MARKETING PLAN

MARKETING PLAN *******************************************************************************
The reason for failure can be the assertion of short-term goals to the detriment of long-term, emphasising short-term performance and profit, regardless of market development, meaning thereby the non-existence of a marketing plan. A quality marketing plan is the basic prerequisite for efficient marketing, ensuring the integration of all marketing activities and assisting in the creation of favourable conditions for succeeding in the marketplace. *******************************************************************************
Berkowitz2 defines the marketing plan as a written declaration identifying target markets, specifying the marketing objectives by individual products, grouping earnings and profits according to strategic business units, containing scheduling and budget elements of the marketing mix, which together create the marketing programme. The planning process in general includes three steps: a) a situation analysis (where are we, where are we headed), b) objectives setting (where are we and where do we want to be) and c) the specification of marketing activities (the allocation of marketing resources for achieving set objectives). *******************************************************************************
The marketing plan is the component of the business plan. The yearly plan concerns marketing objectives and strategies for a product, product range, development of the bank for one year, while the long-term marketing plan concerns a period of two to five years. The creation of the marketing plan is understated as a strategic process, where this is based on information and activities. The result is the marketing plan, which is realised and monitored in connection with the results achieved. *******************************************************************************
A marketing plan is a business document outlining your marketing strategy and tactics. It's often focused on a specific period of time (i.e. over the next 12 months) and covers a variety of marketing-related details, such as costs, goals, and action steps. *******************************************************************************
Step no. Marketing Programme The aim of marketing programmes is to ensure that the practical realisation of the marketing strategies adopted. This includes a delegation of rights and responsibilities of individual employees, as well as the distribution of available financial resources. Marketing programmes, like marketing objectives and strategies should fulfil certain requirements. Each programme must clearly define the resources, as well as the time schedule. *******************************************************************************
Before actually realising a programme it is necessary to set out a detailed marketing budget includingexpenses and the deployment of resources. The budget is created similarly as in the case of an advertisement either through an annual increase/decrease or through the more appropriate method – according to first chosen objectives. The role of the marketing programme is to prioritise marketing activities, dividing these into important marketing activities, partial steps and tactical tasks. Part of this is also the preparation of time plans stipulating the limits for fulfilling key tasks. *******************************************************************************
A marketing plan requires: • A good level of internal and external communication between all subjects involved in the process of implementing the marketing plan, • Precise market research determining customer needs and the quality of services in comparison with the competition, • Internal marketing for the support of external marketing activities. A useful aid for ascertaining differences between the actual and the target state is discrepancy analysis. This is a measure of the success of a marketing plan in ensuring the desired business objectives. It is most often used in the case of revenues and profitability, but also can serve for the evaluation of other variables, for example the return on investments etc. *******************************************************************************
Marketing strategies comprise three elements: means (tools), time and plans and resources necessary for successfully achieving the objectives. The marketing mix is comprised of service, price, service availability, promotion, the human factor, processes and customer service. In an estimate of the expected results it is necessary to analyse whether the chosen strategy is bringing the expected results.4 If not, it is necessary to modify the strategy in order to suit our requirements. *******************************************************************************
A useful aid in estimating results are preliminary statements of expected revenues, which forecast the amount of operating costs, as well as the level of demand. The estimate of demand can be imprecise, for example a deviation from the rate of application in implementing new products, therefore two variants are recommended – an optimistic and a pessimistic. Various methods of probability that are used for the estimate – for example extrapolation, regression analysis, a survey of the opinions of managing employees, a marketing test of customer reaction etc. *******************************************************************************
Assessment of alternative marketing mixes The idea of assessing alternative mixes is to find the most appropriate marketing strategy prior to beginning implementation of the plan. In the assessment various analytical approaches can be used or simple methods on the basis of trial and error. The next step is setting alternative, or back-up plans. Since we cannot elaborate an alternative plan for every case, we should evaluate the influence of various groups of assumptions and find areas of greatest risk. Malcolm McDonald's model marketing plan6 *******************************************************************************
Executive Summary *******************************************************************************
Highlights the main cause of the recommendations of the marketing plan briefly address the budget requirements how success will be measured it is short one to two page summary of the key facts assumption and rational a of the plan executive summary should be concise in short because its purpose is to save managers time by filtering out good proposals if the executive summary is good The reader will be probably proceed to read the rest of the document *******************************************************************************
situation analysis summarises all pertinent information obtained from the three key environment and internal environment the customer environment and the forms external environment Analysis of the firm's internal environment considers issues such as availability of the deployment of the human resources the age and the capacity of the equipment other technology availability of the financial resources and the power of political struggles clear and comprehensive situation analysis is one of the most difficult parts of the developing a marketing plan this difficulty arises because the analysis must be both comprehensive and focused on key issues information for situation analysis may be obtained internally through the forms marketing information system or it may have to be obtained extremely externally through primary or secondary marketing research marketing strategy this section of the marketing plan outlines how the firm will achieve its marketing objectives *******************************************************************************
Step no. 1: Situation Analysis In order to assess where the bank is at present, detailed information concerning both the past state, as well as present state is necessary. Costs, revenues and profits achieved are analysed over time for the longer-term period. It is best to compare the development of our own bank with the most influential competitor. It is also suitable to analyse the development of comparable products with those of the competition. *******************************************************************************
An analysis of the results achieved is performed for the bank as a whole, or also according to individual market segments (for example by age group). A detailed analysis of the results achieved helps in setting realistic marketing objectives, which represents the second stage of planning. Further information is necessary for elaborating marketing implementation, so that it is possible to adopt corrective measures in the control phase. *******************************************************************************
Setting out Target Segments Marketing objectives have to be in accordance with business objectives and must be defined as precisely as possible (volume and time schedule, for example ensuring growth of medium and long-term primary deposits by the end of the period by 15 per cent). The most appropriate method in determining specific objectives is through the co-operation of top management with managers at a lower level, who know the market situation and operate directly in it. *******************************************************************************
Peter Drucker4 identified the following fields for objectives setting: 1. Market position • market share in the total sales according to individual products and market segments, • level of service for the customer, 2. Availability of services, 3. Innovation: new services necessary for achieving the market objectives, 4. Productivity of employee and capital, 5. Physical and financial resources: • buildings, equipment, processes and technology, • capital, profit: • necessary for the reproduction of capital, • for innovation and further growth, • as business remuneration for the risk undertaken and for attracting new capital, 6. performances of managers and their improvement, 7. performance and approaches of employees 8. public responsibility. *******************************************************************************
Marketing objectives usually have the form of expected results in specific market segments and also for the market as a whole. According to McDonald they cover these fields: volume of sales, market share, profit, customer objectives and marketing expenses. The highest strategic objectives do not have to be quantified and may be formulated as common and enduring, flowing from the mission statement. Strategic aims should be supplemented through a system of specific, quantified and time limited objectives. The mission and objectives are mutually interconnected. In respect of each point of the mission there should be assigned a business objective. *******************************************************************************
Top management are responsible for the mission statement and objectives. Banks must consider how they will manage individual productivity for achieving their objectives. It is necessary to ensure balance in the growth of earnings, the cash flow and the risk. *******************************************************************************
Financials manager positions are just what the name is projections they relate to the future and differ from accounting numbers which are based on the past purpose of financial position is to show what the business is capable of realising in revenues and profits given the assumptions about his potential cost market business is capable of realising in revenues and profits given *******************************************************************************
managers also used financial position and projections to develop a series of ratios that help them make economic and financial judgements about the business potential growth partners return on investment return on equity required investments financing methods *******************************************************************************
extra the major aspect of financial position is their assumptions there on assumptions about activities in the functional segment of the business financial projections include a sales forecast and expense forecast and a break even analysis on the revenue side the projections show the forecasted cell volume by month and product category on the expense side the projections show expected cost of marketing broken down into final category the break up break even analysis show how many units must be sold monthly to offset the monthly fixed cost and average per unit variable cost it is strongly suggested that the financial projections are developed using spreadsheet because of the flexibility it provides *******************************************************************************
Control:- final section of the marketing plans details how the resource of the marketing program will be evaluated and controlled Establishing performance standards assessing actual performance by comparing it with these standards and taking corrective action if necessary to reduce discrepancies between desire and actual performance The standards can be based on increase in sales volume market share our profitability or even advertising standard such as brand name recognition or recall *******************************************************************************
The marketing strategy is elaborated at various levels: Level 1. – setting common marketing objectives: defining long-term profitability and the strategic aims of the bank, which are expectations, strengthening the communication and motivation of marketing employees. Level 2. – setting objectives for key business areas, which are more specific and have a connection to business functions. Level 3. – setting sectional objectives, or which help in achieving common business aims. *******************************************************************************
Marketing objectives are common statements, whereby the marketing strategy is specific and lays down specific measures. Marketing strategic objectives in the field of the market will concern: • Current users – the marketing strategy has two key roles: to maintain current customers and to strengthen through mutual co-operation the stimulation towards more frequent purchases, • New users – the marketing strategy has as its role to address new customers and to evoke a positive response, or repeat purchase, which leads to in longer-term co-operation. *******************************************************************************
As results from Kotler’s research in 75 firms operating in the services fields, many of the control systems are inadequate. From the study it results that9: 1. Smaller businesses have in comparison with larger businesses control and management process of lower quality. 2. Only fewer than half of all firms know the profitability of individual products. One third do not have any system set for evaluating, or identifying weak products and services. 3. At least half of all businesses do not make a breakdown of costs, an evaluation of advertising, comparison of prices which are the prices of the competition and do not write reports on business negotiations. 4. In many businesses there are documents for assessment delivered following a large delay of 4 to 8 weeks and are often imprecise. *******************************************************************************
There still exist a range of problems and bar- riers, which prevent further development and implementation of marketing planning. Among these facts are13: 1. The discord between tactics and strategy. 2. Isolation of marketing functions from other business activities. 3. Discord between the marketing function and the marketing concept. 4. All organisational barriers 5. A lack of in-depth analysis. 6. A discord between process and output. 7. A lack of skills and responsibilities. 8. A largely unsystematic approach to marketing planning. 9. Insufficient prioritisation of objectives. 10. A hostile business culture. *******************************************************************************
Berkowitz cites as the most frequent reasons for failure of the marketing plan as10: 1. Not taking account of external factors, 2. Not monitoring client needs – motivation merely on the basis of economic challenges there has not have to mean a benefit for the bank, 3. Over-extension of the marketing plan, 4. Non-familiarisation of each employee with the marketing plan. It is not only the elaborator who is responsible for fulfilling the marketing plan, but also all who have shared in its creation. Use of the marketing plan in practice *******************************************************************************
Conclusion *******************************************************************************
From the above it results that the marketing plan is becoming an important aid and tool for asserting the bank in the marketplace. It contains information necessary for managing and making well-grounded decisions. Its advantage is its comprehensiveness, therefore it is essential that all employees get acquainted with it. Every employee must recognise that as long as the bank as a whole prospers and that employees have the same objectives and through joint efforts achieve good results, this in the end will mean certainty in life also for employees. *******************************************************************************