The Marketing Plan

Case C.K Ranganath

 Marketing Plan
Industry Analysis
Prior to the preparation of the marketing plan, the entrepreneur will need to complete
the industry analysis which will provide sufficient knowledge of the product
environment (national & local) that can affect marketing strategy decision making.
Secondary sources can provide much of the desired information. However, because
it generally is broad based, much of the information available may not necessarily be
relevant. As such, the entrepreneur may decide to gather the desired information first
hand, through a market survey, on the critical variables of the target customer -
customer needs, purchase habits, competitive strengths and weaknesses, price with
any give outs, competitive strengths and weaknesses, price, promotion, distribution
and product benefits. This will enable the entrepreneur to either bypass the
competitive strategy or should the entrepreneur feel that the product is superior, may
go head on.
Competitor Analysis
Step 1 Documenting the current strategy of each primary competitor
Step 2 - Information can be collected by using public information and complementing it
with marketing research project
Step 3 Newspaper articles, web sites, catalogs, promotions, interviews with distributors
and customers with marketing strategy information.
 The Marketing Plan
An assessment of Competitor Marketing Strategies and Strengths and
Weaknesses

Competitor Competitor Competitor

4Ps A B C
P Product or Service
Strategies
P
Pricing Strategies
P
Distribution Strategies

P Promotion Strategies
Strengths &
Weaknesses
Marketing Research for the New Venture
It involves gathering data to determine such information as who will buy the product or
service, what is the size of the potential market, what price should be charged, what is the
most appropriate distribution channel and what is the most effective promotion strategy to
inform and reach potential customers.
The research could be conducted by the entrepreneur or by an external supplier or
consultant or by Management Institute Students.
 The Marketing Plan
Step 1 Defining the Purpose or Objectives
List out all the desired information for preparing the Marketing Plan
Step 1.1 List out the profile of the likely customers Sex, age, Educational
Qualifications,
Purchase habits, Family Income , when and where the customer prefers to buy.
Step 2 Gathering Data from Secondary Sources
Secondary sources offer a means of gathering information for the industry analysis of
the business plan. For eg trade magazines, newspaper articles, libraries, government
agencies, Interne, respective Ministries etc. Information gathered from these sources
will add credence to the data already collected.
Step 3 Gathering Data from Primary Sources
Information that is new is primary data. Gathering primary data involves a data
collection procedure such as observation, networking, interviewing, focus
groups or experimentation through the use of a structured questionnaire.
Another methodology which could be used is Focus Group Discussion where a group
of like minded people who get together to discuss issues in an informal, open format,
enabling the entrepreneur to obtain and assess certain information- Cuban Crisis
 The Marketing Plan
Step 4 Analyzing and Interpreting the Results
Depending on the level of criticality of the desired information the entrepreneur
can either hand tabulate the information or do a cross tab of the information on the
Computer System, using a specialized software. The information generated could
also be used for cross tabulation with other variables or data.
PREPARING A MARKETING PLAN
Once the entrepreneur has collected all the available data related to the market,
the customer and the industry, he is in a position to collate and correlate all the
gathered information for the preparation of the Marketing Plan.
The Marketing Plan primarily focusses on what the market wants, what are the
strengths of the product which can satisfy what all wants and how to reach the
product to the customer.
The marketing plan, like any other type of plan, may be compared to a road map
used to guide a traveler. It is designed to provide answers to 3 basic questions:
Where have we been
Where do we want to go
How do we get there
 The Marketing Plan
CHARACTERISTICS OF A MARKETING PLAN
It should provide a strategy for accomplishing the company mission or goal
It should be based on facts and valid assumptions. Allocation of all equipment, financial
resources and human resources must be described
An appropriate structure must be described to implement the marketing plan
It should provide for continuity so that each annual marketing plan can build on it,
successfully meeting longer term goals and objectives.
It should be simple and short. However, it should not be so short that details on how to
accomplish a goal are excluded.
The success of the plan may depend on its flexibility. Changes, if necessary, should be
incorporated by including what if scenarios and appropriate responding strategies.
It should be reviewed, validated and changed periodically.
It should specify performance criteria that will be monitored and controlled. For eg.
Giving targets
Marketing Plan It is a written statement of marketing objectives, strategies and activities
to be followed in a business plan.
Marketing System Interacting internal and external factors that affect ventures ability to
provide goods and services to meet customer needs.
 The Marketing Plan
The Marketing System

External
Environ
Economy/Technol
ogy Feedback
Culture
Technology
Demand
Legal Marketing mix
considerations decisions
Raw materials Marketing
Market Purchase
Entrepreneu Strategies
planning decisions of
r directed to
Internal decisions customers
customers
Environ
Financial
Resources
Suppliers
Goals &
Objectives
Management
 The Marketing Plan
In addition to the external environment factors, there are internal
environmental factors which although more controllable by the
entrepreneur, can also affect the preparations of the marketing plan and
implementation of an affective marketing strategy. Some of the major
internal factors are:
Financial resources
Management team
Suppliers
Company mission
Marketing Mix
It is a combination of product, price, promotion and distribution and other
marketing activities needed to meet marketing objectives.
Product People
Price Process
Place Physical Evidence
 The Marketing Plan
STEPS IN PREPARING THE MARKETING PLAN
Defining the Business Situation A Flow Chart
Critically examine present and prospective
product/ market situation

Take into account company goals & constraints

Set marketing objectives that are specific &

measurable
Determine marketing strategies & prepare
action programs with assigned responsibilities
& dates for accomplishment
Reevaluate programs against
objectives
Objectives Objectives not
attainable attainable
Draft marketing plan, with
steps to monitor progress
Match feasibility of
of programs
programs against
available resources or
constraints
Feasible Not feasible

Submit marketing
plan for approval
 Marketing Plan
Defining the Target Market: Opportunities and Threats
Target Market Specific group of potential customers toward which venture aims its marketing plan.
Market Segmentation Process of dividing a market into definable and measurable groups for
purposes of targeting marketing strategy
The process of segmenting and targeting customers by the entrepreneur should proceed as follows:
I. Decide what general market or industry you wish to pursue
II. Divide the market into smaller groups based on characteristics of the customer or
buying situations.
A. Characteristics of the Customer:
1. Geographic
2. Demographic
3. Psychographic
B. Buying Situation
4. Desired Benefits
5. Usage habits
6. Buying conditions
7. Awareness of buying intentions
 Marketing Plan
C. Select Segment or segments to target
D. Develop a marketing plan integrating product, price, distribution and
promotion
Considering Strengths and Weaknesses
It is important to consider the strengths and weaknesses in the target market.
Weaknesses could relate to the ventures inability to gain complete credibility. An
entrepreneurs evaluation of his or her ventures strengths and weaknesses would
also vary if the market sought is international. A lack of understanding of the culture
and differences in consumer buying habits could be critical in any attempt to reach
the markets. What may succeed in one area need not necessarily be so in another.
Defining Marketing Strategy and Action Programs
Product or Service
Pricing
Costs
Margins
Competition
 Marketing Plan
Distribution
Promotion
Marketing Strategy: Consumer V/s B2B Business market
Budgeting the Marketing Plan
Implementation of the Marketing Plan
Monitoring the Progress of Marketing Action

CIA
Find an example of a small business that is using social media such as
Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin to promote their products or services. How
effective do you think this strategy is? Take the same product and use the
TV media to advertise the product. Compare the two modicoms and work
out which would be more effective and why?
 C K Ranganathan Chik India David and Goliath
Start up 1983 Cuddalore, Pondy Chik Shampoo
Initial investment Rs 15,000 Today (+-) Rs 423 Cr renamed as CavinKare
Challenging MNC like HUL, P&G
Father a school teacher cum farmer also an entrepreneur owning a small scale
repackage of generic drugs unit in Cuddalore, also repackaging of generic pharma
products in sachets which was adopted by CKR for packing shampoos in sachets.
He also believed that sachets would be the packaging medium of the future packaging
pharmaceuticals and later by CKRs brother for packaging Velvette brand shampoo.
Not very bright in academics as his interest was more in caring for pets like cats ,
pigeons, fish and a large verities of birds which he sold for his pocket money.
He started his enterprise in 1983 @ 24 years of age with Rs 15,000/-, renting a 150 sft of
space. This is where Chik India renamed as CavinKare in 1998 was born, with a
single shampoo packing machine.
As he did not know English, he trained himself by buying an Tamil/English dictionary and
trained himself.
Won Marketing Professional of the Year award Brand Summit 2003 given
to Leadership Excellence
CKRs success can be attributed to his thorough understanding of a neglected segment
of
 C K Ranganathan Chik India 1983 Cuddalore
the market the rural and the small town market and the exclusive focus on
development of marketing strategies and plans appropriate to rural and small town
market (rural and small town market), which were neglected. His focus was to build
brands, be hands on where marketing and distribution was concerned played around
with his core product, shampoo.
Offered to the price sensitive rural market a sachet for just 50 ps, making money on
volume.
Demo by village children focusing on feel and smell of their hair after a shampoo wash.
Sold thru village kirana store and movie tents, in villages accompanied by live demos.
Organized Chik sponsored Rajnikant movies followed by demos and a sample sachet in
rural TN & AP theatres. After every show, the sales went up times.
Differentiation was created by incorporating rose and jasmine fragrance into it.
POS offer bring 5 empty sachets and take one Chik shampoo sachet free.
Annual sales grew from 35,000 sachets to 10 million sachets, he changed the name
from Beauty Cosmetics to CavinKare, inspired by his fathers initials C&K. Cavin in
Tamil represents Beauty & Grace and Kare is a modified form of Care.
Chik shampoo in 9 years overtook his brothers brand Velvette. It became second
best after Clinic Plus of Hindustan Unilever, which initiated CK to launch associate
products
 C K Ranganathan Chik India
The company went through a major crisis in the year 1993 when the govt withdrew ED
concessions for SSIs. Some SSIs closed shop, while others adopted unethical strategies like tax
evasion.
CKs response He didn't take evasive action. Instead he came out with a 4 fold program 1) he
paid taxes 2) he raised salaries by 40% across the board 3) he recruited talents from
well known Management Schools 4) he substantially increased advertisement budgets.
He ventured into the diversification strategies and ventured Food and Home Products
(with the acquisition of Ruchi foods, Home Care products with Everglo dish wash bar
and Tex toilet cleaner and Salons a Beauty Care effort with Naturals his brothers
enterprise.
The USP of the company (single use packaging) was tried for other products as well- pickels, toilet
cleaners through a subsidiary company Packaging India P Ltd.
In 1999 it formed an International Business Div and took CK beyond the Indian boundaries to 13
countries incl Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, USA, Canada the
Gulf countries UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar Kuwait and Bahrain.
Instituted an Award Chinnikrishna Innovation Award aimed at facilitating small & medium
enterprises
CK achieved a turnover of around Rs 500 crores in 2012-13. Employee strength of 1500+, a
network of 1300 stockists catering to around 30 lakh customers nationally plus international.
Went International in 13 countries with adaptations to suit each country in terms of 4Ps.
Won many awards in domestic as well as international markets.