Marketing Planning
In the fast-changing and increasingly competitive business environment of the late 1990s, the right marketing approach for today's conditions will almost certainly not be right for those of tomorrow. No company's strategy or operations can afford to be frozen in time and, as the new millennium draws near, the ability to develop effective marketing plans which enable the firm to become more responsive and adaptable to the marketplace will, perhaps more than ever before, differentiate the winners from the losers. Therefore, in this assignment, as a marketing manager in the hospitality industry, how managers strategically utilise marketing planning as a marketing management tool will be discussed.
“Marketing planning is a systematic process involving the assessment of marketing opportunities and resources, the determination of marketing objectives, and development of a plan for implementation.” (Simkin & Ferrell, 2006)
The role of marketing planning and the advantages it offers are well established (cf. McDonald, 1999; Simkin, 2000). It is widely accepted that businesses use this process to prioritise opportunities and strategic options, develop marketing programmed and instill greater business direction (Dibb et al., 1996). Businesses that formalise their marketing planning are often better at spotting and responding to changes in their competitive environment. Inter- and intra-departmental communication and co-operation may be improved and better marketing co-ordination enjoyed (McDonald, 1992a, 1999). Marketing planning can improve an organisation's ability to handle the complexities of their trading environment, thus delivering tangible economic benefits.
There are three fundamental principles which underpin the proposed planning framework. The first principle is to adopt a marketing orientation, or philosophy, of business. In contrast to a production-oriented company which focuses on producing technically excellent products at the lowest possible cost, or a...
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