Business Enterprise Simulation Module Week 7

Business Enterprise Simulation

Lesson 1 - Marketing Plan

What Is a Marketing Strategy?

A marketing strategy refers to a business’s overall game plan for reaching prospective

consumers and turning them into customers of their products or services. A marketing
strategy contains the company’s value proposition, key brand messaging, data
on target customer demographics, and other high-level elements.
A thorough marketing strategy covers the four Ps of marketing: product, price, place,
and promotion.
Understanding Marketing Strategies
A clear marketing strategy should revolve around the company’s value proposition,
which communicates to consumers what the company stands for, how it operates, and
why it deserves their business.
Marketing Strategies vs. Marketing Plans
The marketing strategy is outlined in the marketing plan—a document that details the
specific types of marketing activities that a company conducts and contains timetables
for rolling out various marketing initiatives.
Marketing strategies should ideally have longer life spans than individual marketing
plans because they contain value propositions and other key elements of a company’s
brand, which generally hold constant over the long haul. In other words, marketing
strategies cover big-picture messaging, while marketing plans delineate the logistical
details of specific campaigns.
For example, a marketing strategy might say that a company aims to increase authority
in niche circles where their clients visit. The marketing plan puts that in action by
commissioning thought leadership pieces on LinkedIn.
Benefits of a Marketing Strategy
The ultimate goal of a marketing strategy is to achieve and communicate a

sustainable competitive advantage over rival companies by understanding the needs
and wants of its consumers. Whether it’s a print ad design, mass customization, or a
social media campaign, a marketing asset can be judged based on how effectively it
communicates a company’s core value proposition.
Market research can help chart the efficacy of a given campaign and can help identify
untapped audiences to achieve bottom-line goals and increase sales.
How to Create a Marketing Strategy
Creating a marketing strategy requires a few steps. HubSpot, a digital marketing

resource, offers insight into how to create your strategy.2
1. Identify your goals: While sales are the ultimate goal for every company, you
should have more short-term goals such as establishing authority, increasing
customer engagement, or generating leads. These smaller goals offer
measurable benchmarks for the progress of your marketing plan. Think of
strategy as the high-level ideology and planning as how you accomplish your
goals.
2. Know your clients: Every product or service has an ideal customer, and you
should know who they are and where they hang out. If you sell power tools,
you’ll choose marketing channels where general contractors may see your
messaging. Establish who your client is and how your product will improve their
lives.
3. Create your message: Now that you know your goals and who you’re pitching
to, it’s time to create your messaging. This is your opportunity to show your
potential clients how your product or service will benefit them and why you’re the
only company that can provide it.
4. Define your budget: How you disperse your messaging may depend on how
much you can afford. Will you be purchasing advertising? Hoping for a viral
moment on social media organically? Sending out press releases to the media
to try to gain coverage? Your budget will dictate what you can afford to do.3
5. Determine your channels: Even the best message needs the appropriate
venue. Some companies may find more value in creating blog posts for their
website. Others may find success with paid ads on social media channels. Find
the most appropriate venue for your content.
6. Measure your success: To target your marketing, you need to know whether it
is reaching its audience. Determine your metrics and how you’ll judge the
success of your marketing efforts.
Why does my company need a marketing strategy?
A marketing strategy helps a company direct its advertising dollars to where it will have
the most impact. Compared with the data from 2018, the correlation between
organization and success in marketers jumped from being almost four times more likely
to almost seven times more likely in 2022.4
What do the four Ps mean in a marketing strategy?
The four Ps are product, price, promotion, and place. These are the key factors that are
involved in the marketing of a good or service. The four Ps can be used when planning
a new business venture, evaluating an existing offer, or trying to optimize sales with a
target audience. It also can be used to test a current marketing strategy on a new
audience.
What does a marketing strategy look like?
A marketing strategy will detail the advertising, outreach, and public relations
campaigns to be carried out by a firm, including how the company will measure the
effect of these initiatives. They will typically follow the four Ps. The functions and
components of a marketing plan include market research to support pricing decisions
and new market entries, tailored messaging that targets certain demographics and
geographic areas, and platform selection for product and service promotion—digital,
radio, internet, trade magazines, and the mix of those platforms for each campaign,
and metrics that measure the results of marketing efforts and their reporting timelines.
Is a marketing strategy the same as a marketing plan?
The terms “marketing plan” and “marketing strategy” are often used interchangeably
because a marketing plan is developed based on an overarching strategic framework.
In some cases, the strategy and the plan may be incorporated into one document,
particularly for smaller companies that may only run one or two major campaigns in a
year. The plan outlines marketing activities on a monthly, quarterly, or annual basis,
while the marketing strategy outlines the overall value proposition.

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Business Enterprise Simulation

Lesson 1 - Marketing Plan

What Is a Marketing Strategy?

A marketing strategy refers to a business’s overall game plan for reaching prospective

Understanding Marketing Strategies

Marketing Strategies vs. Marketing Plans

Benefits of a Marketing Strategy

The ultimate goal of a marketing strategy is to achieve and communicate a

How to Create a Marketing Strategy

Creating a marketing strategy requires a few steps. HubSpot, a digital marketing

Why does my company need a marketing strategy?

What do the four Ps mean in a marketing strategy?

What does a marketing strategy look like?

Is a marketing strategy the same as a marketing plan?

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