Entrepreneurship is very important in ones living as it contributes to economic growth of a

country and development, it also makes an individual to be self-reliance and independency, thus
promoting healthy competition among the sellers. Therefore, this essay will firstly describe
marketing research, secondly it will discuss marketing plan and lastly it will describe marketing
strategies.

Lampert (2001) defined Marketing research as the process that links the producers, customers,
and end users to the marketer through information used to identify and define marketing
opportunities and problems. This means that marketing research generate, refine and evaluate
marketing actions, monitor marketing performance. and improve understanding of marketing as
a process. Marketing research aimed at collecting specific information required to address issues
pertaining business and how to solve them. This is done by designs the method for collecting
information, manages and implements the data collection process, analyzes the results, and
communicates the findings and their implications.

According to Armstrong (1992), the goal of marketing research is to identify and assess how
changing elements of the marketing mix impacts customer behavior. It involves a systematic way
of gathering, recording, and analyze data about issues relating to marketing products and services
offered. In addition, market research is said to be the process of determining the viability of a
new service or commodities through research conducted directly with potential customers, this is
because market research gives chance to companies to discover the target market and get
opinions from different expert and other feedback from consumers about their interest in the
product or service. This is done in order to promote their businesses in terms of health
competition, when conducting marketing research, customers are allowed to freely brings out
their opinions about the products or services which a particular company provide to people.

Marketing research can be conducted at different levels, it could be in house, by the company
itself, or by a third-party company that specialized in market research. It can be done through
surveys, product testing, and focus groups. Test subjects are usually compensated with product
samples and/or paid a small stipend for their time. ‘Market research is a critical tool in helping
companies understand what consumers want, develop products that those consumers will use,
and maintain a competitive advantage over other companies in their industry’ (Brown 2009).

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Barney (2006) added that, the main purpose of marketing research is to look at the market
associated with a particular good or service to ascertain how the audience will receive it. In line
with Barney, market research can include information gathering for the purpose of market
segmentation and product differentiation, which can be used to tailor advertising efforts or
determine which features are seen as a priority to the consumer. A business must engage in a
variety of tasks to complete the market research process. It needs to gatherer of information
based on the market sector being examined. The business needs to analyze and interpret the
resulting data taken from the research, and determine the presence of any patterns or relevant
data points that it can use in the decision-making process. Furthermore, market research consists
of a combination of primary information, or what has been gathered by the company or by a
person hired by the company, and secondary information, consists of what has been gathered by
an outside source. Primary information is the data that the company has collected directly or that
has been collected by a person or business hired to conduct the research. This type of
information generally falls into two categories, exploratory and specific research, (Keller 1993).

Claverns (2000) states that, exploratory research is a less structured option and functions via
more open-ended questions, and it results in questions or problems being presented that the
company may need to address or work on, while Specific research finds answers to previously
identified issues that are often brought to attention through exploratory research. However,
secondary information is data that an outside entity has already gathered. This includes,
population information from government census data, trade association reports, or presented
research from another business operating within the same market sector. Many companies use
market research to test out new products or to get information from consumers about what kinds
of products or services they need and don't currently have. For example, if a person wants to set
up a business or maybe a company that is considering going into business might conduct market
research to test and know the viability of its product or service. If the market research confirms
consumer interest, the business can proceed confidently within the business plan. If not, the
company should use the results of the market research to make adjustments to the product to
bring it in line with customer desires and demand for that products

Market planning is the starting point of all marketing and business activities of an enterprise.
This is because of the dynamics of an environment; the role of marketing planning has increased

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a lot. Marketing planning is the process that consists of analyzing current situation and
information about marketing opportunities. This is done in order to determine marketing
objectives, designing and developing marketing strategy or courses of action for achieving these
objectives and allocating resources to the ingredients of marketing effort.

Marketing plan can be defined as the written document that describe your advertising and
marketing efforts for the coming year, it includes a statement of the marketing situation, d
discussion of target markets and company positioning and a description of the marketing mix
you intend to use ton reach your marketing goals.

Walker (2006), defined marketing plan as a document developed by company leaders and
marketing professionals. This tool offers a guide for the marketing department to implement
steps necessary to align with stated marketing objectives and strategies. Typically, companies
develop a marketing plan every few years but review it periodically for adjustments or chances
based on company strategy.

It is important for every company or business to have a marketing plan, in this plan is where the
company list all the marketing goals for the coming year. This is done in order to make
company’s goals and realistic and measurable so that you can easily evaluate your performance.
The main purpose of the marketing plan is to set the company on a specific course in marketing.
Goals of marketing generally align with broader company objectives. A new company looking to
grow, for instance, often has a marketing plan that emphasizes strategies to increase customer
base. A low penetration pricing strategy is a common technique in this case. Gaining marketing
share, increasing customer awareness and building favorable attitudes are other common
objectives. The objectives element of a marketing plan helps companies ensure all marketing
investments have a target (Kalakota 2001).

Marketing professionals often have to sell company leaders on the importance of allocating
significant resources to the marketing budget. In a thorough marketing plan, you lay out the
necessary budget and resources needed to complete the objectives stated. The plan allows you to
showcase what you intend to accomplish with the budget, making it possible for executives to
generally assess potential return on the investment of marketing dollars. Furthermore, the plan is
a general commitment from company leaders and the marketing staff to take the company in a

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certain direction. Once strategies are outlined and tasks are developed, each task is assigned to a
person or team for implementation.

Marketing strategy is one of the important aspects of business, this is because it is necessary to
achieve company goals and to organize activities in a focused and targeted manner.

Kotler (2003) defined marketing strategy as the marketing logic according to which the business
unit is marketing. In line with Kotler, in marketing strategy a company chooses a market, divide
it into segments, select the most viable ones and consolidates its forces in the service segment.
The company also creates a marketing mix, using the tools at its disposal; products, price,
distribution, sales support. This is done in order to establish the best marketing plans and carries
them out, and these activities are carried out by monitoring the environment and adapting to it.

A marketing strategy is all of a company’s marketing goals and objectives combined into a
single comprehensive plan. Business executives draw a successful marketing strategy from
market research. They also focus on the right product mix so that they can get the most profit.
Moreover, good marketing strategy helps companies identify their best customers. It also helps
them understand consumers’ needs. With a good strategy, it is possible to implement the most
effective marketing methods.

Boyd (2008) argues that, marketing strategy aimed to adjust the market segments on which the
organization plans to focus its effort. These markets segments differ in their needs and demands,
the reaction to the marketing measures and profitability. In addition, the specific contribution of
marketing in the organizations lies in the formulation of strategy to choose the right customer,
build relationships of trust with them thus creating a competitive advantage. Therefore,
marketing strategy is very important as it collectively make up an overall business.

In conclusion, the advancement of market plan, market research and market strategy, as a field of
study has benefited from a number of seminal conceptual and empirical contributions. Therefore,
it is important for every company or business to have a marketing plan, in this plan is where the
company list all the marketing goals for the coming year. This is done in order to make
company’s goals and realistic and measurable so that you can easily evaluate your performance.
The main purpose of the marketing plan is to set the company on a specific course in marketing.
Goals of marketing generally align with broader company objectives.

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 REFERENCES

Keller, K.L. (1993). Conceptualization, measuring and managing customer-based brand

equity: Journal of marketing,

Kalakota, R. (2001). E-business 2.0: roadmap for success. Boston: Addison Wesley
professional.

Walker, O.C, (2006). Marketing strategy: A decision focused approach, 5th edn, McGraw.

Kottler, P. (2003). Marketing management: analysis planning: upper saddle river.

Boyd, C (2008). Marketing strategic. Sydney: Irwin press.

Barney, G. (2006). Marketing and neglect of moral responsibilities by the American marketing
association. Harvard marketing.

Claverns, F. (2000). Marketing strategy: new direction for theory and research, journal of
marketing.

Brown, J.R. (2009). The theoretical domains of retailing research: a retrospective.

Armstrong, J.S (1992). Principles involving marketing policies: Marketing letters.

Lampert, D, F. (2001). Defining the business. Eaglewood cliffs: prentice hall.

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