by Amarendra Bhushan
1. Market Research
Collect, organize, and write down data about the market that is currently buying the product(s) or service(s) you will sell. (From now on we'll refer to your products or services as "product.") Some areas to consider: Market dynamics, patterns including seasonality Customers - demographics, market segment, target markets, needs, buying decisions
Product - what's out there now, what's the competition offering
Current sales in the industry
Benchmarks in the industry
Suppliers - vendors that you will need to rely on
2. Target Market
Find niche or target markets for your product and describe them.
3. Product
Describe your product. How does your product relate to the market? What does your market need, what do they currently use, what do they need above and beyond current use?
4. Competition
Describe your competition. Develop your "unique selling proposition." What makes you stand apart from your competition? What is your competition doing about branding?
5. Mission Statement
Write a few sentences that state:
"Key market" - who you're selling to
"Contribution" - what you're selling
"Distinction" - your unique selling proposition
6. Market Strategies
Write down the marketing and promotion strategies that you want to use or at least consider using. Strategies to consider:
Networking - go where your market is
Direct marketing - sales letters, brochures, flyers
Advertising - print media, directories
Training programs - to increase awareness
Write articles, give advice, become known as an expert
Direct/personal selling
Publicity/press releases
Trade shows
Web site
7. Pricing, Positioning and Branding
From the the information you've collected, establish strategies for determining the price of your product, where your product will be positioned in the market and how you will achieve brand awareness.
8. Budget
Budget your dollars. What strategies can you afford? What can you do in house, what do you need to outsource.
9. Marketing Goals
Establish quantifiable marketing goals. This means goals that you can turn into numbers. For instance, your goals might be to gain at least 30 new clients or to sell 10 products per week, or to increase your income by 30% this year. Your goals might include sales, profits, or customer's satisfaction.
10. Monitor Your Results
Test and analyze. Identify the strategies that are working.
Survey customers, Track sales, leads.
Long Term Operational Plan
(based upon the five strategic components)
Market Positioning.Based upon the Trust as the core client but with a wider view of the health market in the locality. The prime position to be taken is that of being cost effective for the customer and client focused for the consumer.
Service Positioning. Based on the understanding the Trust remains the customer but the major influence on them is placed with the internal departments as the consumers of the facility service.
Marketing Mix. The considerable range of services offered lead to the need to vary the mix required. For the directorate the mix will be based upon service quality, consumer responsiveness and focus and effective use of resources for the customers.
Market Entry. Through re-establishment, tender or negotiation of the current contracts and service level agreements as well as from mergers or co-operative alliances with other Trusts.
Timing. It is anticipated that although the drive for change should be continuous, key dates such as the Year 2000, the start of financial years, and the re-negotiations of Service Level Agreements or mergers, could be used as trigger dates for market entry.
Meet Amarendra Bhushan, A leading Strategic Human Resource Consultent, MBA from American university of athens, greece, also editing The European journal of NRI finance magazine (The TRIBUNE).As one of the leading article writer, and corporate hotel professional. Advisor to various organizations and hotels. He is an elected member of south Indian hotel and restaurant federation. Now staying at ancient city of Athens Greece.PH-0030-6947667507 abdhiraj@mail.gr