ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the three principal steps of the planning process. Three principal factors are: the nature and demands of the environment, the objectives and expectations of the various internal and external stakeholders and the organization's strengths and weaknesses, its overall levels of capability and any areas of distinctive competence. Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats analysis has proved to be one of the most commonly used - and abused - managerial and planning tools. In the case of strengths, for example, there has to be a matching opportunity; without this, the strength is of little real immediate value. Equally, in the case of weaknesses, think about how each weakness can be overcome or its significance reduced. The setting of clear and meaningful objectives is therefore a key step in the marketing planning process, everything that follows will lack focus and cohesion. The purpose of setting objectives is therefore to provide a sense of direction.
