Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
ftBas
ketBus
ines
sMar
ket
ingPl
an
Bas
ketofGoodi
es
Thisisacompleteexampl
eofamar ket
ingpl
an.Youarewelcometouset
his
contentasaguidewhenplanni
ngyourownmar ket
ingact
ivi
ti
es.
Tocreat
eamar ket
ingpl
anofyourowntogr
owyourbusi
ness,pl
ease
consi
derourpopul
arMarket
ingPl
anProsof
twar
e.Lear
nmor eat
www.pal
oalt
o.com.
Cr
eat
eamar
ket
ingpl
ant
hatget
sres
ult
s
Bes
tsel
li
ngs
oft
war
e.Now power
edbyDuc
tTapeMar
ket
ing.
“Si
mpli
fi
estheprocessofbui
ldingsuppor
ting •F
ocusonac
tionandr
esul
ts!
document
ati
onforyourmarketi
ngagenda.”
•Pac
kedwi
thadvi
ceandexampl
es
•Eas
yfor
ecas
ts&budget
s
“Cr
eateanact
ionplanforyour •Pr
esentyourpl
anwi
ths
tyl
e
market
ingt
ogrow yourbusiness.
”
•I
nst
antdownl
oad!
Versi
on11.
0
$179.
95
Lear
nmor www.
eat pal
oal
to.
com
Aboutthismar ket
ingplan
Names,locat
ions,andnumbersi
ntheorigi
nalpl
anmayhavebeenchanged,andsubst
ant
ialpor
ti
onsoft
heor
igi
nalpl
ant
extmay
havebeenomi t
tedtopreser
veconf
ident
i
ali
tyandpr
opr
iet
aryi
nfor
mati
on.
Guidelinesonusingthisplan
Youar ewelcometousethisplanasast ar
tingpointt
ocreateyourown,butyoudonothavepermissiont
oreproduce,publ
i
sh,
dist
ri
buteorevencopythispl
anasi texi
stshere.Requestsforrepr
int
s,academicuse,andot
herdissemi
nati
onofthissampleplan
shouldbeemai l
edtot
hemar keti
ngdepar t
mentofPal oAlt
oSoftwareatmar ket
i
ng@paloal
to.
com.Forproducti
nfor
mationvi
sitour
websiteatwww.pal
oalt
o.com orcal
l1-800-229-7526.
Copyr
ight©Pal
oAl
toSof
twar
e,I
nc.(
www.
pal
oal
to.
com)
.Al
lri
ght
sreser
ved.
Confidentiality Agreement
___________________
Signature
___________________
Name (typed or printed)
___________________
Date
4.0 Financials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.1 Break-even Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.2 Sales Forecast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.3 Expense Forecast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
5.0 Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
5.1 Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
5.2 Marketing Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
5.3 Contingency Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
The Basket of Goodies
The Basket of Goodies (BOG) is a premier gift basket manufacturer and retailer. BOG is
concentrating on making gourmet gift baskets out of a wide range of high quality ingredients. In
addition to having several flagship baskets, BOG will also offer the option of a custom basket,
allowing the customer to choose the ingredients themselves.
BOG will be selling to individuals as well as corporations. Initially the bulk of BOG's business will be
generated from individuals, but as time passes, a growing percentage of sales will come from
corporations .
While there are many different competitors in the market now, they are larger in size and much
less flexible. BOG will be able to meet customer demands through superior products, customer
attention, and customer product offerings.
BOG will be raising awareness of their products through the use of a brochure and a Website. Once
a customer is interested in placing an order, they can come by the office, call in the order, or order
via our secure Website. In addition to the customer being able to pick up the basket from BOG's
office, BOG can ship it to them via UPS.
Once up and running with some momentum, BOG will be steadily producing profits. It is projected
that by December BOG will be profitable. By the end of year three, it is projected that BOG will be
generating over $5,000 in income.
$120,000
$100,000
$80,000
Individuals
$60,000
Corporations
$40,000
$20,000
$0
2002 2003 2004
Page 1
The Basket of Goodies
Basket of Goodies is entering its first year of operation. BOG recognizes the importance of crafting
and following a comprehensive marketing plan. BOG offers the market a high quality, gourmet gift
basket at a reasonable price. In addition to having four stock baskets, BOG will allow customers to
customize their own basket from a list of possible ingredients.
BOG possess good information about the market and knows a great deal about the common
characteristics of the prized customers. BOG will leverage this information to better understand
who is served, their needs, and how BOG can best communicate with them. BOG recognizes that
this is an evolving process that requires multiple intervals of attention throughout the year.
Target Markets
Individuals
Corporations
Page 2
The Basket of Goodies
The profile for BOG's customer consists of the following geographic, demographic, and behavior
factors:
Geographics
• The immediate geographic target is the city of Stevens, TX with a population of 213,000.
• A 35-mile radius will be served.
• The total targeted population is 14,556.
Demographics
Behavior Factors
Bassket of Goodies is providing its customers with very attractive gourmet food baskets. These
baskets come in several standard themes as well as the option of creating a custom basket. BOG
seeks to fulfill the following benefits that are important to customers:
• Selection- BOG offers many different stock baskets as well as the opportunity for the
customer to choose the perfect ingredients for their basket.
• Price- BOG operates on a low overhead model, allowing them to generate fair margins and
competitive prices.
• Customer Service- BOG recognizes that superior customer service is needed in order to
gain market share and be competitive.
Page 3
The Basket of Goodies
The market trend for the gift basket industry has been one of consolidations and mergers with
larger companies purchasing smaller local companies. This trend can be rationalized for several
reasons:
• Economies of scale allows larger companies to generate better margins than small, local
players.
• Brand equity/recognition is powerful within the industry as many customers choose their
basket maker from popular, well-known companies, such as Hickory Farms, based on name
alone. Therefore it makes sense for larger companies to grow in number of
franchises/outlets and geographic coverage.
Market Forecast
20,000
18,000
16,000
14,000
12,000
10,000
Individuals
Corporations
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Page 4
The Basket of Goodies
In 2000, the national gift basket industry had $806 million in sales. The market is growing at a
steady 4% per year. This growth can in part be attributed to an increase in product offerings. For
years the gift baskets from most of the larger companies were fairly utilitarian and plain; some
people got fruit baskets, others got meat, cheese, and cracker baskets. Many of the companies
have tried to generate growth by offering a wider selection of baskets.
12.00%
10.00%
8.00%
6.00%
4.00%
2.00%
0.00%
Individuals Corporations
The following SWOT analysis captures the key strengths and weaknesses within the company, and
describes the opportunities and threats that face BOG.
2.2.1 Strengths
Page 5
The Basket of Goodies
2.2.2 Weaknesses
• As a home-based start-up, if sales really spike it might be difficult to fulfill a large increase
in orders.
• A limited marketing budget to generate awareness of BOG and its service/product offerings.
• A limited number of hours a day limits time that can be spent on sales/business
development relative to order fulfillment.
2.2.3 Opportunities
2.2.4 Threats
• Competition from industry gorillas like Hickory Farms or substitute competitors like FTD.
• The industry is attractive, in part, because of its simplicity, creating an incentive for new
entrants into the market.
2.3 Competition
There are many different forms of competition in the gift basket business:
1. Similar gift basket type retail stores- There are several of these stores located in
Stevens. These competitors offer a wide range of gift baskets, however, none of them are
concentrating on the higher end, gourmet products lines.
2. Nut/fruit companies- There are several stores that concentrate on nuts and or fruit
baskets.
3. Bath product gift basket companies- There is currently one gift basket company that
concentrates on bath products. Bath products have a slightly smaller recipient market,
since typically women are most appreciative of bath products gifts, though more and more
men are aware that this is the gift to give.
4. Regional gift basket- There is one retailer that sells gift baskets composed of local
products. These types of baskets tend to appeal to people that are buying gifts for people
that are not from this area.
5. Candy gift baskets- There are a couple of candy stores that offer a candy gift basket as
one of their products . Similar to the bath products basket, candy typically appeals to
women a bit more than to men.
6. Florists- Flowers are a tried and true product that competes with gift baskets. Once again
flowers tend to appeal to women more so than men.
Page 6
The Basket of Goodies
Basket of Goodies sells gift baskets that they put together themselves. BOG's theme for the
baskets is gourmet. Their premier baskets are a smoked fish basket, a fruit basket, a pasta dinner
basket, and a picnic basket that has caviar, crackers, fruit, and smoked fish. BOG also offers a
custom basket that allows customers to pick items from a list and BOG will assemble the basket
with their custom ingredients.
For the custom baskets, BOG will provide a list of options grouped into four different categories.
The customer then chooses two items from each of the four categories and the gift basket is made
for them.
In addition to previously mentioned production baskets, BOG will typically have one or two
specials, seasonally based.
• Customer service.
• Flexibility.
• Competitive or superior product offerings.
BOG is still in the speculative stages as a start-up business. Its critical issues are:
• Continue to take a modest fiscal approach, expanding in size only when it is no longer
possible to fulfill orders at the current headcount. It is important to do this judiciously
because if the business is expanded and demand suddenly falls, BOG could be subjected to
severe financial distress.
• Generate awareness and customer loyalty for repeat business and referrals.
The marketing strategy will seek to use several techniques to increase awareness of Basket of
Goodies in the city of Stevens. The first method will be a Website. The second will be the use of
brochures. These two methods will target the individual customers. The corporate customers will
be targeted through a networking campaign, leveraging owner Susan Presento's contacts from her
previous employers.
Page 7
The Basket of Goodies
3.1 Mission
Basket of Goodies' mission is to create the finest gift baskets available. We exist to attract and
maintain customers. When we adhere to this maxim, everything else will fall in to place. Our
products and services will exceed the expectations of our customers.
BOG has two distinct groups of customers, individuals and corporate customers:
1. Individuals- The individuals are people who are looking to give a friend, relative,
colleague, etc., a gift basket as a gesture of goodwill. These customers typically do not
have a specific type of gift basket in mind when they look at BOG's product offerings, they
just want to give a gift.
2. Corporate- The corporate customer is typically buying the basket for a colleague at work
either as a sign of appreciation or for a special event or as a thank you for a customer. The
corporate market can be further broken down to banks, health care, employment gifts, real
estate, apartments, special events/promotions, corporate headquarters, hotels/vacation
resorts, and automobile dealerships.
3.5 Positioning
Basket of Goodies is positioning itself as an upscale manufacturer of gourmet gift baskets through
the introduction of several production baskets as well as custom options. BOG will achieve this
positioning by leveraging their competitive advantages.
The competitive advantage is based on two factors, low overhead which supports reasonable
prices, and an unrelenting desire for the highest quality product and service.
1. Overhead- BOG's overhead is particularly low because it is a home based business. Most
of BOG's competition is based in retail shopping areas. While they receive more walk by
traffic and therefore higher sales numbers, their rent is a very large monthly expense. BOG
avoids this large expense by having the business run out of owner Susan Presento's home.
Additionally, Susan will be using a modified version of JIT (just in time) inventory and
assembling. Susan's husband passes by 90% of Susan's vendors on his way home from
work so Susan is able to order inventory when she needs it and have her husband pick it up
on the way home from work. This significantly lowers shipping costs and carrying costs for
Page 8
The Basket of Goodies
inventory. BOG will have some of the standard baskets in stock for walk by orders, but will
try not to have large amounts in overhead.
2. Unrelenting desire for the highest quality product and service- Let's face it, this
market space is already crowded and a mediocre gift basket service is not going to fly, so
Basket of Goodies must have some sort of differentiating feature that lets it stand out.
Susan only uses the finest quality ingredients and can afford to because of her low
overhead. Additionally, she always follows the maxim that the customer must be 100%
satisfied. That means she is willing to loose money on an occassional order, if necessary, to
please a customer, confident that in the long run this is a wise business decision.
3.6 Strategies
BOG will seek to communicate the message that they offer a higher quality, gourmet alternative
for gift baskets relative to the baskets currently available. This message will be communicated
through various methods, tailored to each target market. The first method will be the use of a
Website. The Website will have product information, company information, as well as ordering
information and order taking. The site will be useful to both targeted groups, individuals as well as
corporate customers.
The second method will be brochures, primarily marketing to individuals. These brochures will be
dispersed through many different sources.
The last method of communication is networking and it is primarily for the corporate customer.
Before founding Basket of Goodies Susan worked within the Human Resource Department of
several larger corporations and has developed a large list of contacts. Susan will leverage these
personal/professional relationships to generate business for BOG. Since she has worked within the
HR departments before, she is quite familiar with the buying habits and decision making processes;
key knowledge for generating corporate sales.
BOG's marketing mix consists of the following approaches to pricing, distribution, advertising and
promotion, and customer service.
• Pricing- BOG will be charging a per basket fee for the stock production baskets. Regarding
the custom baskets, a price can be quoted once the customer decides on the ingredients
that they want.
• Distribution- While the orders for the baskets can be placed on our secure Website, by
phone, or at the office, the distribution of the product will occur from the office and can be
shipped to any continental U.S. address.
• Advertising and Promotion- A Website, brochures, and networking will be used to raise
awareness and generate sales.
• Customer Service- Following benchmark companies such as L.L. Bean, Eddie Bauer, and
Siemens, customer service will be a priority. Susan truly believes that reputation is
everything.
Page 9
The Basket of Goodies
The informal market research began five years ago when Susan was purchasing a gift basket for a
friend. She did not have the time to make her own basket so she called a few different places to
get quotes. Over the next few years she purchased several more baskets from established
companies while keeping the idea in the back of her head that she might start her own basket
company. With this idea she analyzed the different vendor's offerings.
While working on the initial business plan for BOG, Susan held two focus groups, each with seven
to nine people, to determine customer preferences in regards to gift baskets. The focus groups
explored the different preferences that the people held in regards to gifts and gift baskets.
Although Susan had a list of questions already drawn up that she asked both groups, she also had
time set aside where there could be a free flow of discussion. The focus groups proved to be a very
worthwhile exercise giving Susan valuable insight into the participant's minds as well as confirming
a number of assumptions that Susan held. Overall, this market research confirmed and
strengthened the BOG business and marketing plan.
Page 10
The Basket of Goodies
4.0 Financials
This section will offer a financial overview of Basket of Goodies as it relates to the marketing
activities. Break-even analysis, sales forecasts, and expense forecasts will all be addressed.
The Break-even Analysis indicates that $5,600 will be needed in monthly revenue to reach the
important break-even point.
Break-even Analysis
$4,000
$3,000
$2,000
$1,000
$0
($1,000)
($2,000)
($3,000)
($4,000)
$0 $1,890 $3,780 $5,670 $7,560 $9,450
Break-even Analysis:
Monthly Units Break-even 160
Monthly Sales Break-even $5,600
Assumptions:
Average Per-Unit Revenue $35.00
Average Per-Unit Variable Cost $10.00
Estimated Monthly Fixed Cost $4,000
Page 11
The Basket of Goodies
The first month will be spent setting up the business. It is unlikely that there will be much sales
activity. In addition to dealing with some legal and accounting issues, equipment will need to be
purchased, an office created, and an assembly room/inventory room set up in the basement.
Susan will also be developing a system for assembly (work flow processes) within the first month.
Susan will also be working on having the Website designed and set up. This will require a bit of
time spent with her Web designer to perfect the look and feel of the site as well as to set up BOG
as an online e-commerce merchant. Susan plans to use 1st-At-The-Top.com Internet and E-
commerce Consulting, www.1st-At-The-Top.com, to design her secure Website, and assure strong
search engine placement on the Internet.
Month two - three will begin to see some sales activity. BOG recognizes that it will take a bit of
time to really ramp up the sales. Susan will be doing a lot of networking in an attempt to spread
awareness about BOG's products and services.
Because Susan's husband will be helping out with picking up some of the materials, Susan will not
need an employee until near the end of year one.
$12,000
$10,000
$8,000
$6,000 Individuals
Corporations
$4,000
$2,000
$0
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Sales Forecast
Sales 2002 2003 2004
Individuals $33,640 $64,575 $78,452
Corporations $9,905 $28,744 $31,458
Total Sales $43,545 $93,319 $109,910
Page 12
The Basket of Goodies
The marketing expenses will be budgeted to allow BOG to spend an increased amount during the
first quarter in order to raise visibility for this start-up company. The expenses will then decrease
and level off for the second and third quarter and will increase significantly during the last quarter
in anticipation for strong holiday sales.
$1,400
$1,200
$1,000
$400
Networking
$200
$0
Page 13
The Basket of Goodies
5.0 Controls
The purpose of the marketing plan is to provide the organization with a long-term guide for
growing the business. The plan will also serve as a functional short-term document that
enumerates the activities that must take place. The following areas will be monitored to gauge
effectiveness:
5.1 Implementation
The following milestones identify the key marketing programs. It is important to accomplish each
one on time and on budget.
Milestones
Website development
Website maintenance
Brochure production
Networking activities
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Milestones Plan
Milestone Start Date End Date Budget Manager Department
Marketing plan completion 1/1/02 2/1/02 $0 Susan
Website development 2/1/02 4/30/02 $600 Susan
Website maintenance 2/1/02 12/31/02 $660 Susan
Brochure production 2/1/02 2/15/02 $500 Susan
Brochure dissemination/ printing 2/15/02 12/31/02 $200 Susan
Networking activities 1/1/02 12/31/02 $1,800 Susan
Totals $3,760
Page 14
The Basket of Goodies
Susan will be responsible for all of the marketing activities. She has purchased PageMaker to
generate brochures and will outsource the Web development to 1st-At-The-Top.com Internet and E-
commerce Consulting, www.1st-At-The-Top.com.
• Deliberate actions by a large competitor with the express goal of driving Susan out of
business.
• Problems with vendors that create fulfillment issues.
• Problems generating visibility.
• Determining that there is not sufficient business to support BOG on an ongoing basis.
• Some sort of product liability or negligence action that necessitates closure of the
operation.
Page 15
Appendix: The Basket of Goodies
Table 4.2 Sales Forecast
Direct Cost of Sales Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Individuals $0 $0 $423 $630 $676 $970 $1,106 $1,182 $1,242 $1,278 $1,365 $2,565
Corporations $0 $0 $26 $64 $143 $192 $253 $302 $339 $345 $559 $1,145
Subtotal Cost of Sales $0 $0 $449 $694 $819 $1,162 $1,360 $1,483 $1,582 $1,622 $1,924 $3,711
Page 1
Appendix: The Basket of Goodies
Table 4.3 Marketing Expense Budget
Marketing Expense Budget Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Website development/ maintenance $600 $60 $60 $60 $60 $60 $60 $60 $120 $250 $60 $60
Brochures $500 $0 $0 $0 $100 $0 $0 $0 $100 $120 $130 $140
Networking $150 $150 $150 $150 $150 $150 $150 $150 $150 $160 $170 $160
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Total Sales and Marketing Expenses $1,250 $210 $210 $210 $310 $210 $210 $210 $370 $530 $360 $360
Percent of Sales 0.00% 0.00% 15.91% 10.29% 12.87% 6.14% 5.25% 4.81% 7.95% 11.11% 6.36% 3.30%
Contribution Margin ($1,250) ($210) $661 $1,137 $1,279 $2,046 $2,429 $2,669 $2,700 $2,620 $3,375 $6,843
Contribution Margin / Sales 0.00% 0.00% 50.09% 55.71% 53.13% 59.86% 60.75% 61.19% 58.05% 54.89% 59.64% 62.70%
Page 2