You are Ravi and you have planned to start manufacturing a new brand of chocolates aiming at teenagers. Your company 'Delight' has already been manufacturing and selling biscuits since 2010. The success of biscuits has encouraged you to move ahead into the chocolate industry. Keeping in mind the steps involved in preparation of the marketing plan draft a marketing plan explaining the first three steps.

Question

Accepted Answer

The first three steps of the marketing plan for 'Delight' are:

Step 1 - Business situation analysis: This answers 'Where have we been?'. For 'Delight', it involves reviewing the past performance of the existing biscuit business — the company's experience in the FMCG market, its understanding of customer needs, and the enterprise/experience it can build upon while entering the chocolate industry.

Step 2 - Identify the target market: Clearly define the specific group of potential customers. For 'Delight', the target market is teenagers, for whom the new brand of chocolates is being designed.

Step 3 - Conduct SWOT analysis: Consider the enterprise's (a) Strengths — 'Delight' is already established in the FMCG business with experience in manufacturing and selling; (b) Weaknesses — it may not have the right combination for chocolates; (c) Opportunities — a market for chocolates aimed at teenagers exists; (d) Threats — competition from existing chocolate brands in the market.