The current paper proposes that the type of marketing plan called for depends on whether the company is entering a new or existing market for the company and whether it is a new or existing need or want for the customer.

1. The Influence of Company Market Experience and Customer Needs on Approaches to Market
Planning
Paul Buckley
Cardiff School of Management
pbuckley@cardiffmet.ac.uk
Key words: Market planning, Customer need, Market experience
Introduction
The classical model of market planning assumes no prior knowledge of the market and that market planning
proceeds in a logical, passive, generally linear way. The typical model (e.g Smith's,1994 SOSTAC model)
starts with situational analysis then objective setting, strategy and tactics formulation, action/implementation
and finally control/monitoring. The Processual approach (Gilligan and Wilson 2012), in contrast, is based on
the notion that a strategist needs to be involved with day-to-day activities of the business and that an
emergent strategy will coalesce from a series of small steps.
Lancaster and Withey (2007) state that [market planning] “provides a systematic structure and
framework”.Whelan and Holloway (2012) however, argue that the classical model of market planning can
lead to too much planning, potentially wasting resources or be fundamentally misleading. Similarly,
Andersen (2000) questions over reliance on strategic planning arguing that there is a need for management
autonomy and organisational learning as adaptability and flexibility are needed to deal with the fast pace of
environmental change. Piercy's (1997) argument supports this view, stating that in many cases market
planning is phenomenological, with experienced managers eshewing formal models, often relying more on
informal approaches based on past experience.
Types of Marketing Plans
Brassington and Pettitt (2006) state that market plans can be divided into strategic and operational plans,
with the former being at the organisational level and being more long term and all encompassing.
Operational plans, in contrast, are concerned with implementation and shorter timescales. This suggests that
the different plans will have different planning and information requirements. McDonald (2007) contends
however, that both strategic and operational planning should be part of the same process and ideally
completed simultaneously. This approach takes a classical model stance towards market planning.
Fisher and Pride (2006) also state that marketing plans can be split into 2 types: existing product/service
plans and new product/service plans. In the case of existing product plans, they point out that customer data
should be available and that educated guesses and assumptions can be used to fill in any gaps in the data,
with the assumptions being, “confirmed, amended or discarded as you monitor the plan”. With new product
plans it is somewhat more difficult as there is no history with the target market and the product was probably
developed with “sketchy information”. Cohen (1998) suggests in this scenario assumptions can be made,
“based on similar products or services that the company has marketed”. This approach links more with the
processual view of market planning.
Aim
The current paper proposes that the type of marketing plan called for depends on whether the company is
entering a new or existing market for the company and whether it is a new or existing need or want for the
customer. Where the customer need is new and the company is new to the market it is likely that a marketing
plan akin to the classical plan is needed, at the opposite end of the scale with an existing need within an
existing market a much simpler more informal phenomenological approach is likely to be the requirement
and a processual approach is likely to be efficacious. In the case of a new need in an existing market and
where the there is an existing need in a new market a hybrid approach is called for. In the former case, more
emphasis should be on consumer analysis and probably tends more towards the processual approach, and in

2. the latter case, most consideration needs to be given to market factors and therefore tends more towards the
classical approach.
References
Andersen, T. (2000), “Strategic Planning, Autonomous Actions and Corporate Performance”. Long Range
Planning 33(2) pp. 184-200.
Brassington, F. and Pettitt, S. (2006), “Principles of Marketing”, Harlow: Pearson. 4th
Ed.
Cohen, W.A. (1998), “ The Marketing Plan” New York: John Wiley. “2nd Ed.
Fisher, P.H. and Pride, M. M.(2006), “Blueprint for your Library Marketing Plan: A Guide to Help You
Survive and Thrive”.
Gilligan, C. and Wilson, M.S. (2012), “Strategic Marketing Planning”, CIM, Oxford: Butterworth
Heinemann. pp. 51-52.
Lancaster, G. and Withey, F. (2007), “Marketing Fundamentals”, CIM, Oxford: Butterworth Heinemann.
pp.20.
McDonald, M. (2007), “Marketing Plans: How to Prepare Them and How to Use Them”, Oxford:
Butterworth Heinemann. 6th
Ed. pp.98.
Piercy, N. (1997), Market Led Strategic Change. Oxford: Butterworth Heinemann. 2nd edition.
Smith, P.R. (1994), cited in Smith, P.R, Berry, C and Pulford, A, 1999, “Strategic Marketing
Communications London: Kogan Page.
Whelan, P. and Holloway, S S. (2012), “Traditional Marketing Planning Is Wrong for Your New Venture”.
Harvard Business Review October 25th
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