I had a client today that was having some difficulty in understanding the difference between a marketing plan and a marketing strategy. Businesses need both of these as an integral part of there business plan. First let me explain the difference between each and then I will give you an idea how to create both.

A marketing strategy is an over all vision of your companies goals. It includes fundamentals such as target demographics of your customers, a definition of your business, comparison of your companies marketing with you competitions and how your products and services relate to your customers.

Where as a marketing plan gives you a road map to implement your strategy it might include types of marketing (internet vs. print), pricing and discount models and a sales strategy for your company. As you can see it is impossible to have a marketing plan without a market strategy. I highly recommend to all my clients to spend the time with a professional marketing consultant and include both marketing plans and strategies as essential components of their business plan.

There are some essentials that you need to include in your marketing strategy, including a mission statement that defines your strategy, definition of your customer or client and your objectives. While the essentials of marketing plan are specific marketing ideas and ways to track each of them to measure their individual performance. In conclusion set a goal for what you want your marketing to achieve (marketing strategy) then set up a road map of how to achieve that goal that you can track on an individual level.