Running head: MARKETING PAPER #1 1
Marketing Paper #1
Filip Burnac
Concordia University Irvine
Professor Dr. Stephen Tvorik
March 5, 2016
MARKETING PAPER #1 2
Introduction
The foundation of a successful marketing is a marketing strategy that manifests itself
in a long-term marketing plan. This marketing plan gives the company a “binding
framework”. The marketing plan is therefore not based on the current daily business. It
focuses much more on the future development of the company and the market. In a marketing
plan, the purpose is to determine which goals a company seeks and how it will achieve them.
It is necessary to check the marketing plan from time to time and correct if necessary because
the market changes consistently. In this paper, the key steps will be described, which are
necessary for the development of an action-oriented marketing plan.
The marketing plan begins with the strategic analysis. It consists of the market,
customer and competitor analysis. The market analysis provides information on the market
potential, the market volume, and the market shares of the major suppliers and the prognosis
of the further market growth. The customer analyses begins with a most precise definition of
target groups, their buying habits, needs and expectations. The customers may end up being
the end user (consumer) or it is another company. Some important customer data analysis are
customer satisfaction and loyalty, attitudes, purchasing motives and expectations about the
kind of relationship with the provider. In the competitive analysis, it comes primarily to the
assessment of the main objectives, strengths and weaknesses of relevant competitors.
Companies have to ask themselves what they have to do better so they can get more in the
perception of the audience. The results of a competitive analysis can be represented in a so-
called SWOT profile. A widely used tool for this is the SWOT analysis. Many large
companies use the SWOT analysis for the formulation of their innovation strategy. The
SWOT method allows to define a strategy for initiation a new products or changing existing
products.
MARKETING PAPER #1 3
In the years 2003-04, the BMW Group came up with several directions for strategic
innovation for their SWOT analysis. The Group sees its core competence in the field of
engine construction. The extreme concentration on sporty sedans helps to focus the brand, but
can be interpreted as weakness in the form of a narrow range of products. The increased
interest of customers for sporty motoring can be interpreted as an opportunity, while
