Know Where You Are Headed A marketing plan is a written component of the overall business strategic plan that addresses how the company will carry out the core marketing standards. The marketing plan should reiterate the company’s mission statement.

Know Where You Are Headed MISSION STATEMENT – identifies the nature of the business and the reason it exists. – Provides focus for the company’s marketers and planners as they develop tactics for new products and services.

Sample Mission Statements Nike  “To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete* in the world.” Baltimore Ravens  “Our mission is to win football games, serve our fans, and be a positive force in the community.” Chicago Bulls  “The Chicago Bulls organization is a sports entertainment company dedicated to winning NBA Championships, growing new basketball fans, and providing superior entertainment, value and service.”

A Sense of Direction Based upon the mission of a business, the company selects products and services that will differentiate it from the competition. The products and tactics should focus on a TARGET group of customers rather than a mass market. – MASS MARKET  A broad group of people.

A Sense of Direction All the products a company has available for customers at any one time make up the PRODUCT PORTFOLIO. A product portfolio must be continually renewed. Louisville Slugger Nike

A Sense of Direction TEST MARKETING  the sales potential of r anew product is tried in a regional, or otherwise, small, market prior to its final release nationwide and/or worldwide.

Components of a Marketing Plan Analysis Strategy Implementation

#1 - Analysis The analysis section includes the mission statement, marketing information, and the tactic.

Analysis - Mission Statement Mission Statement  Reiterates the company’s overall goal. Nike  “To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete* in the world.”

Analysis - Marketing Information Marketing Information  Describes the target market, their needs and wants, what motivates them to buy, how the company plans to retain loyalty. Questions to Answer: How old are they? What gender are they? Where do they live? What is their family structure (number of children, extended family, etc.)? What is their income? What do they do for a living? What is their lifestyle like? How do they like to spend their spare time? What motivates them? What is the size of your target market?

Analysis - Tactic Tactic  Describes how the new product or service will be differentiated in the minds of customers from all other competing products or services. Tactic should pinpoint a gap that is not being filled by another product or service.

#2 - Strategy The strategy section describes the marketing mix – product or service, distribution, pricing, and promotion- as well as the plans for financing and risk management.

Strategy - Product / Service Describe the details of the product and provide drawings of the product.

Strategy - Distribution Describes how the product will be made available to customers. Questions to answer… Where will it be sold? Where will it be produced? How will it be shipped?

Strategy - Pricing This section address pricing questions. Questions to answer… What is the best price? How much will it cost the organization to make? How much will customers pay? How many customers will purchase this product at the given price? Would a lower price increase the customer base, but hurt the company in the long run?

Strategy – Promotional Plan Describe how you will use advertising, publicity, personal selling, and sales promotion to position the product in the minds of customers. Describe each promotion and give examples.

Strategies - Financing Describes projected costs and expected revenues. Questions to answer… How much will it cost to produce or deliver the product? What is the estimated revenue from the product? How long will it take to make a profit?

Strategies – Risk Management Describes all risks involved with marketing a new product. Legal liabilities Trademarks Logos Potential Losses

#3 - Implementation Describes how the marketing plan will be put into action. Includes a timeline, assignments of responsibility, communication procedures, selling methods, and guidelines to review and evaluate the plan.

Implementation - Timeline When establishing a timeline, start with the date the plan needs to be completed and work backwards to the start of the plan. Specify what needs to be accomplished and in what sequence. Set a schedule.

Implementation - Assignments Specify who is responsible for carrying out each task. Clear ownership is key to running a successful business.

Implementation - Communication Provide the chain of communication so that it is clear who needs to communicate with whom.

Implementation - Selling Outline how direct sales, such as ticket and merchandise sales, will be handled. Discuss all touchpoints.

Implementation – Review and Evaluate Include mileposts where the organization will measure progress to ensure the plan is on track.