Marketing Strategy & Planning

Marketing Planning
The end point of a Marketing Plan is not only better planning. Its about ...

Marketing Excellence

Marketing Excellence
Many people believe that the basic issue in marketing is convincing customers you have a better product, that in the long run the best product will win. Not true Its an Illusion there is no objective reality. The perception is the reality. Marketing is a battle of perceptions not products. All that exists in the world of marketing are perceptions in the mind of customers

Marketing Excellence is ... Consistently winning the battle of perceptions.

the 22 immutable laws of marketing by Jack Trout, Al Ries

Is Branding Important?
Products often struggle to demonstrate major differences in terms of clinical benefits highlighting the need to obtain greater insight into user perceptions of brands, and factors motivating them to prescribe The company that fails to examine and monitor the equity of its brands in the consistently evolving pharmaceutical markets, does so at its own peril. Marketing Managers who dont take account of the emotional factors in brand choice and prescribing miss the opportunity to maximize the value of their brands
per David Bayton, Managing the Equity of Pharmaceuticals

Product or Customer Focused ?

Product Focused
Segment by products
Scientific focus Relies on relationships; Has difficulty disciplining Sales to provide useful intelligence Talks about product performance and sales volume achieved

Customer Focused
Segment by customers
Focus on customer perceptions Tracks market changes & modifies strategy based on market research & systematic collection of sales reports Talks about customer needs, share, uses & segments. Knows competitor strategy, assumptions, cost & objectives Uses Marketing Plan to manage activities

Knows competitive product features

Checks Marketing Plan only when its time for a new version.

The Challenges of Branding?

Consumers buy products but they choose brands. Consumers form relationships with brands, not products, and not corporations. The performance of the product, what it does, and how it does it, is the core identity of the brand. But the brand also has a distinctive personality and character that makes an emotional and trust-based connection with the consumer and distinguishes it from competitive brands.
Source: Winning with P&G 1999

Key Elements to Brand Equity

1. The physical element: perceived functionality relative effectiveness is very important how well advantages are communicated so that our customers perceive that we offer superior value
2. The emotional element: developing affinity nostalgia, pleasant associations bonding, sharing the users values or perspectives Trust & Innovation

Winning the Battle of Perceptions

Effective Brand Marketing Is..
First, intimately knowing the values and needs of our customers. Then ensuring that every element of the marketing mix is aligned behind creating, delivering and communicating the values which will trigger customers to prescribe your brand over the competitors.

A Common Branding Process

1.
Understanding Customer Perceptions current customer beliefs Why do they prescribe our brand or our competitor brand? What values do they assign each brand? 2. Identifying the customer value that will cause them to prescribe our brand What are their value drivers? Defining our brand? * what is it? * what do we want it to be? 3. Is there a gap between how customers perceive our brands and the values they seek. If so, develop optimal strategy and positioning to close this gap. What are possible customer reactions to this positioning? -

4.

5.

6.

Implement Design each marketing element of mix marketing mix to Define support ongoing strategy & brand positioning support What is brand essence? Key messages? Images?
Optimize commu nicatio n rollout

Measure & track results How can we track + measure brand equity

To be agreed & distributed with Interim TA update (end Feb)

The Pyramid
Customers Increasing Competitiveness

Rep Sales

Marketing
Branding

Customer Segmentation

Common Marketing Plan Issues

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Strategic direction is still vague Roles & responsibilities not yet clarified Process is too complex Process not well linked to Business Plan cycle Planning not yet in the culture, Team cant support all the deliverables Marketing products not driving perceptions Basic marketing processes not optomized.

Typical Planning Cycle

Annual Budget Driven Process
Timeline Senior Management Mid-July Overall Corporate Ambition Link to Company Vision Top down global sales Global Marketing Strategy September October Approve Business Plan First Draft 3 year sales view November Final Business Plan Approved

Corporate Marketing

Strategy + Plan Development Strategy + Plan Development Product priorities, launch plans Branding, Marcom, Pricing, Market Research Interim Updates

Corporate Sales

Internal planning Resource allocation discussions

Target setting Targets to Region/Local

Operations Trade-off analysis

Engineering

Common Marketing Needs

Become much more intimate with customers Understand customer perceptions & values Develop and state clear strategies Create and drive branding platform Set more challenging objectives Execute more impactful tactics Understand investment & return trade-off better Improve implementation & follow-up Improve alignment between marketing & sales

Key Elements of Marketing Plan

9 chapters Market* analysis Competition analysis Product information** Implications, Issues & SWOT Market product strategy

Marketing mix plan

Pre-launch marketing plan

Performance Forecast
Performance management and contingency plans

Situation Analysis & Implications

Goals & Strategy

Marketing Mix & Action Plan

Performance targets & Control

4 key elements in the marketing plan

Solid Results require strong alignment through organization

Company Business Plan
Implementation orientation Strategic to tactical Action plans per customer segment

Branding,
Communication Plan
Product Devel. Plan Market research plan

Return on Investment Incentive bonus structures

Company Marketing Plan

Key Account Plans

Sales plan
Global Branding Business Overview Resource Deployment Business Tracking Financial Perform. Tracking M.R. Plan Product Development plan

Individual Territory Plans /rep

Activity plan

HR Resource Plan
Perform. measures

How Will You Know You Achieve Marketing Excellence?

You will have achieved your goal when:

You consistently win the battle of perceptions ...

and you are seen externally as a Marketing & Sales powerhouse.