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I.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Written last, your executive summary is a summary of all of the other sections of your marketing plan. Your executive
summary will give you and other parities (employees, advisors, lenders, etc.) an overview of your plan.
Remember,
this could be the first time your audience learns about the unique value proposition of your
business. Be enthusiastic, professional, complete, yet concise.
II.
PRODUCTS/SERVICES
Clarify exactly what your business offers and your plans for the future direction of the business. Suggested
length is one or two paragraphs.
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Describe the products and/or services you offer in detail.
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If you are expanding a current business, describe any new products and services you plan to offer in
the future. Are they an extension or expansion of your current offerings, or are they completely
different? Will they change the definition of your business? Are they add-on offerings for y
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our current customers, or will you be seeking a new market to buy them?
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Explain the features of each product/service and what benefit those features will bring to your
customers. Features are characteristics of your product/service. Benefits are what will prompt the
public to buy from you. Be certain that your claims are truthful, verifiable, and meaningful. For
example, a feature of your business might be free delivery. The benefit of that feature to the
consumer will be convenience.
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Is there seasonality to your business? If so, explain and discuss how you will handle uneven
seasonal cash flow.
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Describe your future growth plans.
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Add any other information about your product or services you think is important
III.
TARGET CUSTOMERS
Describe your target market. Who is currently buying or most likely to buy your products and services in the
future? Is your market a specific segment of the population or the entire population in general? What are the
size, location, and characteristics of your potential market? If you have more than one target market, please
describe each market. For greatest success, you want to focus your marketing efforts on the individuals or
organizations that are your best customers. Suggested length is one or two paragraphs for each target
market.
For products and services aimed at consumers:
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Describe their general demographic characteristics, paint a picture of your current customers. How old
are they? What sex are they? Where do they live and work, and what is their income level? What other
characteristics do they share? What are their lifestyles, interests, beliefs? Describe your market's
behavior patterns and attitudes (psychographics). Where do they shop? What do they read? What else
do they buy? For new businesses, you can find much of this information from the U.S. Census Bureau,
your local Chamber of Commerce, and/or your local Small Business Development Center.
Your main goal in this section is to paint a picture of your ideal customer. Later in the plan, when you
discuss marketing channels, having a clear picture of who you are selling to and what makes your
products or service different than the competition, will help you write your marketing messaging.
How large is your market? Provide some numerical estimates based on research. How many
customers do you expect to serve each week or each month? How often will they buy? How much will
they spend? Is the market growing or shrinking? This information is very important as the basis of
your sales volume forecast. If there is recent U.S. Economic Census data available, this is a good
source for information on gross sales for establishments in your industry located in your area.
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Describe possible future market expansion. Generally, a business can expand its market reach either