STRATEGIC PLANNING AS A VITAL WEAPON FOR MARKETING CONSUMER GOODS

STRATEGIC PLANNING AS A VITAL WEAPON FOR MARKETING CONSUMER GOODS

(A Case Study of Hamdala Bread Nasarawa)

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

1.0     BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY        

Strategic planning in an organization cannot be over emphasized. It is a very important yardstick considered in moving and managing an organization. Strategic marketing planning and control leads organization to define their mission in specific term given, the directors and purposeful managers direct the details operation only after they have determined what their basic goods are and how they can be achieved.

Thus, the activities of an organization and its survival and growth will ultimately depend on its strategic planning which help to accessing to do. After all we attempt to put resource together in order to make two ends meet.

According to Hickson (1992: Page 5) strategic planning can be as an economic phenomenon relating to the efficiency and effectiveness in doing things so that greater quality and quantity of goods and service can be made.

Strategy is a method of plan chosen to bring a desired future, such as achievement of a goal or solution to a problem. Strategy is important because the resources available to achieve these goals, determining actions to achieve the goals and mobilizing resources to execute the actions.

Marketing strategy is a long term forward looking approach to planning with the fundamental goal of achieving a sustainable competitive advantage.

1. Strategic planning involves an analysis of the company’s strategic initial situation prior to the formulation, evaluation and selection of market oriented competitive position that contributes to the company’s goals and objectives.
2. Strategic marketing as a distinct field of study emerged in the 1970’s and built on strategic management that preceded it.

Marketing strategy highlights the role of marketing as a link between the organization and its consumers addresses three deceptively simple questions:

1. Where are we now?
2. Where are we going?
3. How are we going to get there?

In an attempt to answer these questions, strategic planners require sophisticate skills in both research and analysis.

1.1     STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The research work intends to examine the proper solution to the common problem on why some business organization failed to succeed or liquidate as a result of low facilities that affects the form of marketing operations.

Further to this problem is the high cost of raw material needed to procure the finished goods to run the plan is also becoming alarming, but workers are the most complex of all factor of production, time, money and various other materials resources is quite different from the management of workers.

1.2     OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The objective of this study is to examine the impact of strategic planning as a vital weapon for marketing consumer goods. The specific objective include:

1. To identify various types of marketing strategies in the Hamdala Bread industry.
2. To identify adequacy of the marketing planning in the marketing of Hamdala Bread.
3. To access marketing strategies in the Hamdala Bread
   1. RESEARCH QUESTIONS
4. Can effective implementation of marketing strategy serve as a means to achieving an organizations success?
5. Does your company apply strategic planning in its sales and distribution?
6. How does marketing strategy enhance profitability in an organization?

1.4     STATEMENT OF HYPOTHESIS

Ho: The lack of proper strategic planning may not be responsible for the enhancement of marketing of consumer goods.

Hi: That lack of proper strategic planning may be responsible for enhancement of marketing of consumer goods

1.5     SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY        

This project will be of many benefits to many organization and other parties. It will enable business organizations know the impact of planning ahead, set the necessary objectives, policies, procedures and strategies in order to grow and accomplish the desired objectives.

More so, another benefit of this research work to an organization is on the aspect that alternative course of action for effective planning would be determined and investigated and the result would be determined.

1.6     SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study would see to what extent a strategic planning can apply in Nigerian situation using Hamdala Bread Bakery Firm as a case study. This research work would seek to:

• To examine what a strategic plan is
• To assess that marketing strategy is better for the marketing of consumer product
• To find out whether the goods that have been produced are marketable.
• This work will see the common ways on what can balance to improve productivity.

1.7     LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

1. TIME: This is the greatest constraint of all human endeavor e.g. going to school in time, going to work in time etc.
2. ATTITUDE OF RESPONDENT: Some of the questionnaires distributed were returned. Some of the respondents were not willing to take part by giving relevant information because of one reason or the other.
3. FINANCE: There is financial constraint with regard to visitation to and fro in search of relevant data.

The topic strategic planning a vital weapon for marketing consumer goods is an elaborate topic with specific reference to Hamdala Bread Bakery Firm deals with the purpose at which strategic planning as a vital weapon for marketing consumer goods is an essential avenue for the growth and continued existence of the entire firm.

1.8     OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS

For clarity of purpose, it would be of good use to define or explain more vividly in this the following terms:

1. STRATEGIC: Planning according to Amana (1992 page 55) defines strategic planning as the board over all development of s firm resources to achieve organizational objective. According to Kehinde (1990, Page 15) defines strategy as an act and science of employing the means for achieving established goals.
2. STRATEGIC MARKETING PLANNING: According to Amana (1992, Page 24) defines strategic marketing planning as a process of a specifying policies within the framework of a mode with the objective of attaining goals at the lowest possible cost.
3. PLANNING: According to MalamHaliruIdris (2005 Page 32) defines planning as the most basic of managerial function, it determines the organization objectives and purpose so that everyone understand what they have to accomplish.
4. MARKETING RESEARCH: According to Kehinde (1990 Page 14) defines marketing research as the systematic impartial and complete design execution and reporting of investigation to help solve the problem of marketing mix.
5. BRANDING: According to Amana (1992 Page 34) defines branding as the term which an organization might employ to give their product a distinct marketing feature and identify which cannot be realized.
6. EVALUATION: According to Kehinde (1992 Page 24) defines evaluation as a system for measuring the output of a system to determine if it has met the desired goal. This involves a comparison of a planned result with actual result.