Step-by-step guide for how to write a Marketing Plan (2024)

If you are running a marketing team and you are not seeing high quality plans from your team, our marketing training can help. When marketers try to do too many things in their plan, none of their ideas end up with enough resources to make the impact they expect.

Marketing plans that fail to make firm decisions spread their limited resources across so many tactics that none of the ideas create a big enough impact to make a difference. With a lack of vision, the plan meanders and confuses those who work behind the scenes of the brand. At Beloved Brands, we will show how to build your plan with a brand vision, purpose, values, key issues, strategies, and execution plans.

If you want better plans from your people, our Marketing Training will help.

With extensive experience working on top global brands, each year I took charge of constructing a marketing plan, starting as an assistant brand manager and eventually becoming a marketing director. At a VP Marketing level, I meticulously reviewed 15 plans annually before they were presented to the President. This inspired me to develop a new marketing plan template, which I have constantly refined over time. If you feel that your team could benefit from enhanced planning abilities, please visit this link for more information: Beloved Brands Marketing Training.

Our marketing plan process starts with analytics. As a rule, you should conduct abusiness reviewonce a year. Essentially, look at the market, consumer, channels, competitors, and the brand. First, summarize the analytics into what’s driving growth, and what’s holding it back. Subsequently, map out the risks and opportunities for the future.

Furthermore, we introduce you to our Strategic ThinkBox that uses four questions to help you uncover the key issues facing your brand. First, what is your brand’s core strength? Second, how tight is the bond with consumers. Third, what is your competitive stance? Finally, what is the business situation the brand faces?

It should be noted that you should try to narrow in on the three most significant key issues. As a result, it will force you to use three main strategies as the foundation of your plan.

I first came up with this “marketing plan on a page” template when I led a team with 15 brands. Without a doubt, it helped me see the big picture quickly, rather than having to hunt through a big thick binder. As a result, the sales team valued the ability to see the entire plan on one page. Most salespeople had 15 brands to manage with each of their customers. Differing from the brand team, they can’t work with binders or big PowerPoint files.

Unquestionably, everyone who works on the brand should receive the one-page marketing plan. As a rule, they should keep the plan nearby for reference in steering day-to-day decisions. For example, below is our one-page marketing plan template we use.

You will love our one-page brand plan.

The analysis section lays out the summary from the deep-dive business review. First, what is driving your brand’s growth? Second, what is inhibiting your brand’s growth? Third, which threats could hurt your brand? Finally, what opportunities are facing your brand?

The key issues and marketing strategy section focuses on the top three issues getting in the way of achieving your vision. Importantly, put the key issues in question format. In addition, the strategic solutions should be the answers that match up to each of those questions. Set goals to measure your brand’s performance against each marketing strategy.

The marketing execution section maps out the specific plans for each of the chosen execution areas that line up to most essential consumer touchpoints. For example, include execution plans for brand communication, product innovation and sales.

Importantly, marketing plans provide the opportunity to use your marketing strategy to steer everyone who works on the brand. Agencies. Sales. R&D. Retail. Senior Management.

For the ambitious marketers looking to build your marketing skills, you need to learn how to write each component of the marketing plan. Start with the brand vision, purpose, values, and goals. Subsequently, dig in to find the key Issues, brand strategy statements, and marketing execution tactics.

• Vision.
• Purpose.
• Goals.
• SWOT analysis.
• Key issues.
• Strategy Statements.
• Marketing Communications plan.
• Sales plan.
• Innovation plan.
• Forecast and financials.

To clarify, below is our layout for how these strategic slides can be organized.

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A well-writtenbrand vision should be the ultimate achievement, which answers, “Where could we be?” Reflect on future ambitions that would bring you true satisfaction.Clearly, you have to put a stake in the ground to describe an ideal state for your future. Having a vision for your brand is essential to setting it up for success – and it doesn’t have to be complicated. When I see brand teams struggle, they usually lack a brand vision.

For example, some companies will do anything to meet their short-term goals and take any tactic. Undoubtedly, your vision to help plan for the long term and use inspirational language to lead others.

A great vision should scare you a little. And, it should excite you a lot.

Indeed, we hope you see an example that feels familiar to what is in your mind. Alternatively, you might see a structure for how you would write your own vision statement. Use the vision statement examples to inspire you as you write your own vision statement.

Once you establish your vision, use it to set up the key issues of your marketing plan. Try to understand the obstacles in the way of achieving your vision. This sets up the strategies for how to reach the vision. Most importantly, your strategies will then revolve around solving these problems.

You need to set the goals, which should measure the desired result of this marketing strategy. There are four ways to set goals for your brand plan:

Strategic outcome.

Essentially, this could be the market impact (awareness, trial, repeat, loyalty, the share of requirements) or performance result (sales, share, costs, pricing, profit) stated in your strategic objective statement.

Tactical execution measures.

Importantly, the advertising results (attention, brand link, communication, stickiness), innovation freshness index (percent of portfolio launched during the time period), in-store performance indicators (display, pricing, share of shelf, distribution coverage).

Major milestones.

Furthermore, include major project completion dates, reaching a key performance level in terms of market share position, sales level, or profit level.

Brand reputation goals.

To demonstrate, options include net promoter score, online review scores, consumer playback of the desired brand positioning, reputation among influencers or social media followers.

Too many marketers are not taking the time to dig in on the marketing analytics. There is no value in having access to data if you are not using it. The best brand leaders can tell strategic stories through analytics.

Conduct a deep-dive business review at least once a year on your brand. Look at it like a brand audit that helps you dig in and see what’s going on. Otherwise, you are negligent of the brand, where you are investing all your resources. Dig in on the marketing analytics of five specific sections—marketplace, consumers, channels, competitors and the brand. To read more about the deep-dive business review: Business Review.

A: Capabilities investment:

First, the marketing strategy statement calls out the investment in a strategic program, with crystal clear orders to the team, leaving no room for doubt, confusion, or hesitation. For example, the strategic program is to “Advertising Gray’s guilt-free positioning.”

B: Focused opportunity:

Second, the marketing strategy statement need to see a breakthrough point where the brand will exert pressure to create a market impact. Essentially, the focused opportunity is to “to new proactive preventers.”

C: Market impact:

Third, the marketing strategy should achieve a specific desired market impact with a stakeholder you will attempt to move, whether it is consumers, sales channels, competitors, or influencers. For example, the desired impact is “To move consumers from consideration to trial.”

D: Performance result:

Finally, the marketing strategy statement must drive a specific performance result linked to the market impact, either making the brand more powerful or more profitable. Finally, the performance result is,“Steal competitive users.”

This unique strategic model will force you to pick answers to build a strategy statement for those who follow your plan. Moreover, use these four elements of smart marketing strategy statements to ensure you structure the thinking.

Click to read how smart brand strategy is the foundation of a marketing plan

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Your effort in writing these clunky statements will not go to waste. Once you have decided on your top three marketing strategies, you can lay out a specific slide to explain each strategy within your presentation.

• First, include the clunky strategic objective statement. (I told you it would not go to waste.)
• Secondly, use the goals to measure the ideal result of this strategy.
• Then, list three tactical programs, where you will invest your resources.
• Finally, insert a “watch out statement” to address issues that could derail my presentation.

For each major investment, write a separate execution plan as an organizing tool to ensure everyone has specific orders on the particular strategy related to their function, leaving no room for misinterpretation. Every strategic investment you make deserves an execution plan. Most plans should have specific execution plans for marketing communication, innovation, and sales.

Depending on your brand’s specific needs, you may have execution plans for sampling, influencer, e-commerce, medical, consumer experience, competitive, or sales.

Your execution plans should combine the work you do with strategic thinking and brand positioning.

First, start each execution plan with your marketing strategy statement from one of your strategies. Second, for the next four sections, go back to your brand positioning work to lay out the target, brand idea, main benefit and support points. Finally, for the final two sections, make it specific to the type of execution.

Use the desired response that kicks off the creative brief. And, the media options where you will invest. Next, for innovation, decide what the internal beacon is to inspire the team, and the project status related to new products, formats or claims. Finally, for a sales plan, include any differences between shoppers and consumers (users), specific retail programs and execution tactics.

One flaw I see is that brand leaders keep using different words to say the same thing. Keep repeating the exact words and phrases to ensure the consistency of execution. Never get bored with your words. Repeat them. Let the creativity come from your repeated words.

The brand communications plan answers seven questions. These questions steer and inspire the creation of the brand story work, so the brand communications work will establish your brand positioning, and motivate consumers to see, think, feel, do, or influence.

We have it set up in our marketing plan template to answer the following questions:

1. First, what do we need our advertising to do? (Marketing strategy statement)
2. Second, who is in our desired consumer target? (Most motivated people to buy what we do)
3. Third, what are we selling? (Our main consumer benefit we stand behind)
4. Why should they believe us? (Support points to back up the main benefit)
5. Next, what is our organizing brand idea? (Brand soul, essence or DNA for the brand)
6. Then, what do we want people to see, think, feel, do, or influence? (Desired consumer response)
7. Finally, where will our consumer be most receptive to see and act upon our message? (Media plan)

Brand leaders should work with the sales team to manage the consumer through the purchase moment. The brand plan should guide the sales team on specific strategy and goals. Given that your sales team owns the selling execution, you must gain the sales team’s alignment and buy-in on the best ways to execute your brand’s strategy through direct selling, retailer management, and e-commerce options. To illustrate, the programs include pricing, distribution focus, shelf management, promotional spending, customer marketing, customer analytics, and specific promotional tools.

Your channel customers are trying to win in their market, satisfying a base of their consumers through your brands, while battling competitors who you may also be going through that customer. The most successful programs will provide a win for your channel customer, as you will get much more support for your program.

As part of our marketing plan examples, below is our Selling and Retail Plan for Gray’s Cookies.

See our Marketing Plan template

What is included in a marketing plan?

• First, every marketing plan must have a vision that acts as the guiding line to chase. I like to have a main sales goal tied to that vision.
• Second, conduct a business review to focus on what’s driving growth and holding the brand back.
• Third, use our Strategic ThinkBox to come up with key issue questions that are facing the brand. Then, dig in and build out the strategies that answer the issues.
• Next, brainstorm tactics with your team. And, build tactics, including brand communication, innovation, and sales or retail.
• Last but not least, create goals and measure performance. A main sales goal can be tied to the vision, and can drive parts of the plan, but they can also be used at the end to make sure you measure the strategies and tactics.

Why is a marketing plan important?

The main role of a marketing plan presentation is to gain approval of your senior management team. Importantly, explain how you will you use your resources to drive growth on your brand. And, the plan becomes the roadmap that everyone on your team will follow and help achieve your brand goals. Clearly, an effective marketing plan will create the brand vision, purpose, key issues, strategies, and tactics.

What are common marketing plan mistakes?

First, the most common mistake I see in marketing plans is when they present a messy story. That’s the reason you should have a good marketing plan template. If you are standing at the front of the room and the boss is confused, it won’t go very well.

Second, the other common mistake I see in marketing plans is trying to do too many things. Importantly, when you spread the limited resources across too many ideas, none of them will have enough resources to make a difference. You will always be disappointed in the results.

Third, another mistake I see in marketing plansis when parts of the team do not agree with. The brand leader must work to involve the other teams to ensure the team is aligned to the marketing plan. Make sure you involve sales, operations, R&D, your ad agency. And, include all those who deliver on behalf of the brand.

Fourth, I have seen marketing plan presentations get out of control. One year, a small brand had 127 slides. Crazy. You should have no more than 20 slides.

Finally, the other mistake I see in marketing plans is when ideas come out of no where. If a tactic is not lined up with a strategy, senior management will notice. And, it could cause them to doubt the rest of the plan.

What is in a marketing plan?

If you are looking for an ideal outline for a marketing plan, here is our recommendation:vision, purpose, goals, SWOT analysis, key issues, strategy statements, marketing communications plan, sales plan, innovation plan, forecast, and financials. Our marketing plan template uses this outline.