Market Planning—Getting It Right!

     Part 2

In Part 1, we discussed why your business needs a well- thought-out marketing plan. Now we'll begin digging into nuts and bolts of what your marketing plan should contain and how to use that information to build a roadmap for growth.

by Kevin Beauchamp [June 2, 1999]

Like a house, a solid marketing plan begins with a solid foundation or—in this case, good information. Your planning is only as good as the information you put into it. You will need to do some legwork here and some of this data will not be easily collected. I should say that likely 80 percent of the people—managers and executives—who are reading this series will not implement a formal marketing plan like we are building here. The reason for this is time. Building a solid business and marketing plan takes time, and most will not have the time nor inclination to do what it takes to build this right. Take your time and build it slowly if necessary—but do it. A good business planning document can take six months to a year or more to complete as it evolves with your company and the market. But if you are on the 20 percent side of this equation, in the end you will have a powerful weapon and defense against those who show up in the marketplace unarmed and without a clue as to how to deal with your Internet juggernaut.

Market Definition and Analysis
Before you leap into which media you will be purchasing as part of your marketing, the strategic marketing plan first outlines the overall industry you intend to carry out your marketing within. It defines the battlefield if you will: who the enemies are, what their strengths and weaknesses are; what type of 'terrain' or financial, political, and industrial environments are likely to be encountered; also referred to in general terms as "demographics"; and who and what your targeted goals will be within these demographic areas.

For all intents and purposes, building a marketing campaign is a lot like building a war campaign. There are really few differences. As such, one of the books which I recommend as required reading for anyone about to carry out a serious strategic marketing campaign is Sun Tzu's The Art of War. While this is not a casual read or a "How To" marketing guide, it is a study in war, battle and tactic philosophy which translates directly into marketing strategy. The book's contents are snippets of wisdom from some of China's earliest master generals on which most, if not all, modern warfare is based. The contents are ideas and things about human nature to reflect on and play out in your mind within the marketing milieu. It will bring you some tremendous insights into the hows and whys of strategy for your various marketing campaigns. "Guerilla Marketing" is a term developed, or at least made popular, in the 80's to specifically identify companies engaged in real market warfare—though I confess such tactics have been going on likely since the beginning of time without the label.

"He who excels in conquering his enemies triumphs even before the battle begins." —Sun Tzu, The Art of War

To begin your battle planning you must create an outline of the entire theater of war, or specifically, your marketplace. The part of your marketing plan seeks to define and verify a consumer demand for your company's services and provide a concise overview of the industry and its background. While this will seem like obvious review, it is nonetheless an important step toward a better understanding your industry.

Write this part of the marketing plan like you'd be writing it for someone who has no knowledge of the industry. True, it can be the most boring part of the market planning process, especially for an operating company. Many times, however, this first step in and of itself will churn up new ideas that never quite made it to the surface of your thoughts before.

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