A marketing plan is a part of overall business plan containing a list of actions required for achieving marketing objectives. It is a specialized marketing strategy which helps fully estimate the results of past marketing decisions and understand the environment the company operates in, set goals and provide guidance for future efforts to reach them.

To shape a solid strategy, it is crucially important:

• to define the target market as thoroughly as possible (The overwhelming picture of the target market can be obtained by examining three categories: demographics, geographic and lifestyle factors and customer needs.)
• to outline clearly your position (Your positioning is the way you are going to appeal to your target customers, i.e. the image of your product or service you want them to have.)
• to define a marketing mix (The 4Ps of marketing: product/service, place, price, promotion.)

A marketing plan for small business usually encompasses the following information:

• Customer demographic features
• Competitors information (strengths, weaknesses, product and service description)
• Product and service description (including selling points)
• Marketing financing
• Pricing strategy
• Market research

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