In this course, you will develop a strategic marketing plan for a selected business that you will use throughout this course. To do so, the assignments and summative assessments
In this course, you will develop a strategic marketing plan for a selected business that you will use throughout this course. To do so, the assignments and summative assessments in this course build on each other, and you will develop your strategic marketing plan in sections. Please do not integrate previously used content from other courses or assessments outside of this course.
Review the Strategic Marketing Plan Template to get an understanding of the type of information you will need throughout this course.
Select 1 well-known business you would like to research and use as the basis for developing a marketing campaign. Refer to the following resources, as needed, for assistance selecting a business and locating information about it:
- Marketing professional organizations, such as 4 A’s website or American Marketing Association website
- Get Started with Marketing Research page on the University Library website
- Business databases on the Week 1 University Library
Consider the following during your business selection process:
- The business you select will be used throughout the weekly assignments and summative assessments in this course.
- It will be to your benefit to select a business whose information is easily accessible. While you will base your plan on the actual business, there may be parts of this assignment that will require you to use your knowledge and resources to make an informed plan.
Develop a 350- to 700-word outline for your selected business in which you include the following information that you will use to complete portions of your Week 2 summative assessment:
- Mission statement
- Vision statement
- Product line description
- Business information, such as the size of the business
- Current target markets
- Current marketing tactics
Cite sources to support your outline.
Format citations and references according to APA guidelines.
MKT/574 v2
Strategic Marketing Plan Template
MKT/574 v2
Page 2 of 2
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Strategic Marketing Plan Template
Complete the References section as you progress through Parts A, B, and C.
Include your name in the document’s file name when you submit it.
Wk 2 – Part A: Environmental Analysis and SWOT Analysis
Use the information you researched in your Week 1 assignment for the sections they correspond to in this part.
For additional resources that may be helpful with components in Part A, refer to the resources provided on the Week 2 University Library page.
Business Description
Describe the business you are designing the plan for. Include the mission statement, vision statement, product line description, and business information (such as the size of the business).
Environmental Analysis
Analyze the forces that affect the business and marketing efforts.
Competitive Forces
Analyze the business’s key competitors. You may choose to use a BCG matrix or attribute checklist to compare your selected business against its competitors. Describe any strategic moves the competition has recently made. Estimate the business’s market share. Identify key competitive advantages against your selected business’s competitors.
Economic Forces
Analyze the economic environment in the areas affecting your selected business. Consider differences within their industry and the economic impact on suppliers.
Political Forces
Analyze relevant political forces. Examples may include an election year or a law to drastically reduce or eliminate plastic waste in a county that would affect your selected business.
Legal, Regulatory, and Ethical Issues
Analyze the legal, regulatory, and ethical issues that may affect your selected business. Considerations may include local laws such as a ban on the use of plastic bags, the ability to post billboards, or a possible increased regulation on direct mail.
Technological Forces
Analyze whether your selected business will be affected by emerging technologies or trends in hardware and software industries.
Social Forces
Analyze social trends and how they may affect your selected business. Considerations may include if the business will be affected by demographic trends or a growing dependence on computers, or whether interest in your product might be affected by growing preferences in the way things are done or changing social values.
Current Target Markets
Define the business’s current target markets. Describe the demographic, geographic region, psychographics, and product usage of these targets.
Current Marketing Tactics
Review their current marketing tactics. Summarize how people find out about the product, how they get information about the product or service, what might be involved in the buying process, and what money is available for marketing. If your selected business is a start-up, describe their competitors’ current marketing.
SWOT Analysis
Assess your selected business’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Then, evaluate how to address these in your marketing plan.
Strengths
Assess your selected business’s competitive advantage. Consider core competencies, assets, location, practices, etc. that are distinct in the way the organization meets the needs of its customers.
Weaknesses
Assess what limits the selected business may have in its current marketing strategy. Consider if the business has a weakness that needs to be addressed through public relations or marketing.
Opportunities
Assess the opportunities you see based on trends or environmental conditions.
Threats
Assess the threats or limitations that may interfere with the business’s ability to meet its objectives or interfere with marketing plans.
Converting Weaknesses and Threats to Strengths & Converting Strengths to Opportunities
Convert weaknesses and threats to strengths; then, convert strengths to opportunities in the marketing plan. Consider the implications for addressing supplier relationships, implementing new technologies, or changing the product line or addressing new markets.
Marketing Objectives
Establish marketing objectives based on the results from the SWOT analysis. Marketing objectives must align with corporate objectives, modified by the business’s resources. Objectives should include a date for the completion of the objective and the way in which success will be measured.
For example: The business will expand its marketing efforts to include a new market segment of 21- to 29-year-olds. This will entail the development of a customized product by June 2024 that will address the specific psychographic and technological needs of this age group. This strategy is expected to attain a 20% growth in overall sales by January 2025. Customer loyalty (i.e., willingness to recommend the product) will increase by 30%.
Wk 4 – Part B: Marketing Data Analysis
Internal Data
Evaluate internal data sources for information that would be available to you if you were employed by the business and what information you will receive from each source.
Identify 3 to 6 sources of internal data and list them in the Source column of the Internal Data Table. For each source, input what it measures, data, and potential data usage in the respective columns. Insert or remove rows, as needed. Row 1 contains a completed example for reference.
Internal Data Table
|
Source |
What it Measures |
Data Type |
Potential Data Usage |
|
Example: Sales data |
Example: Monthly sales by specific product |
Example: Average sales that month in US dollars for each of 10 products; data can be segmented by business and consumer markets |
Example: Can be used for trend analysis, projections, and to measure effectiveness of promotions |
Primary Data
Evaluate primary data needs to create and evaluate the marketing plan.
Identify 3 to 6 sources of primary data and list them in the Source column of the Primary Data Table. For each source, input what it measures, data, and potential data usage in the respective columns. Insert or remove rows, as needed. Row 1 contains a completed example for reference.
Primary Data Table
|
Source |
What it Measures |
Data Type |
Potential Data Usage |
|
Example: Focus group |
Example: Product usage, motives, identify group level satisfaction, decision process, etc. |
Example: Qualitative |
Example: Identify different reactions of market segments to product. Identify marketing opportunities, product/service flaws and opportunities. |
Secondary Data
Evaluate secondary data sources and the specific information you need from each source.
Identify 3 to 6 sources of secondary data and list them in the Source column of the Secondary Data Table. For each source, input what it measures, data, and potential data usage in the respective columns. Insert or remove rows, as needed. Row 1 contains a completed example for reference.
Secondary Data Table
|
Source |
What it Measures |
Data Type |
Potential Data Usage |
|
Example: U.S. Census Bureau |
Example: Income over the last 4 years by family structure |
Example: Household structures with the highest income capacity |
Examples: Market share analysis and customer segments |
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Establish customer touchpoints and develop appropriate CRM events for customer acquisition, retention, and profitability.
Identify 3 to 6 sources of CRM data and list them in the CRM Touchpoint column of the CRM Touchpoint Table. For each CRM touchpoint, input purpose and CRM objective, data, and potential data usage in the respective columns. Insert or remove rows, as needed. Row 1 contains a completed example for reference.
CRM Touchpoint Table
|
CRM Touchpoint |
Purpose and CRM Objective |
Data Type |
Potential Data Usage |
|
Example: Customer profile information on website |
Example: Starts the account for visitors: name, geography, email address (customer acquisition) |
Examples: Presale: geographic location, customer id, source of reference, email address Post-sale: address, product purchased, quantity, price. |
Examples: Track new and returning customer counts, total period purchases by customer ID, geographic sales data; Can be used for loyalty rewards, retention, and targeted marketing |
Wk 6 – Part C: Market Strategy, Marketing Channels, Implementation, and Monitoring
Use the information you researched in your Week 5 assignment for the sections they correspond to in this section.
New Customer Segments
Determine any new customer segments for your strategy and describe how you will provide value to each segment.
Marketing Mix for New Customer Segments
Determine adaptations for each new customer segment. Include:
· Products
· Price
· Distribution
· Traditional promotion
· Online promotion
Marketing Implementation
Create the implementation for your marketing strategy plan. Describe how you will organize and implement the plan, such as whether it will be organized by market or geography, and who is responsible for marketing decisions.
Marketing Communication Channels
Evaluate the digital and traditional marketing communication channels you will use to reach selected audiences.
Identify 3 or 4 channels to convey key messages and list them in the Channel column of the Marketing Communication Channels Table. For each channel, input target market, advantages, and disadvantages in the respective columns. Insert or remove rows, as needed. Row 1 contains a completed example for reference.
Marketing Communication Channels Table
|
Channel |
Target Market |
Advantages |
Disadvantages |
|
Example: Direct mail |
Example: Middle class residential |
Example: Can include coupons |
Example: Expense and low return rate for given product |
Strategic Actions
Develop strategic actions required to implement the marketing plan and list them in the Strategic Action column of the Strategic Actions Table. For each strategic action, provide the date for completion, person/role responsible, and standard or metric to indicate the action is complete in the respective columns. Insert or remove rows, as needed. Row 1 contains a completed example for reference.
Strategic Actions Table
|
Strategic Action |
Date for Completion |
Person/Role Responsible |
Standard or Metric to Indicate the Action is Complete |
|
Example: Design flyer for direct mail campaign |
Example: 1/1/2024 |
Example: J. Smith, graphic designer |
Example: Approval by senior marketing team and legal |
