Marketing Plan Template

This is the marketing plan of____________________________

I. Market Analysis

A. Target Market - Who are the customers?

1. We will be selling primarily to (Total Percent of Business for each):
a. Private sector _____________
b. Wholesalers _____________
c. Retailers _____________
d. Government _____________
e. Other _____________

2. We will be targeting customers by:
a. Product line/services. We will target specific lines ________________
b. Geographic area? Which areas? ________________
c. Sales? We will target sales of ________________
d. Industry? Our target industry is ________________
e. Other? ________________
3. How much will our selected market spend on our type of product or service this coming year? $________________
B. Competition

1. Who are our competitors?
Name ________________________________________
Address _________________________________________
Years in Business ___________________
Market Share ___________________
Price/Strategy ___________________
Product/Service ___________________
Features ___________________

Name ________________________________________
Address _________________________________________
Years in Business ___________________
Market Share ___________________
Price/Strategy ___________________
Product/Service ___________________
Features ___________________

2. How competitive is the market?
High ____________________
Medium ____________________
Low ____________________
3. List below your strengths and weaknesses compared to your competition (consider such areas as location, size of resources, reputation, services, and personnel)

Strengths: Weaknesses:

1. _______________________ 1. _______________________

2. _______________________ 2. _______________________

3. _______________________ 3. _______________________

4. _______________________ 4. _______________________

C. Environment

1. The following are some important economic factors that will affect our product or service (such as trade area growth, industry health, economic trends, taxes, and rising energy prices):
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
2. The following are some important legal factors that will affect our market:
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
3. The following are some important government factors:
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
4. The following are other environmental factors that will affect our market, but over which we have no control:
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________

II. Product or Service Analysis

A. Description

1. Describe here what the product/service is and what it does:
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________

B. Comparison

1. What advantages does our product/service have over those of the competition (consider such things as unique features, patents, expertise, and special training)?
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
2. What disadvantages does it have?
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________

C. Some Considerations

1. Where will you get your materials and supplies?
________________________________________________
2. List other considerations:
________________________________________________
________________________________________________

III. Marketing Strategies -- Marketing Mix

A. Image

1. First, what kind of image do we want to have (such as cheap but good, or exclusiveness, or customer-oriented or highest quality, or convenience, or speed, or ...)?
________________________________________________

B. Features

1. List the features we will emphasize:
a. ____________________________________________
b. ____________________________________________
c. ____________________________________________

C. Pricing

1. We will be using the following pricing strategy:
a. Markup on cost ____ What % markup? _____
b. Suggested price ____
c. Competitive ____
d. Below competition ____
e. Premium price ____
f. Other ____
2. Are our prices in line with our image?
Yes ___ No ___
3. Do our prices cover costs and leave a margin of profit?
Yes ___ No ___

D. Customer Services

1. List the customer services we provide:
a. ____________________________________________
b. ____________________________________________
c. ____________________________________________
2. These are our sales/credit terms:
a. ____________________________________________
b. ____________________________________________
c. ____________________________________________
3. The competition offers the following services:
a. ____________________________________________
b. ____________________________________________
c. ____________________________________________

E. Advertising/Promotion

1. These are the things we wish to say about the business:
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
2. We will use the following advertising/promotion sources:
a. Television ________
b. Radio ________
c. Direct mail ________
d. Personal contacts ________
e. Trade associations ________
f. Newspaper ________
g. Magazines ________
h. Yellow Pages ________
i. Billboard ________
j. Other___________________
3. The following are the reasons why we consider the media we have chosen to be the most effective:
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________

Information courtesy of the Small Business Administration.