A marketing plan can be described as a printed document that details the necessary measures to accomplish one or more selling goals. It may be for a product or service, a brand name, or a product line. Marketing plans cover between one and five years. A marketing plan is usually a part of an overall business plan. A solid marketing strategy is the foundation of a well-written marketing plan. Even as a marketing plan contains a list of actions, a marketing plan with no sound strategic foundation is of little use.
The marketing course is realized with the marketing mix. The final stage in it is the marketing controlling. Within nearly all organizations, "strategic planning" is an yearly procedure, generally covering only the year in advance. Occasionally, a small number of organizations may perhaps consider a feasible plan which stretches three or more years ahead.
To be most reliable, the plan has to be formal, more often than not in written form, as a proper "marketing plan." The essence of accomplishing this is that it moves from the general toward the specific, from the overall aims within the business right down to the individual action plan intended for a part of one advertising plan. Additionally it is an interactive procedure, so the draft production of every step is checked to view what impression it has on the earlier phases, and is amended.
Behind the company aims, that in themselves present the primary framework for the marketing plan, will lie the "corporate mission," which consequently presents the context designed for these company objectives. For a sales-oriented business, the marketing planning function models incentive pay policy to not just inspire and reward frontline workers fairly but also to align marketing behavior with corporate mission. This "corporate mission" may very well be regarded as a definition of what the business is, or what it does: "Our organization is …". This description shouldn't be too narrow, or it's going to constrict the development of the establishment; a overly rigorous focus on the idea that "We are in the industry of constructing meat-scales," as IBM was during the early 1900s, might have restricted its ensuing development into other areas. However, it should not be exceedingly wide or it will become insignificant; "We want to make income" is just not too beneficial in developing specific plans.
Abell recommended that the explanation ought to cover three dimensions: "customer groups" to be served, "customer needs" being served, and "technologies" being utilized. Therefore, the explanation of IBM's "corporate mission" in the 1940s might well have been: "We are in the business of managing accounting information for the larger US organizations using punched cards"
Conceivably the most important factor in lucrative advertising is the "corporate vision." Surprisingly, it is largely neglected by marketing textbooks, even though not by means of the popular exponents of company policy - indeed, it had been perhaps the leading theme of the book by Peters and Waterman, in the shape of their "Superordinate Goals." "In Search of Excellence" said: "Nothing drives progress like the imagination. The idea precedes the deed." If the organization in general, and its chief executive in particular, has a powerful vision of where its future lies, then there's a decent likelihood that the company will accomplish a powerful position within its markets. This will be not least because its approaches tend to be constant tending to be supported by its staff at all stages. In this situation, most of IBM's marketing activities have been underpinned by its attitude of "customer service," a vision originally promoted by the fascinating Watson dynasty. The stress at this phase is on finding a complete and precise representation.