How to write a marketing plan

The mark of a successful business is good planning. Most businesses would benefit from a marketing plan but many businesses never get round to completing one. The result is often a piecemeal approach to marketing that is reactive rather than proactive. This marketing plan guide leads you through a series of questions that will help you define more sharply your market, your targets in that market, your competition and your distribution channels.

The purpose of a marketing plan is to provide a guide on which to base your decisions, and anticipate trends and developments in the market.

This plan is designed to lead on to a promotion plan (ask for the related Solution Guide: ‘How to write a practical promotion plan’). This is an action plan that will help you decide how best to spend your marketing budget to achieve your objectives.

This marketing plan is based on responding to a series of questions that allow you to build up a picture of your market and clarify your marketing strategy. These questions are divided into four categories that make up your marketing plan worksheet.

The categories are:

• Defining the market
• Identifying your target market
• Researching your competition
• Methods of distribution
• A final section encourages you to work out your competitive advantage as a prelude to completing your promotion plan.