Key Elements Of A Great Marketing Plan For A Successful Business by Manoj Sharma
Key Elements Of A Great Marketing Plan For A Successful Business by Manoj Sharma - Part I
No matter what business you are in or plan to get into, it is always great (especially towards the end of the year) to create a new marketing plan as part of an on-going effort. I know to many doing a marketing plan for an established business may sound strange but there is tremendous value in zero-basing your business and creating it a fresh year on year. For starters, it will put aside all that has happened and allow you to look at things afresh, not to mention it will also keep you on your toes. Finally it will force you to engage in creative destruction - reevaluating all that is no longer relevant and of value (even if it may have been of great value in the past. This also applies to employees and business partners) and consciously recreate the future that best serves all parties concerned.
a) Executive Summary
A marketing plan is best fronted by an Executive Summary that sums up the key elements of your marketing plan and acts as a quick overview. Although this part of an Executive Summary comes first, it is from personal experience best kept to last after you have done all the various elements of the Marketing Plan.
In your Executive Summary you should give an accurate account of the
i) Current Situation & Future Situation,
ii) Description of Present & Future Products & Services,
iii) Strategic Marketing & Financial Objectives, &
iv) Keys to Overall Success
At the end of the day, to a new reader, your Executive Summary should answer at the least the following questions.
- What does your company do?
- Who are its target customers?
- What are the products, services and ideas you offer?
- What are the new products, services and ideas you will be offering?
- Who will you target as new customers?
- What markets do you presently cater in?
- What new markets do you plan on catering to?
- What plans are you planning on implementing?
- What are the result you expect from these plans?
- What are your projected sales figures?
- What are the costs attached to them?
- What is your expected profitability?
- What is your overall investment and return on investment?
- What are the challenges you are likely to face?
- What are your strategies to over these challenges?
1) The Market
History & Evolution of Market
Present Revenue Size of Market
Present Geographical Size of Market
Present Unit Size of Market
Present Growth Rate of Market - Geographically, Revenue & Unit
Present Major Players
Future Growth Rate of Market - Geographically, Revenue & Unit
Future Major Players
2) The Trends
Known Industry Trends, Fads, Demand & Supply
Drivers Of Change
Potential Changes In Usage of Products, Services & Ideas
Demographic Changes - Age Groups, Educational Group, Organization Types, Income Ranges, etc
Psychological Changes - Affluence, Habits, Preferences, Values, Desires, Attitudes, Opinions, Orientations, etc
Other Variables - Demand Cycles, Seasonal Events, Global Events, etc
3) The Factors - Legal, Economic, Political, Sociological, Environmental & Technology
Present Legal Regulations That Affect Your Business
Future Legal Regulations That Affect Your Business
Present Orientation of Government Regulations and Policies
Future Orientation of Government Regulations and Policies
Present Corporate Tax Benefits & Breaks
Future Corporate Tax Benefits & Breaks
Effects of Interest Rates, Inflation & Exchange Rates
Effects of Developments in International Trade, Economic Unions & Free Trade Zones
Political Climate, Political Stability & Political Transparency
Lifestyle Changes
Environmental Concerns
Disposable Incomes
Living Conditions
Inter-city, Inter-state, Inter-country Mobility
Breakthrough Technologies
Killer Applications
Technological Adoption
Technological Infrastructure
Technological Innovation
4) Projected Sales Analysis
Projection of Industry Sales
Projection of Company Sales
Projections of Market Share
Projection of Average Selling Price
Projection of variable Costs
Projections of Gross Margin
Projections of Number of Units Sold
Projections of Gross Revenue
Projections of Total Gross Margin
Projections of Marketing Expenses
Projections of Operational Expenses
Projections of Other Expenses
Projections of Net Profit
5) Competitive Terrain
Number of Competitors
Points of Competition
Constant New Entrants & Exits
Key Players
Key Players Strategic Advantages
Key Players Strategic Disadvantages
Your Side By Side Comparison With Key Players
Products, Services & Ideas
Price Points
Size
Strategic Objectives
Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities & Threats
Brand Equity & Goodwill
Marketing Strategies
Unique Value Proposition
Targeting Strategy
Positioning Strategy
Branding Strategy
Advertising Strategy
Promotions Strategy
Public Relations Strategy
Cost Structure, Sustainability & Scalability
Leadership Strength
Financial Strength
Look out for Part II of Key Elements Of A Great Marketing Plan For A Successful Business soon!
As usual, please feel free to send me your thoughts and comments to Info@DifferWorld.com And if you'd like to explore how you, your teams and your organization can benefit from the above and other DifferWorld initiatives please feel free to drop me a note by clicking here, or call me at DIFFERWORLD at SKYPE now! For more, please go to http://www.differworld.com and http://www.manojsharma.com
