If you sell a product or service you should have a marketing plan. As the internet and e-commerce infiltrates our lives, travel gets cheaper and people shift geographically with greater ease, the forces of competition increase. Customers have become better educated, more discerning, and un- accepting of the status quo. They challenge the way you do business, and maybe justifiably so.

Can you pre empt the market and position your product or service in such away that it stands out   and is chosen over others? The answer is without a doubt yes.
With a in-depth understanding of your market, competition and customer your product or service can be placed in a way that will uniquely match your customers needs.

An affective marketing strategy will help you in your goal to achieve sustainable competitive advantage in the market. It will reflect the overall direction of the company, and effectively place you in a position to achieve greater revenue targets.

What should you expect from GBC in drafting your marketing strategy?
Depending on the size of your organisation expect the process to take between 6-8 weeks. I will require that GBC have access to your staff, products, some of your customers, and the ability to work with your financial controller if you have one on site.

A strategic marketing plan from GBC will include the following.

1. A back brief of the project
2. An executive summary
3. Company description
4. Strategic focus and plan (alignment of company plan to marketing plan)
5. Your core competencies and analysis of your competitive advantage
6. How your core competencies can be translated into competitive advantage
7. A situational analysis (SWOT)
   • external
   • internal

• PESTEL analysis including the following

• political issues
• environmental issues
• social issues
• technological issues
• economical issues
• legal issues

• Industry analysis global and local including
  • competitor analysis
  • market share analysis
  • market size estimations

• Company analysis
• Customer analysis

8. Product Market Focus describing the 3 year marketing and product objectives for the organisation
   • A clear description of your strategic pathways in relationship to your goals.
   • your target markets
   • point of difference
   • positioning statement and explanation
9. Marketing program including
   • product line up
   • product quality and controls
   • pricing strategy
   • promotion strategy
   • distribution strategy

10. Financial Data and projection
    • past sales and revenues
    • 5 year projections and assumptions
    • Profitability
11. Organisational structure and possible changes recommended.
12. Evaluation and Control of the implementation plan
13. Alternatives to the plan.
    
    Are you ready for success?