Marketing Planning & Management Course

Lesson 1 • Types of Marketing Plans

Surveys annual, campaign, product launch, and channel-specific plans. Students identify which plan type fits a given business context.

Lesson 2 • The Marketing Planning Process

Introduces the sequential steps from situation analysis to evaluation. Students see the full planning cycle before diving into each component.

Lesson 3 • Aligning Marketing with Business Goals

Explains how marketing objectives derive from corporate strategy. Students practice translating business goals into actionable marketing direction.

Lesson 4 • Core Marketing Concepts Reviewed

Covers the marketing mix, value proposition, and customer orientation. Provides the conceptual vocabulary used throughout the entire course.

Lesson 1 • Internal Capability Assessment

Evaluates organizational strengths and weaknesses across marketing functions. Provides the internal half of a full SWOT analysis.

Lesson 2 • Competitive Analysis Techniques

Teaches methods for profiling competitors and assessing competitive intensity. Students map the competitive landscape for their target market.

Lesson 3 • Building a SWOT Analysis

Synthesizes internal and external findings into a structured SWOT matrix. Students convert SWOT insights into strategic implications.

Lesson 4 • Analyzing the External Environment

Applies macro-environment frameworks to identify opportunities and threats. Connects external forces directly to strategic planning decisions.

Lesson 1 • Developing a Positioning Strategy

Defines positioning as the perception a brand occupies in the target customer's mind. Students craft a positioning statement grounded in competitive differentiation.

Lesson 2 • Segmentation Variables and Methods

Covers demographic, psychographic, behavioral, and geographic bases. Students apply multiple variables to create rich, actionable segments.

Lesson 3 • Evaluating and Selecting Target Segments

Provides criteria for scoring segment attractiveness and fit. Students choose primary and secondary targets using a structured evaluation matrix.

Lesson 4 • Repositioning and Brand Evolution

Addresses when and how to shift an existing brand's market position. Students assess repositioning risk and plan a credible transition.

Lesson 1 • Growth Strategy Frameworks

Introduces Ansoff's matrix and other growth models to guide strategic choice. Students match growth options to market conditions and risk tolerance.

Lesson 2 • Portfolio Analysis and Resource Allocation

Uses portfolio tools to prioritize investment across products and markets. Students allocate budgets based on strategic priority and growth potential.

Lesson 3 • Documenting the Strategic Direction

Structures objectives and strategy choices into a coherent written plan section. Students produce a strategy brief that guides downstream tactical decisions.

Lesson 4 • Writing Effective Marketing Objectives

Applies the SMART framework to craft measurable, time-bound marketing goals. Objectives set the performance standard for all subsequent planning.

Lesson 1 • Extended Mix for Services

Adds people, process, and physical evidence to the mix for service contexts. Students adapt the full 7P framework to service or hybrid offerings.

Lesson 2 • Integrated Marketing Communications

Plans a coordinated promotional mix across paid, owned, and earned media. Students build a communications strategy aligned with the positioning statement.

Lesson 3 • Product and Service Strategy

Covers product levels, lifecycle management, and portfolio decisions. Students align product strategy with positioning and customer value expectations.

Lesson 4 • Pricing Strategy and Tactics

Examines cost-based, value-based, and competitive pricing approaches. Students set prices that reflect positioning and support revenue objectives.

Lesson 1 • Contingency Planning and Budget Control

Prepares students to manage budget variances and unexpected market changes. Students build contingency reserves and define reallocation triggers.

Lesson 2 • Allocating Budget Across the Mix

Guides decisions on distributing funds across channels, segments, and activities. Students apply prioritization criteria to maximize return on marketing investment.

Lesson 3 • Budgeting Methods and Approaches

Compares percentage-of-sales, objective-and-task, and competitive parity methods. Students select and justify the most appropriate method for their context.

Lesson 4 • Marketing Budget Fundamentals

Explains budget types, cost categories, and the link between spend and outcomes. Establishes financial literacy as a core marketing management skill.

Lesson 1 • Cross-Functional Coordination

Manages collaboration between marketing, sales, product, and operations teams. Students design communication protocols that keep all functions aligned.

Lesson 2 • Building the Marketing Action Plan

Creates a detailed activity schedule with owners, deadlines, and dependencies. The action plan becomes the operational backbone of the marketing plan.

Lesson 3 • From Plan to Action

Bridges strategic planning and operational execution by defining implementation requirements. Students identify the gap between plan intent and execution reality.

Lesson 4 • Managing Change During Execution

Equips students to adapt plans when market conditions or internal priorities shift. Students apply a structured change management process to live campaigns.

Lesson 1 • Analyzing Results and Finding Insights

Applies analytical techniques to interpret performance data and identify root causes. Students move from data observation to actionable marketing insight.

Lesson 2 • Optimization and Plan Iteration

Closes the planning loop by feeding insights back into strategy and tactics. Students build a structured review cycle that improves each planning period.

Lesson 3 • Data Collection and Reporting

Covers data sources, collection methods, and reporting formats for marketing performance. Students design a reporting dashboard for a marketing plan.

Lesson 4 • Marketing Metrics Framework

Defines leading and lagging indicators across the marketing funnel. Students select metrics that directly reflect their stated marketing objectives.