Our CIM Diploma students at London Marketing Set are currently studying Strategy and Planning, developing their ability to turn marketing insight into clear, justified decisions.
Writing a strategic marketing plan brings this learning together. It challenges you to consider where an organisation is now, what it wants to achieve and how marketing can help it get there.
A strong plan needs a clear argument running through it, supported by evidence and realistic recommendations. Here are three tips to help you develop yours.
1. Build a clear thread from analysis to action
Your marketing audit should provide the foundation for your plan. The key is to explain what your findings mean for the organisation and how they influence your recommendations.
For example, identifying a growing customer segment is a useful starting point. You then need to consider whether that segment is attractive, whether the organisation can serve it effectively and how targeting it would support business objectives.
Your reader should be able to follow a clear connection between your analysis, objectives, strategy and activities.
Use models and frameworks selectively. A TOWS, SWOT or PESTLE analysis earns its place when its findings help you identify priorities and make decisions.
Ask yourself: “Can I trace each major recommendation back to evidence from my analysis?”
2. Justify your strategic choices
Strategic planning involves making choices. You need to explain why your recommended approach is appropriate for the organisation and why you have selected it over other credible options.
Consider your target customers, competitive position, available resources and likely commercial benefits. Be realistic about risks and the organisation’s ability to deliver.
For example, entering a new market might offer growth potential, but does the organisation have the budget, capabilities and capacity to succeed? Could increasing business from existing customers offer a more achievable return?
CIM’s Strategy and Planning specification emphasises evaluating strategic options and justifying the selected approach, including its suitability, feasibility and acceptability.
Apply theory to the organisation’s circumstances and use it to support your reasoning.
Ask yourself: “Why is this the most appropriate strategic choice for this organisation?”
3. Make your plan practical and measurable
A convincing strategy needs a clear route to implementation.
Set SMART objectives and explain how they will be achieved through appropriate marketing activities, budgets, responsibilities and timescales. Check that your proposed activities are achievable with the resources available.
Choose KPIs that relate directly to your objectives. If your objective concerns customer retention, for example, measures such as repeat purchase rate will be more useful than social media follower numbers.
Explain when results will be reviewed and how you would respond if performance falls behind expectations. Implementing plans and measuring, evaluating and improving performance are central to the Diploma’s strategic focus.
Ask yourself: “Could someone use this plan to guide delivery and assess progress?”
4. Give yourself time to review
As you develop your plan, step back and read it as a whole. Do the objectives address the issues identified in your audit? Does your strategy support those objectives? Do your activities and measures follow logically?
Make the most of class discussions, complete the practice activities and act on your tutor’s feedback. These are valuable opportunities to test your thinking and strengthen your reasoning before submission.
Interested in developing your strategic marketing skills?
Strategy and Planning is a mandatory module within the CIM Level 6 Diploma in Professional & Digital Marketing, which develops strategic thinking, commercial awareness and the ability to connect marketing decisions with organisational goals.
Our next Diploma intake starts in February 2027. To find out more, join us for one of our open evenings.
