Developing a Strategic Marketing Plan February 28, 2011 Susan Whitsitt Bone Student Center Illinois State University

My Blue Socks

Overview of the Steps 1.Clarify your objective - What specifically are you marketing and WHY? 2.Identify your target audience – Who specifically do you want to reach? 3.Assess the market – What issues are there in your environment? 4.Create the plan – Note that this is NOT the first thing you do! 5.Post strategy analysis – Assess the effectiveness of your plan

#1 Clarify Your Objective Marketing serves one or more of the following objectives: 1.To inform – build awareness about… 2.To educate – create support for… 3.To persuade – move to action to… Can you give me examples of when you might use each of these in your marketing? What is the most common for you? Your must identify the objective in order to plan effectively.

#2 Identify Your Target Audience Determine specifically who it is you are really trying to reach. Identify unique attributes of that audience. Assess their preferred methods of communication. Consider what the benefits of your chosen communication provide for your audience. Consider how you can be creative and innovative with using that communication to reach your audience.

#3 Assess the Market Identify your objectives. Consider what action you want your target audience to take. Consider the marketplace? What is the atmosphere/climate/pulse? How realistic is it to expect the action? What factors are you up against (i.e., today’s homeowner selling to local residents)? Consider the competition. What can you do that is different ? Is it feasible? Is it cost-effective? Do you have the tools and resources to implement?

#4 Create the Plan Six steps for creating the plan: a.Situational Overview – review data from your market place assessment and previous marketing (SWOT analysis) b.Strategy – identify techniques for how to achieve the goal c.Initiatives – practical tactics to implement the strategies d.Resources – identity who/what is need to complete your initiatives e.Budget – outline the costs f.Implementation – identify processes, roles and timeline g.Post Analysis – assess how your plan worked

Situational Overview Review data from your target audience assessment and marketplace assessment Examine for concerns, gaps, issues Conduct a SWOT Analysis of your product/service and your marketing:  S trengths – What is good about what we are selling, what marketing tactics worked well for us in the past?  W eaknesses – What areas is our product/service or our marketing lacking or need improvement?  O pportunities – What aspects of our product/service or marketing can we take more advantage?  T hreats – What about our product/service or marketing might harm or hurts us?

Strategy Take your data and identify your objectives. For example: You’re introducing a new coffee shop within your facility. It’s a popular brand, but there are a number of other larger brand name coffee houses just outside of campus. So although your coffee shop is open to any member of the campus community, you’ve identified that you’re going to target students living on-campus and the convenience it provides to them. Your strategy may be to: 1)Build awareness and excitement among students living on-campus before the opening that a brand name coffee shop is coming to campus. 2)Educate students on the value of the brand and location of the new shop, as progress is made. 3) After the shop opens, persuade students to: stop by your new shop for the convenience, and to make a purchase for the quality.

Initiatives Initiatives are the actual tactics that you will use to implement your strategies. It includes the specific tools, implementation, and timing. For example: Strategy #1: Build awareness and excitement among students living on-campus before the opening that a brand name coffee shop is coming to campus. Initiatives: – Target students living on-campus by posting the following print materials in the student union and residence halls from month A until month D before the shop opens: 11” x 17” posters, lobby ceiling banners, … – Target students living on-campus by using the tagline: “You asked for it. You got it,” along with the coffee shop’s brand logo on all print materials posted before the shop opens.

Resources Identify what is needed to implement each initiative. For example: – Promotional venues - identify what marketing techniques are needed (print materials, school newspaper advertisements, social media, etc.), keep the target audience in mind – Manpower - identify experts to create /design, order, or coordinate (even social media needs someone to manage, who can manage effectively and appropriately) – Tools – identify what is needed to create, coordinate, implement (e.g. testimonial videos - do we have editing software, legal release forms, permissions for music, etc.) – Expenses – identify the costs involved for promotional venues (even social media cost someone’s time) – Timing – identify the time needed to create, approve, implement, and reach (technology and marketing staff are not super heroes) – Other resources?

Budget Review the initiatives and consider: – Cost of the tools and materials – Costs for manpower – Get quotes from a variety of vendors and resources – Consider quality requirements – Assess initiatives vs. budget – Realign plan accordingly

Implementation Process – identify what needs to be done for each tactic Roles – identify who will complete each tactic Timeline – identify when each tactic will be done and when it needs to be completed Oversight (project manager) – who will manage the details for the entire process (tip: most effective when managed by “lower level” staff)

Post Strategy Analysis Why do a post strategy assessment? -Prevents blue socks marketing! -Provides a blue print for next time (or the next guy!) -Identifies what works or didn’t work, what needs to be tweaked -Provides data for other plans -You learn something!

Post Strategy Content 1.Update your plan with the outcomes (quantitative or qualitative) and expenses 2.List successes and strengths of your plan 3.Identify weaknesses of plan: areas to tweak or toss 4.Note recommendations for the next time 5.Distribute to those with a significant investment or interest 6.Save in file or binder with your plan

In Conclusion – Now It’s Your Turn! Tell me: What do you think of creating a strategic marketing plan? How do you think a strategic marketing plan will help you in your work? How will you use this information? What one piece of information will you take back and use at your student union? Questions?

Susan Whitsitt Bone Student Center Illinois State University BoneStudentCenter.ilstu.edu