The central idea of marketing is of a matching a company’s capabilities and the wants of customers in order to achieve the objectives of both parties. Therefore, marketing is the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion, and distribution of ideas, goods and services in order to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organisational goals.
When Adam Smith said that consumption is the sole end and purpose of production he was in fact describing what has in recent years become known as the marketing concept. The marketing concept implies that all the activities of an organisation are driven by a desire to satisfy customer needs.
In order to satisfy customer needs it is essential for today’s businesses to create a marketing plan. Marketing planning is concerned with adapting the organisation to a changing environment. Long-term success in current competitive markets requires a co-ordinated approach to meet customer needs better than competitors. All companies have a set of capabilities in the form of resources and management skills, which are not necessarily capable of taking advantage of all market opportunities as effectively.
Marketing planning is a logical sequence and a series of activities leading to the setting of objectives and the formulation of plans for achieving them. The marketing plan operates at two levels. The strategic marketing plan lays out the broad marketing objectives and strategy at the corporate level. It analyses the marketing environment, the competitors, the current marketing situation and opportunities.
The tactical marketing plan outlines specific marketing tactics, including advertising and promotion, merchandising, channels and service. In large companies this is usually done at the strategic business unit (SBU) level.
This essay will formulate a marketing plan for one specific company’s new product for