Purpose Of The Marketing Plan

Why prepare one?              

A marketing plan helps you establish, direct and coordinate your marketing efforts. Preparing a marketing plan forces you to assess what's going on in your marketplace and how it affects your business. It also provides a benchmark for later measurement. Often, simply embarking on the process of preparing a marketing plan guides you in developing a successful marketing strategy.  

Who reads it?

Just as a road map guides you on a journey, a marketing plan guides you and your staff to reach your goals; it keeps you from getting off- course.

Representatives from organizations that plan to lend you money or invest in your business require a business plan–and your marketing plan is a critical component of that business plan.

What is it?

A marketing plan contains information about your company and its products, marketing objectives and strategies, as well as how you will measure the success of your marketing activities. It describes all the marketing activities you'll perform during a specified time period (usually one year). You'll also include any background information and research results you used to select those marketing activities. Finally, you'll document the costs associated with your planned marketing activities as well as the measurements you'll use to determine success.

Most often, a marketing plan is a component of a business plan. A business plan basically states how you plan to run your company–what your goals are, how much money it will take to achieve your goals and what activities you'll perform to achieve your goals. Marketing, obviously, is one of those activities. Marketing plans sometimes stand alone but should always support and be closely linked to a company's business objectives.

You need to have a thorough understanding of the following points to develop a marketing plan:

• your products or services and their features and benefits
• the problem, need or desire your product or service solves or meets for your customer
• your target market and its characteristics and buying habits
• current and potential competing products or services

When should I prepare one?

Ideally, you will develop your first marketing plan as a component of your overall business plan before you launch your business. If you're already in business without a written plan, however, develop one now with your goals for the next 12 months in mind.

Update your plan on a regular basis. Last year's strategy may not work given this year's market conditions. Prepare reminders to review and update your marketing plan about every quarter, but at least annually.

The templates below provide all you need to build creative and comprehensive marketing plans.

Can you, a relative, or a friend use a FREE MBA? 16 specializations offered in 16 languages. Click here for details.

Developing Competitive Advantage

When a firm sustains profits that exceed the average for its industry, the firm is said to possess a competitive advantage over its rivals. The goal of much of business strategy is to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage.

Michael Porter identified two basic types of competitive advantage:

• cost advantage
• differentiation advantage

A competitive advantage exists when the firm is able to deliver the same benefits as competitors but at a lower cost (cost advantage), or deliver benefits that exceed those of competing products (differentiation advantage). Thus, a competitive advantage enables the firm to create superior value for its customers and superior profits for itself.  

Cost and differentiation advantages are known as positional advantages since they describe the firm's position in the industry as a leader in either cost or differentiation.

A resource-based view emphasizes that a firm utilizes its resources and capabilities to create a competitive advantage that ultimately results in superior value creation. The following diagram combines the resource-based and positioning views to illustrate the concept of competitive advantage:  

A Model of Competitive Advantage

Resources and Capabilities

According to the resource-based view, in order to develop a competitive advantage the firm must have resources and capabilities that are superior to those of its competitors. Without this superiority, the competitors simply could replicate what the firm was doing and any advantage quickly would disappear.

Resources are the firm-specific assets useful for creating a cost or differentiation advantage and that few competitors can acquire easily. The following are some examples of such resources:

• Patents and trademarks
• Proprietary know-how
• Installed customer base
• Reputation of the firm
• Brand equity

The firm's resources and capabilities together form its distinctive competencies. These competencies enable innovation, efficiency, quality, and customer responsiveness, all of which can be leveraged to create a cost advantage or a differentiation advantage.

Cost Advantage and Differentiation Advantage

Competitive advantage is created by using resources and capabilities to achieve either a lower cost structure or a differentiated product. A firm positions itself in its industry through its choice of low cost or differentiation. This decision is a central component of the firm's competitive strategy.  

SWOT Analysis

SWOT analysis looks at your strengths and weaknesses, and the opportunities and threats your business faces. By focusing on the key factors affecting your business, now and in the future, a SWOT analysis provides a clear basis for examining your business performance and prospects.

Download Additional Amazing Marketing & Competitive Analysis Tools
For Annual Subscription Members Only

 

Competitive Analysis Templates	Description
Competitive and Value Chain Analysis Workbook	A powerful Excel spreadsheet workbook with tabs providing models to undertake both competitive and value chain analysis. Even though it is for annual subscribers only, please click here to see the workbook in protected form.
How To Gather Competitive Analysis Information	Provides the steps and potential sources to use to gather the information necessary for a good competitive analysis exercise (PowerPoint)
Starbucks Competitive Analysis Example	A sample competitive analysis study using Starbucks as the company being studied (PowerPoint)

 

Software Tool	Summary of Uses and Benefits
Website Marketing Tracker	Calculates of the basic marketing metrics of your online business that allows you to track your progress, plan for the future and understand the key aspects of your business. Understand exactly how your web marketing and your business is evolving and keep track of your money and investments.
X Mailer Direct	E-mail Marketing in 4 easy steps. Make sure your existing customers and web-site visitors know when you have something new to offer through personalized e-mail messages based on interest, thus providing your customers and web-site visitors with the relevant information they need.
CRM Solution	Lotus Notes/Domino CRM database. Companies, Contacts, Communication, other documents. Marketing Management, Mailing Lists, Document Management, Contracts, Invoices, Project Management. MS Office Integration.
HTML Mailer	Send personalized e-mails to a list of recipients from any database or excel file. High-speed and easy to use e-mail marketing tool. Sends messages in plain text format or HTML.
Mail List Controller	Mail List Controller is an email mailing list and marketing solution designed to send out personalized newsletters, campaigns, e-zines, announcements, support and group mails. The program runs as service on your desktop, workstation or server. You can use the built-in mailserver for direct delivery or use an external SMTP server. The WYSIWYG editor allows you to create personalized rich-text (HTML) messages or you use your default mail client. Other features are: webform requests, single and double opt-in, ODBC support, linked lists, returned message detection and many more.
Web CEO	Web CEO is a powerful professional software suite for site owners, webmasters, e-marketers and Web consultants. It allows you to handle every aspect of Web business management and promotion for your own Web site or for the clients' sites. Find and research keywords, optimize Web pages for high search engine rankings, submit the site to 200+ engines. Then, check your positions on many engines for multiple keywords and analyze ranking history collected over time. The Link Analysis Tool and Link Partner Finder, available in the latest version of Web CEO, assist you in spying competitors' link strategy and building a solid external link popularity. HitLens Traffic Analysis contains over 120 unique reports to turn all possible information about your visitors into valuable marketing data.
PC Invoice	Designed for the small to medium sized business. PC Invoice covers everything from invoicing, estimating, and purchase order creation. With multiple marketing and manager reports you can track every aspect of you business and customers. PC Invoice also gives you many different options to customize the program to your needs including being able to network it.
Site Promote	Promotes your website to over 1,000 search engines at the click of a button. Just fill in a few lines of information, sit back, and let the software do the rest!

---

 

Templates and Tools Library            Members Sign In

Develop Winning  Business Plans & Investor Presentations	Develop Insightful Marketing Plans & Competitive Analyses	Develop Creative Sales & New Product Launch Plans
Build Breakout & Game Changing Strategic Plans	Execute Ground Breaking Joint Ventures & Strategic Alliances	Create Winning Business Buy/Sell and Joint Venture Agreements
Build Creative Change Management Plans	Plan, Manage &  Execute  Successful Trade Shows	Investigate Business Funding Sources
Use Comprehensive Business Valuation Models	Execute Game Changer Merger, Acquisition, and Business Sale Deals	Develop Great Term Sheets, MOUs, & Letters of Interest
Conduct Effective Due Diligence	Build Effective Results Driven Post Merger Integration Plans	Develop Creative Budget & Financial Statement Forecasts
Tackle Complex Project Management Issues	Use Creative Thinking Guidelines & Models	Set up Effective Alternate Distribution Channels
Download Productivity Tools - Doc Mgmt, Info Mgmt, and more...	Develop Newsletters, Brochures, Flyers, and other collateral	Customize 600+ Business and Sales Letters, Forms,  and Announcements

eBooks Library - Download and Enjoy Reading!
For Annual Subscription Members Only

Author	eBook Title
Michael Rasmussen and Jason Tarasi	Adsense Revenue Expo - Learn how you can quickly and easily generate residual profits from Google Adsense, month after month!
Virtual-eBiz	Virtual eBiz - establishing a successful eBusiness from home.
Simon Hodgkinson	Unlimited Profits & Traffic - Make a difference between mediocre results and a lifetime of unlimited income.
Richard Stooker	Web Sales Letters Supreme - The web sales letters in this book have been written by some of the greatest copywriters on the Internet.
Cody Moya	Article Marketing Course - Marketing secrets to create multi five-figure cash profits each & every month.
Unknown	Article Cash - Discover the easy, proven and simple way to pump out high quality articles and turn them into long term residual income!
Authorized Distributor	eBay Entrepreneur Kit - To start selling on ebay this is a must have!
Garrie Wilson	Affiliate Directories: Announce Your Affiliate Program
Louis Allport	5 Easy Ways To Boost Your Website Traffic For Free
Willie Crawford	The Master Blueprint To Internet Marketing Success
Michael Rasmussen and Jason Tarasi	The Newbies Guide To Making Software - Crank out custom software that sells like crazy - without ever writing a single piece of code!
Liz Tomey	Easy Affiliate Profits
Unknown	PPC Profits - Profit from your very own pay per click search engine.
Louis Allport	10 Easy Steps To A Google Friendly Page - Get a lot more visitors to your website for free.
Ryan Lee	Smoothies For Athletes - 120 quick and easy smoothies recipes that will give you more energy and stamina.
Maria Vowell	Profitable Crafts Volume 1 - Turn your part time hobby into a profitable full time business.
Ryan Deiss	The Great Ezine Experiment - Turn a simple ezine into an online empire.
Maria Vowell	20 Vintage Crochet Patterns
Louis Allport	15 Easy Ways To Boost Your Website Response
Maria Vowell	Profitable Crafts Volume 2
Michael Rasmussen and Jason Tarasi	Blog In A Box - Create one easily and even make money from it.
Maria Vowell	Wonderful Wedding Favors And Gifts
Ameer Salim	How To Create Your Own Blog For Free
Maria Vowell	Profitable Crafts Volume 3
Maria Vowell	Profitable Crafts Volume 4
Louis Allport	How To Create A Minisite In 30 Minutes Or Less
Louis Allport	How To Add Automatically Updating Content To Your Website For Free
Michael Rasmussen and Jason Tarasi	Ghostwriters From The Inside Out - Discover the secrets pros use to crank out profit generating info products (without writing a single word).
Louis Allport	7 Fast Ways To Get Great Links To Your Website
Louis Allport	How To Build Huge Niche Keyword Lists
Simon Hodakinson	Build Your List - Video enhanced crash course in email marketing.
Louis Allport	Instant Adsense Cash - Start making serious adsense commissions within the next 48 hours.
Louis Allport	10 Steps To Killer Web Copy - Writing a great sales copy is the key to the overall success of your online business.
Louis Allport	How To Master Web Graphics In 10 Easy Steps
Louis Allport	Instant Audio Mastery - Master creating and working with audio for your own websites and products.
Louis Allport	How To Create Professional PDFs For Free
Dylan Morgan	Hypnosis For Beginners
Unknown	Resell Rights Profits - Start your own highly profitable online business with the power of resell rights.
Walutech	How To Become An eBay Powerseller In 90 Days
Joesy	Private Label Rights & Master Resell Rights Explained - Now you can profit from private label rights & master resell rights.
Chuck McCullough	Search Engine Primer
Louis Allport	Brian Garvin's MLM Secrets - How to make (at least) $30,000 in residual income every single month with online network marketing!
Michael Rasmussen and Jason Tarasi	Mining Gold From eBay
Louis Allport	How To Secretly Spy On Your Internet Competition
Michael Rasmussen and Jason Tarasi	Bloggers Guide To Profits
DrDating.com	Making Cash With Your Own Dating Web Site
Mrs. S.T. Rorer	111 Egg Recipes
Robert Wells	The Bread And Biscuit Bakers And Sugar-Boilers Assistant - This 84 page eBook provides over 260 time-tested recipes, that you can bake for dinner parties, fund-raising events, family reunions, Holidays or simply to have fun in your kitchen with your children or relatives.
Marcus Yong	From Zero To Hero: How To Become A Top eBook Reseller
Louis Allport	How To Create Profit-Pulling Toolbars For Free
Louis Allport	How To Set Up A Secure Members Area
Walutech	How To Fight Your Traffic Ticket In Court
Push Button Publishing	97 eBay Success Secrets
Brad Callen	Google Adwords Made Easy
Tom Hua	FreeToSell - Top quality information products with full resell rights.
Yanik Silver	7 Hidden Psychological Secrets To Maximum Sales
Azam Corry	Power Pop-Ups: The Complete Guide To Pop-Up Windows
Jinger Jarret	How To Really Start Your Business In 30 Days
Charles Burke	Inside The Minds Of Winners
Magicians Magic	Magician's Levitation - Will show you exactly how to levitate any regular playing card, borrowed paper currency, or even a borrowed credit card at the spur of the moment.
Kevin Sinclair	Success Secrets: How To Be More Successful
Push Button Publishing	101 Golden Keys To Success And Fulfillment In Life
Push Button Publishing	97 Easy Money Savers
Jim Edwards	The Secret To Winning Every Single Time
Joseph Then	Color Therapy - Holistic and non-invasive therapy that involves use of colors for treating various physical ailments and emotional disturbances.
Terry Telford	Turn Your Autoresponder Into A Cash Cow
Push Button Publishing	97 Ways To Get Fit And Stay Fit
Louis Allport	5 Fast Ways To Explode Your Opt-In List
Bobbette Madonna & Lynn Toler	Spam Warfare: Protecting Your Assets - Learn how to protect your business from scams, anti-spammers, and the FTC.
Aaron Turpen	Hackers, Fraud, And Trust Online - Techniques you can use to stop cyber-criminals before they rip you off.
eBookathon	Unknown Origin UFOs And Aliens
Louis Allport	29 Easy & Instant Web Design Tricks Volume 2
Louis Allport	29 Easy & Instant Web Design Tricks
Walutech	Outsmarting The Blackjack System
Unknown	French - Romance Language Of 128 Million - Will easily teach you the French language.
David Zohar	Quick Selling Software
Terry Dean	101 High Profit Businesses
John Botscharow	Web Guerrilla Journal: Guerrilla Selling
Terry Dean	Who Wants To Be An Internet Millionaire
Adam Woeger	Fast Selling Software
Garrie Wilson	The Forum List - With just five minutes and The Forum List you can reach out to thousands of people.
John Botscharow	Web Guerrilla Journal: Guerrilla Marketing Basic Training
John Botscharow	Web Guerrilla Journal: Guerrilla Psychology - Advertise your products online, and to do it on a shoe-string budget!
Priya Shah	Be A Whiz At eBiz
Ebooks Made Easy	eBook Authors Interviewed
Richard Dean	Ultimate Joint Venture Software
Joseph Then	A Practical Guide To Vitamins Minerals And Nutrients
Unknown	Floating Ads Creator - A new way to make a substantial amount of money from affiliate programs.
Michael Webb	101 Romantic Ideas
Richard Dean	How To Buy A Car With Little Or No Credit
Bob Bastian	404 Self Improvement Tips
Walutech	500 Cake Recipes
DrDating	Great Tips For Dating Success
Cheap ebooks	Delicious Puddings
Walutech	Party Poker Cracked - Want to dominate tournaments  every single time you play?
DrDating	Guide To Online Dating
Unknown	The Insider's Guide To Time Management
Walutech	101 Camping & Outdoor Recipes
Maria Vowell	Turning Their Trash Into Your Profits - Even if you are not into making arts and crafts, you can still profit in this market.
Push Button Publishing	97 Steps To A Happy Relationship

Resources4
ResourcesD
ResourcesJC