Marketing plans

Marketing plans are long term plans (marketing strategy) set by the marketing
department in order to achieve the marketing objectives set by the marketing
department. This includes the following components:

1- PEST analysis
2- SWOT for the marketing department known as a marketing audit this will
allow the business to identify where its stands now in terms of it internal
marketing strengths and internal marketing weaknesses so the business will
be able to identify its future action and its future direction, this is also a
review for the business’s marketing mix.
3- Marketing strategies
4- Marketing objectives
5- Marketing tactics
6- Targeting strategies
7- Positioning strategies
8- Information about the consumer profile and segmentation
9- Information about the market research
10- Information about the detailed marketing mix ( 4P’sfor goods and 7
P’s for services)

*Please note that this plan includes all marketing activities.

*What is meant by marketing objectives?

Those are long term objectives/ aims / goals / targets set by the marketing
department in order to be achieved via marketing strategies and marketing
tactics. Those marketing objectives relate to: increasing market share,
launching new products, entering into new markets, building brand loyalty,
increasing sales.

*What is the significance / importance of setting marketing objectives?

1- It sets the business a basis for planning ahead in terms of its marketing
activities.

1
2-It provides the basis for setting marketing strategies and tactics as depending
on those marketing objectives the marketing department will be able to set its
marketing strategies and tactics.

3- It provides a guide hand for marketing decisions

4- When those objectives are set the marketing department could assess its
level of success through measuring whether it has reached the set objectives
or not.

5- The employees working at the marketing department will be motivated to

work as they have clear marketing objectives outlined.

*What is meant by marketing strategies?

Those are long term plans set by the marketing department in order to achieve
the marketing objectives. Those marketing strategies are supported via
marketing tactics.

*What is meant by marketing tactics?

Those are short term/ day to day changes / modes done in the short term to
achieving the marketing strategies which will consequently facilitate the
achievement of marketing objectives.

*Note: Go back to your note books for examples about marketing strategies
and tactics.

*What is the importance of marketing planning?

1- Having set out a marketing plan helps the business to identifying any
potential problem and thus to plan ahead to dealing with those problems, the
marketing plan includes a marketing audit, this will help the business to
identify its weak areas and thus it could plan to overcome those weaknesses
and possible problems.

2
 2-When setting the marketing strategies this will allow the business eventually
to achieving its overall business /corporate objectives.

3-Sharing the marketing plan with other business departments helps

improving the coordination and the collaboration between different business
segments.

4-A clear and a well detailed marketing objective will motivate employees as it
will include the marketing objectives and this will in itself provide a sense of
aspiration and motivation for employees.

*What are the limitations / disadvantages of marketing planning?

1- Organizations have to update their marketing plans regularly as this plan is

not a one off; it might change due to changes in market realities.

2-Planning needs money, experience, costs and resources.

*What is meant by Market Research?

Important for the external

It is the process of collecting and gathering information about consumers’ wants

and needs. This information will be gathered, analyzed and interpreted by the
marketing department to aid the design of the products that are to be launched
to the markets. Market research is usually used to obtain information about the
whole 4P's. The business can obtain information about the product itself, is it
appealing for consumers? Does it satisfy consumer’s preferences? Does it
stimulate future opportunities; also information regarding consumer's profile
(consumer’s characteristics and features) could also be obtained via the market
research .Information regarding market segments are also obtained via market
research. In addition the business obtains information about the most

3
 appropriate pricing strategies and most appropriate promotional strategies and
most importantly distributional strategies. What is more, market research can be
used to gather information about competitor's products and it also helps reducing
risk when entering new markets or launching new products as those new markets
or the launching of the new products could be researched previously thus
reducing the risks associated.

 Types of Market research:

Important for the external

. Market research is carried by market led businesses.

We have two types of market research:
A) Primary market research; this is the collecting and gathering of first hand
information, this type of market research is accurate, precise, and up to
date, as it secures the business’ purpose but it is time consuming and costly.
It is also called (field research); via this marker research qualitative
information is usually collected (information regarding the quality).

B) Secondary market research:

This is second hand information where the business gets or obtains information
which is already gathered by another business. It is also called desk research. This
information is not precise, not accurate, biased and not designed according to the
business purpose as the business doesn’t know under which circumstances this
information has been gathered. But 2nd hand information is easily obtained and it
is considered easy and cheap. This Secondary market research usually gathers
quantitative information (this is information answering questions about quantity).
Via secondary market research the business can get information concerning the
percentage of consumers trying a certain product but it doesn’t obtain qualitative
information.

4
Secondary market research might be obtained via the internet, newspapers,
magazines, reports launched by other businesses, statistics launched by the
government, annual reports prepared by the company in previous years.

*Note: If the business is facing a strategic decision to launch a new product

or close a branch or to launch a new advertising campaign, the business
must conduct primary market research. But if the business is facing liquidity
problems it might be hard to find this market research so obtaining a loan
from the bank might help solve the problem.

*Note: Primary market research might be internal or external, also

secondary market research might also be internal or external as explained
below:
1- Primary market research:

This type of research might be done internally by the business itself or it might
be outsourced to a specialist market research agency. If outsourced, the
market research would be much more accurate. As it is carried by specialist
researchers, yet it would be much more costly if carried internally by the
business itself.

2-External Sources of secondary market research:

1) Statistics issued by the government (Government publication)

2) Reports issued by another business
3) Magazines
4) Newspapers
5) Internet
6) Academic Journals
7) Media articles
8) Market analyses

As for the internal secondary market research this is usually financial reports
and records prepared by the business and kept in financial records to be
referred to again in the future.

5
Explanation for the methods of secondary market research:

 Academic Journals: Those are journals/ documents issued by experts,

those are usually articles that are extensively referenced, and those are
usually written to provide knowledge and information about a specific
topic and not for making money. Those Journals are usually reviewed by
experts increasing their reliability (advantage) also those journals need
less time to be published compared to books (advantage), yet they
provide very detailed information about a certain topic which might not
be of general interest (disadvantage), also before writing those
academic journals different experts review the information which
although increase its reliability yet might take time to review and revise.
(Critical thinking).
 Media articles: those include newspapers and magazines. The use of
newspapers has declined due to internet, newspapers are seen a
cheaper method of advertisement compared to TV, also newspaper
articles are more reliable than internet articles as newspapers articles
are usually reviewed and checked for accuracy before being published.
Yet although newspapers articles are less biased than internet articles
yet those might also be biased depending on the party owning the
newspaper (critical thinking) also the use of newspapers which depend
on paper might be seen neither ethical nor environmentally friendly.
 Government publications: those are publications issued by the
government on different wide subjects; those might provide very useful
information for businesses about the population, GPD, income per
person, consumers’ preferences and demand patterns.
 Market analysts: those include commercial publications about specific
markets. Those are done by specialized market research agencies and
they provide very detailed information about particular markets. But
they are very costly.

6
*Methods of primary market research:

1. Questionnaires
2. Interviews
3. Observations
4. Focus groups

1. Questionnaires: It is a way of primary market research designed in the form

of questions handed out for consumers. It must use a logical order for
questions as you start with easy questions (how often do you try my
product……etc). The questionnaires must not exceed 12-15 questions,
otherwise consumers will feel bored. Questionnaires must be well designed
as questions must not to be too direct, otherwise the consumer would
answer in a biased manner (for example: are you going to buy our product
again?). Questionnaires combine both open-ended questions and closed
ended questions. Closed ended questions are yes/no questions with boxes
to be ticked by consumers. This is easily analyzed as it is closed ended
questions and it can be represented easily using a bar chart. While open
ended questions are usually harder to analyze and interpret as we have
different opinions. Questionnaires are very useful if well designed as the
business can design questions to improve its quality or to ask about the
price or etc. But it’s expensive to design questionnaires and it’s time
consuming as we need time to analyze them, and they might be biased
leading to miss leading results.

2) Interviews:

This is considered a type of primary market research where first hand qualitative
information is obtained during interviews , detailed questions relating to quality
and reasons behind customers choice for the product could be illustrated , as well
clarifications could be identified if the interviewee doesn’t understand any of the
questions this interviewee can seek clarifications from the interviewer
immediately and easily unlike a questionnaire, yet interviews are an expensive

7
way of gathering relevant information as a specialist interviewer with special
communication skills are needed , it is also time consuming yet accurate
information can be obtained easily although some bias might be present.

3-Observations:

This is when consumers behavior is observed, it is considered an easy way to

gather information bit it is very time consuming and no qualitative information
is obtained, hence it’s not reliable as only numbers are obtained regarding the
number of customers passing by a shop or buying from a particular product
but no information is obtained regarding why they bought this product.

Advantages and disadvantages of observations:

 Observations is a very cost effective method of primary market

research .( advantage)
 Observations do not provide any answers to why consumers did a
certain behavior, it only provides numbers (quantitative information)
but it doesn’t provide qualitative information.
 Observations is a direct method of collecting data about consumer
behavior( advantage)
 A large number of people could be observed quickly and in a very cost
effective method.
 Observations have the limitation of the lack of qualitative information
this will drive the business to depend and combine other methods of
primary market research such as questionnaires adding to the business’s
costs.( disadvantage)

4-Focus groups: this is a form of primary market research were the business
invites a small group of its consumers whom represent its targeted segment.
Those consumers would then answer questions that are prepared by
researchers, they provide their opinions’ and ideas about the business’s
existing product or about a new product that it’s intending to launch, they
could be even asked to try this new product and give feedback. Those
consumers are usually paid money to agreeing to be a part of this focus group.

8
 Advantages and disadvantages of focus groups:

 As focus groups usually consist of a small group of consumers, it’s

usually not costly to conduct yet there is a commission or a fee paid
for those participants. (Note the critical thinking approach).
 It’s easy to conduct focus groups as it consists of a small group unlike
a questionnaire where a large number of consumers is related.
(advantage)Yet the focus group consisting of a small number of
participants might not reflect the ideas of the whole population or
the whole segment.
 Focus groups could be used to assess the business’s existing products
and any new product that it’s intending to launch.(advantage)
 Through focus groups the business would be able to get insight about
how consumers perceive the business’s competitors. This will help
the business to plan ahead to minimize competition.( advantage)
 Although focus groups do provide first hand information about the
business’s products and strategies yet consumers might not express
their ideas freely as their opinions might be influenced by others.

*What is the difference between quantitative and qualitative research?

Quantitative information is about quantity (how many) whereas qualitative

research is about gathering information about quality (why?). Quantitative
research is objective while qualitative research is subjective, qualitative research
doesn’t allow for interpretation unlike qualitative research which allows
interpretation, the research must be directly involved in qualitative research
unlike the quantitative research. The focus of qualitative research is wide and
complex unlike the focus of quantitative research which is precise and narrow.

9
 Sampling

*When conducting primary market research the business must choose a sample
to conduct this research upon. A country might have a lot of population as it is
hard to research each person in the population. This is not only time consuming,
expensive but might as well statistically in- important, therefore instead a part of
the population is selected for research. Sampling is the process/practice of
selecting a small group of the population for a particular market for primary
research uses. When deciding upon the sampling method the business must keep
in mind who to ask, what to ask and whether the cost of the research is justified.
A good sample is large enough to represent a wide variety of views and to be
representative.

*Methods of sampling:

A- Quota sampling: it is based on market segmentation where the segment is

grouped according to predetermined characteristics/ features such as age,
income, gender. It is the most commonly used method of sampling when
conducting primary market research. A certain number of people known as quota
are selected from the segment and then the market research is conducted upon
them.

Advantages:

1- Relatively representative sample as it is based on predetermined features/

characteristics.
2- It is relatively obtained quickly and cheaply in comparison to stratified
sampling.
3- The findings are more reliable than random sampling.

Disadvantages:

1- The number of people interviewed in each segment and how randomly

they are chosen for an interview are not always representative of the
population.
10
 2- Not every member of the population has an equal chance of being a part of
this sample unlike random sampling.
3- Sampling errors are likely to occur.

B- Random Sampling: this is also known as probability sampling method where

each member of the population has an equal chance of being a part of this
sample. The sample might be chosen by using a computer to randomly decide
upon the sample asked. It is used when almost all members of the population
have the same characteristics.

Advantages:

1- Everyone of the population has an equal chance of being a part of this

sample; this will reduce the chances for this type of sampling being
unrepresentative.
2- It is easy and quick to conduct random sampling in comparison to quota
and stratified sampling.

Disadvantages:

1- It might select people randomly whom are not of the targeted group/
segment.
2- Due to its indiscriminate nature the sample size has to be big.
3- Sampling errors.

C-Stratified sampling: it is similar to quota sampling in that it involves

segmentation (the setting of pre determined features/ characteristics) .The
population is split into segments according to very detailed standards and from
each segment chosen, the sample is asked randomly.

Advantages:

1- It uses representative methods to outlining the sample as it is set according

to detailed features.
11
 2- Results of the market research conducted are likely to be better if the
business chooses a stratified sample as it is more detailed and
representative in comparison to random sampling and quota sampling.

Disadvantages:

1- It is difficult to select the sample to be tested and asked.

2- Expensive and time consuming method of sampling.
3- Time consuming method as predetermined features are set, studied and
then the sample is searched for.
4- Sampling errors.

D-Cluster sampling: it is used when getting feedback from customers takes a lot
of time, travelling or money. It is applicable for large international, multinational
businesses as it will be very time consuming for them to carry random interviews
to random questionnaires. The cluster sampling is choosing a certain geographical
area/ areas and then from this certain geographical area a random sample is
chosen; this will prove to be more cost effective in comparison to interviewing the
segments in different countries.

Advantages:

1- It is quicker, easier and cheaper in comparison to other methods of

sampling if the population is widely dispersed over different geographical
areas.

Disadvantages:

1- Biased responses as people might differ in norms, values m thinking

between different areas and countries so choosing one area might be
representative in terms of the results of the market research conducted
for this country but it might be suitable for another country.
2- Sampling errors
3- Costly and a lot of data analysis are needed if different clusters are
chosen from different countries to reducing bias.

12
E- Snow bowling: it refers to interviews or surveys carried out with individuals
who later suggest other friends, family and colleagues to increase the sample.
This type of sampling is used by businesses when they are unable to get hold of
appropriate respondents since the population is not clear. This type of sampling is
common in the financial sector, health insurance and banks.

Advantages:

1-Massive number of potential subjects could be obtained and researched

identifying future action and future opportunities for the business.

2-It takes a word of mouth to approach develop the sample size.

3-Cheap to get hold of the subject

Disadvantages:

1- Sampling errors
2- Very difficult and biased responses might be obtained.

F- Convenience sampling: This is a sampling technique were groups are selected

depending on their easy access and proximity to the researcher. This is an easy
and quick method of sampling as the research groups are readily available yet the
answers might be biased and the research group might not be representative.

*Sampling errors and market research limitations: Important for the external

1- Biased answers from the sample during a questionnaire or an interview.

2-The sample size might be too small thus the business must always try to
choose a large sample.

3-The selection of the sample, its type, its design and its structure might be
problematic therefore businesses must pay a special attention when designing
the sample and choosing the sample type.

4-Researchers mistake in recording, analyzing and interpreting the data

obtained through the primary market research.

13
5-The sample selected is not representative due to poor sample design.

6-PEST factors.

7- The wrong sampling method chosen.

8- Misleading questions asked in interviews or questionnaires thus leading the

interviewee to answer in the way intended by the business.

In order to market a business’ product, businesses undergo the following steps:

1- Market research
2- Market segmentation and consumer profile
3- Targeting
4- Positioning
5- Marketing mix (product, price, place, promotion)

2) Market Segmentation: (IMPOTANT FOR YOU’R EXTERNAL)

The business tries to identify its target market (targeted group or targeted
audience) this is done through segmentation. And the information about those
targeted segments is obtained through the market research (the first step which
has been explained earlier).

What is meant by a target market?

14
A target market is the group (or groups) of consumers that an organization wishes
to sell its products to. Once the organization knows its target group it can design
an appropriate marketing mix for them.

What is meant by Market segmentation?

It is to take the market as a whole, and divide the market into groups of
consumers with similar characteristics. Market segmentation is when a particular
group of consumers has been identified within a market. Market segmentation
can be based on income, socio-economic group, occupation, interests, lifestyle,
geography, and age and brand loyalty. (In other words segmentation is done
based on: Age, Gender, Income group, Local area, by the use of the product,
Lifestyle of targeted audience)

*What is meant by consumer profiles?

A consumer profile is an outline of significant demographic and psychographic
details about the user of a particular product. Consumer profiles typically include
the user’s age, marital status, income, education, occupation, sex, area of
residence, and purchase behavior patterns. Knowledge of the consumer profile is
very important in the determination of the marketing mix.

*What is the importance of market segmentation? (Advantages of

Segmentation):

Important

1- Market segmentation is the second step carried out after market research
where the business gathers information regarding consumer profile (features and
characters of consumers).

2- Market segmentation allows the business to know where it is now (Knowing

present segment ) hence the business will plan where it wants to be in the future
and what segments will it plan to hit in the future?) (* NOTE: THINK ABOUT
BUSINESS STRATEGY HERE THROUGHT INCLUDING STRATEGIC ANALYSIS<
STRATEGIC CHOICE AND STRATEGIC IMPLENTATION)
15
 3- Knowing where is the business now means that the business knows its
consumer profile and features which means better understanding of
customers hence the business caters its products according to consumer’s
preferences.

4- Better understanding of customer will lead to higher sales and higher

market share; hence profit maximization will be maintained in the long run.
This understanding of consumers profile is deduced from the information
gathered from the market research
5- Knowing what segments of the market does the business cater for now, the
business can plan ahead to identify new opportunities at home and abroad,
the business might decide to enter into new segments or to fill a gap within
the market as better understanding of different markets enables the
business to launch different products hence reducing risks
(diversification/differentiation).
6- Following market segmentation , the business can decide what targeting
strategy to be used ( is it a mass marketing strategy hitting the market as
whole , or is it a differentiation strategy where the business hits different
market segments with different marketing mixes, or is it a concentrated
targeting strategy hitting a certain niche market?).
7- Following the above step, the business can later conduct the appropriate
positioning of the product according to the segment its hitting and finally
an appropriate marketing mix could be prepared by the business to meet
the needs of the targeted audience designed according to consumers
profiles.
8- Market segmentation would help in setting appropriate marketing
strategies ( in terms of the marketing mix chosen for the target audience).
9- Segmentation also allows companies to target particular sub-groups
suitable for the marketing mix and, therefore, not waste resources by
marketing to inappropriate sub-groups.

16
Further explanation on the segmentation ways:

1) Gender: here the business segments according to gender, either males or

females
2) Income groups: the business might segment according to the income
group. As people are classified to their income into high income groups,
medium and low.
3) By the use of products: if the business is promoting cars for example, for
two different uses, it would use two different promotions.
4) By the local area: business operating at hot areas might sell clothes totally
different than those businesses operating in cold areas.
5) Lifestyle: some businesses might target certain people with certain
lifestyles; for example, already made food which might segment working
mothers.

3) Targeting

This is a step undertook by the business when deciding to sell its products in a
successful way. There are three types of targeting (marketing):

1- Mass marketing / Mass targeting/ undifferentiated targeting: This is a

targeting strategy where the business ignores specific market segments.
Here a large number of different market segments are targeted in order to
maximize sales volume. For example: Coca Cola and Nokia. All market
segments are targeted in the same way under this mass marketing strategy.
*Advantages:
A- Economies of scale as the business sis selling to a mass market.

17
 B-No need to tailor different marketing mixes for different segments since
the whole market can be addressed with a single marketing campaign thus
gaining from marketing economies of scale.
C-Catering for larger markets will allow the business to cater for a larger
market thus a larger customer base and thus profit maximization in the
long run.
*Disadvantages:
A- This type of targeting is not suitable for all businesses due to the
presence of barriers for entry as it is only filled by a large producer.
B- Competition can be so fierce in such large markets.
C- No lack of focus thus marketing can be wasteful as the specific targeted
segment can be missed if a mass marketing technique is used.

2- Differentiated targeting / Differentiated marketing: This is a targeting

strategy where the business tailors its marketing mix to its market
segments. Positioning maps are usually used here in order to see customers
perception regarding each product this will allow the business to designing
an appropriate marketing mix per segment.

*Advantages:
A- Customers can enjoy a better satisfying experience since under a
differentiation strategy the business tailors its marketing mix according to
specific needs and wants, this will result in customers satisfaction thus
repeat of purchase and brand loyalty.
B-Diversification economies of scale will be obtained as the business will be
serving different market segments.

*Disadvantages:
A- Differentiated targeting / marketing is costly as the business has to
design different marketing mixes for different segments.
B- Only large businesses with sufficient financial resources can adopt a
differentiation strategy.

18
 C-No marketing economies of scale as different marketing mixes are
designed for each segment.
D- Excessive differentiation might drain the business’s resources; it as well
might confuse customers.

3- Niche marketing / concentrated targeting: here the business targets a well

specified and as well defined market segment. Usually business’s adopting
a niche targeting strategy serve high end products.
*Advantages:
A- There is a better marketing focus as a specific marketing segment is
being targeted in comparison to mass marketing which targets mass
undifferentiated markets.
B- Less competition is present in niche marketing, thus the business can sell
its products at high justified prices, and this will consequently increase the
business’s profits.
C- Business’s become highly specialized in serving customers thus better
standing in its own markets and a competitive advantage compared to
possible rivals.

*Disadvantages:
A- Niche markets targets for a small number of customers in comparison to
mass marketing which targets a larger number of customers.
B- Niche markets are small thus no presence for economies of scales
especially any bulk buying economies of scale.
C- Niche markets are highly attractive for competitors this will increase the
threat of new entrants whom are driven by high profit margins , this makes
it hard for the business to survive if operating in such a niche market.

19
4-Market Positioning:
This is the fourth step to market products successfully. It is to position the products of the
business according to how consumers perceive those products. Positioning maps
(perception maps) are also used to illustrate the concept of positioning . Positioning maps are
maps that are drawn according to how consumers perceive and classify products (ex: according to
quality and price or quality and calories).

20
*NOTE: PLEASE BE CAREFULL IN YOUR EXTERNALS TO THE PLOTTING OF THE X AXIS AND THRE Y
AXIS.AS ITS NOT ALWAYAS drawn according to PRICE AND QUALITY IT MIGHT BE DRWAN according to
VALUE FOR MONEY AND CALLORIES OR ANY OTHER CATEGORY. ALSO NOTE THAT ITS NOT ALWAYS
HIGH, LOW AS SHOWN ABOVE AS it might be flipped in your external.

Those positioning maps are important because:

1) It helps the business to position its products in the market after targeting
2) It helps the business to identify a gap within the market which might be filled later.
3) The business might decide to reposition itself (ex: the furniture manufacturer in the positioning
map above might decide to reposition itself from high price/high quality to high quality/low
price in order to fill a gap within the market and grab present market opportunities. the business
could do so through changing its suppliers (ex: to find a low cost supplier to decrease its prices)
the business might also decide to relocate to reduce its costs what is more; it might decide to
use lean production to become more efficient and to reduce costs m hence reduce its prices.

21
*What is meant by The Unique selling point (USP)
This is anything that differentiates the business from rivals and thus sets the business a
competitive edge. This USP could be created via selling high quality produce or via low prices
or even via after sales service. Apple has differentiates itself from rivals via building itself a
strong brand image and its high quality product, Coca Cola has built itself a competitive
advantage through having a wide distribution channels globally, Nike’s slogan “Just do it” is a
very powerful promotional tool that allowed Nike to differentiate itself from rivals.

*Why is it important for business’s to have a USP?

 A USP differentiates a business from others and thus creates the business a
customer base that is loyal.
 Loyal customers will increase the business’s sales and profits.

22
5- The Marketing Mix:
This refers to the special components that must be designed in order to market products
successfully. This is the unique mixture of the 4P’s for goods including the product, price,
promotion and the place. It also refers to the 7P’s for the services; this includes the three extra
P’s for services represented in the people, process and the physical evidence.

23