Writing a Marketing Plan – Series Overview

Companies that are successful in marketing invariably start with a marketing plan. Large companies have plans with hundreds of pages; small companies can get by with a half-dozen sheets.

The plan should cover one year. For small companies, this is often the best way to think about marketing. Things change, people leave, markets evolve, customers come and go. Later on we suggest creating a section of your plan that addresses the medium-term future–two to four years down the road. But the bulk of your plan should focus on the coming year.

You should allow yourself a couple of months to write the plan, even if it’s only a few pages long. Developing the plan is the “heavy lifting” of marketing. While executing the plan has its challenges, deciding what to do and how to do it is marketing’s greatest challenge. Most marketing plans kick off with the first of the year or with the opening of your fiscal year if it’s different.

Over the coming weeks we will be covering the various sections of writing a marketing plan. These sections include:
Part 1 – Plan Purpose and Mission
Part 2 – Situational Analysis
Part 3 – Marketing Strategy and Objectives
Part 4 – Tactical Programs
Part 5 – Budgets, Performance Analysis and Implementation
Part 6 – Additional Considerations

There will be sub-sections in each of the parts as we dive deep into the sections and I look forward to your feedback and input on experiences you have had in putting one of these plans together.