Marketing Case

As a student, you likely plan out much

in your life--where to meet for dinner, how much time to spend studying for exams, which courses to take

next semester, how to get home for winter break,

and so on. Plans enable us to figure out where we

want to go and how we might get there.

For a firm, the goal is not much different. Any company that wants to succeed (which

means any firm whatsoever) needs to plan for

a variety of contingencies, and marketing represents one of the most significant. A marketing

plan--which we defined in Chapter 2 as a written

document composed of an analysis of the current

marketing situation, opportunities and threats

for the firm, marketing objectives and strategy

specified in terms of the four Ps, action programs,

and projected or pro forma income (and other

financial) statements--enables marketing personnel and the firm as a whole to understand

their own actions, the market in which they

operate, their future direction, and the means to

obtain support for new initiatives.

2

Because these elements--internal activities, external environments, goals, and forms

of support--differ for every firm, the marketing

plan is different for each firm as well. However,

several guidelines apply to marketing plans in

general; this Appendix summarizes those points

and offers an annotated example.