Suggested Marketing Communications Plan Format (Sostac Model)
(What information goes into a marketing communications plan?) William Ang’awa 2009 (adapted from various sources).
Title Page* – (This should be professional in appearance and packaged appropriately, it should be clear what the report is about and who it is from/who wrote it. It should have your campaign name or strapline).
Executive Summary* – Presents a brief overview of the proposed plan. The marketing communications plan should open with a brief summary of the plan’s main goals and recommendations. It should wet the appetite of those who may read it! E.g senior management or colleagues who will implement your proposal. It should assist them to grasp (within one minute) the overall plan’s thrust/direction. It is similar to an abstract written for an essay or academic paper or final year project. This should not be more than one A4 page long!
Acknowledgements* – (This is a useful exercise for your final year/placement project. So why not develop this good practice now?). You can thank God, mummy, dad, ”significant others”, tutors, marketing communications company, of course the lovely library staff!. Don’t forget friends who helped you when the “chips were low” or anyone who inspired you! Please no Oscar speeches! Check with the client and organisation re: relevance.
Table of contents*, Glossary of terms, Table of Illustrations– This should follow the executive summary. It should identify where one can find the information (with page numbers and appropriate sections) contained in the plan. You should also have a table of illustrations and abbreviations. We expect you to have appendices and a bibliography.
Introduction – You should introduce your campaign and the marketing challenge and incorporate it into the situational analysis below. Past students have chosen different ways to do this. So look at past assignments and chose the most appropriate one.
Situational Analysis (Current marketing situation) – This section presents relevant
Title Page* – (This should be professional in appearance and packaged appropriately, it should be clear what the report is about and who it is from/who wrote it. It should have your campaign name or strapline).
Executive Summary* – Presents a brief overview of the proposed plan. The marketing communications plan should open with a brief summary of the plan’s main goals and recommendations. It should wet the appetite of those who may read it! E.g senior management or colleagues who will implement your proposal. It should assist them to grasp (within one minute) the overall plan’s thrust/direction. It is similar to an abstract written for an essay or academic paper or final year project. This should not be more than one A4 page long!
Acknowledgements* – (This is a useful exercise for your final year/placement project. So why not develop this good practice now?). You can thank God, mummy, dad, ”significant others”, tutors, marketing communications company, of course the lovely library staff!. Don’t forget friends who helped you when the “chips were low” or anyone who inspired you! Please no Oscar speeches! Check with the client and organisation re: relevance.
Table of contents*, Glossary of terms, Table of Illustrations– This should follow the executive summary. It should identify where one can find the information (with page numbers and appropriate sections) contained in the plan. You should also have a table of illustrations and abbreviations. We expect you to have appendices and a bibliography.
Introduction – You should introduce your campaign and the marketing challenge and incorporate it into the situational analysis below. Past students have chosen different ways to do this. So look at past assignments and chose the most appropriate one.
Situational Analysis (Current marketing situation) – This section presents relevant