The marketing plan

The marketing plan is concerned with a number of questions

where is the business at present
A business can only plan where it is going if it knows where it is starting form. finding out where a business is at the moment involves a Marketing audit. this analyses the internal and external factors which effect a business performance. most businesses analyse their current position by using SWOT analysis. the businesses will have some control over internal factors. external factors are out of the control of the business. these include political, economic, social and technological factors.

where does the business wish to be in the future
this involves the business setting objectives to be achieved. the objectives provide the goals and targets for the business to aim at. they may include such goals as a growth in sales or gaining a certain market share in future

how will a business achieve its objectives
A business must decide how to get where it wants to go. it will have marketing strategies which it will use to achieve its objectives. for example, if it wishes to increase its market share at the expense of a market leader, then it may use market challenger strategies. marketing strategies can be expressed in terms of the four P's. so a company wishing to gain a 10 % increase market share must make sure that it has the right product, at the right price, with an effective promotion and distribution policy