basic knowledge about the marketing plan, you understand all about the concept of the marketing plan. Your comments and feedback are much appreciated!
Frequently Asked Questions
A marketing plan is a document that describes all the activities you intend to do to market your product or service. It details your objectives, strategies, tactics, and budget for achieving them.
The first step is to define your business objectives and goals. Then, identify who your audience is and how you will reach them. Next, create a budget based on your projected sales and develop a strategy for selling your product or service. Finally, evaluate your marketing plan to make sure it works and to see if there are areas where you can improve.
A marketing plan includes all the tactics and strategies used to market a product, service, or organization. Marketing plans can include a variety of aspects, including advertising, pricing, promotions, research and development, customer service, and even employee training.
If you’re creating a marketing plan, you’ll want to write down your vision for your business, who you’re marketing to, and what you want your customers to do. You may also want to determine your product line, what you want to sell, how you’ll get your customers to buy it, and where you want to distribute it.
Write down everything you know about your product or service. Write down your product’s benefits, features, and key strengths. Also, write down the things you don’t want to do, like making it too expensive or not providing good customer service. You can make a simple outline to show what you want to say. This outline can also help you organize your thoughts to remember them easily.
An integrated marketing plan is a business strategy that combines all facets of your marketing efforts into one cohesive effort.
A marketing plan is critical in business because it helps you to understand and manage the competition. It also helps you to make decisions about product development, sales, distribution, and marketing strategies.
A good marketing strategy will help you understand your audience. You can’t start a marketing campaign without knowing your target market and what they need. Once you know that, you can devise a plan to reach them.
A marketing plan is successful when it has clear objectives and is well thought out, structured, and executed.
