1 Agribusiness Library LESSON L060037: DEVELOPING A MARKETING PLAN

2 Objectives 1.Define the purpose for developing a marketing plan. 2.Identify the process of developing a marketing plan. 3.Explain the three essential elements of a marketing program.

3 Key Terms advertise market research market segment marketing plan profit sales forecast target market

4 Why are marketing plans developed? For a business to remain operable, it needs to be profitable. To make a profit is to make money beyond the expenses required to operate the business. The marketing and sales of a business are the responsibility of its sales department or sales manager. This person may play other roles in the business, depending on the business size.

5 Why are marketing plans developed? A marketing plan is a document that outlines each of the necessary steps to achieve the business’s marketing goals. The plan includes strategies for marketing each of the products and services a business offers.

6 Why are marketing plans developed? A. The marketing plan generally fits into the larger business plan and covers at least one year, often more. The marketing plan should be updated annually. B. A marketing plan can be formal or informal. To determine which is more appropriate, a business must first do market research.

7 Why are marketing plans developed? B. A marketing plan 1. Market research consists of gathering, recording, and analyzing data related to products/services and consumers. It is used to discover what people want, need, and believe as well as how they act. The questions market research can help answer include: What is happening in the market already? What trends are there? Who is the competition?

8 Why are marketing plans developed? B. A marketing plan 2. A marketing plan and market research help ensure that consumers in a target market are offered the products or services they want or need. A target market is the market segment most likely to purchase a product or service.

9 Why are marketing plans developed? C. A marketing plan is developed for each of a business’s market segments. 1. A market segment is a group of customers (companies or individuals) that share comparable characteristics that cause them to have similar product or service needs.

10 Why are marketing plans developed? C. A marketing plan is developed (cont’d) 2. Factors that may segment businesses as customers include size (total revenues, number of employees, and number of locations), job positions, status in the industry, access to other offerings, and need for custom products or services. Factors that may segment individuals as customers include age, gender, language, culture, religion, and special interests (e.g., cats, cars, nature, or jazz).

11 Why are marketing plans developed? C. A marketing plan is developed (cont’d) 3. Each market segment requires a different method of advertisement. To advertise is to present the positive qualities of a product or service to the public.

12 How is a marketing plan developed? Before a company can reach out to a target market, a marketing plan must be developed. Information in a marketing plan is much like a road map. Like a map guides a trip, a marketing plan provides managers direction for running their businesses and helps them make sales forecasts.

13 How is a marketing plan developed? A sales forecast is a prediction of a company’s attainable sales over a defined period. Marketing plans vary from simple to complex and informal to formal. No matter the style, the following elements must be accounted for while creating a marketing plan. A. Objectives—What does the company wish to accomplish through marketing?

14 How is a marketing plan developed? Creating a marketing plan (cont’d) B. Situation analysis—What does the company offer that is different from anyone else (or how is what the company offers different)? What are the company’s strengths and weaknesses? C. Marketplace issues—What are trends among the company’s customers and competition? What threats exist to the company? What opportunities does the company have?

15 How is a marketing plan developed? Creating a marketing plan (cont’d) D. Strategies—What strategies (or campaigns) will the company put in place to market its products? How will these strategies support the company’s marketing objectives? E. Implementation plans—How will the company bring its strategies to the market place? How will the company meet its marketing goals through promotions, advertising, sales, and budgets? How long will the plan take? When will each step of the plan occur?

16 How is a marketing plan developed? Creating a marketing plan (cont’d) F. Measures—What will the marketing plan accomplish? How can the plan’s effectiveness be measured? How will the company know it has been successful?

17 Explain the three essential elements of a marketing program. Once all of the necessary questions have been answered and the information has been gathered, the marketing plan can be assembled. The three essential pieces of the marketing program include a definition of the business, a definition of the customer, and a plan definition that includes a budget.

18 Explain the three essential elements of a marketing program. A. Business definition—This section of the marketing plan includes information on the following: 1. The offered products or services 2. The geographic area where the business markets 3. The competition and how the products or services differ 4. The promotional methods 5. The ways in which products are distributed

19 Explain the three essential elements of a marketing program. B. Customer definition—This section of the marketing plan includes: 1. The make-up of the business’s current customer base: a. Age b. Gender c. Income d. Geographic area 2. The method by which customers hear about the business and its products

20 Explain the three essential elements of a marketing program. B. Customer definition (cont’d) 3. The customers’ purchasing habits 4. Information on what the customer base values about the product or service 5. Details on what customers like least about the offered product or service

21 Explain the three essential elements of a marketing program. C. Plan definition with budget—This section of the marketing plan includes: 1. The types of marketing methods the business has employed in the past, especially those that have been most effective 2. Details on the business’s costs as compared to sales 3. The amount the business spends per customer

22 Explain the three essential elements of a marketing program. C. Plan definition with budget (cont’d) 4. Marketing plans to attract new customers 5. Money that is available for the marketing campaign and what tools can be used within that budget 6. The way in which the marketing campaign’s effectiveness will be measured

23 Review What are the two main components of a Marketing plan? What are the six measures in a Marketing plan? What are the three essential parts to a Marketing program?