Marketing and sales are key ingredients for success in a growing business in these initial years of the 21^st century. Essentially the topic is about understanding CUSTOMERS - what they think, how they buy, how they receive information etc. It is also about understanding the trends in your industry sector, what the competition is up to, the state of the market, the price and margin opportunities, the soft target markets - will position your company to take maximum advantage of the market.

Armed with that information, strategic marketing then looks at how to position your company to take maximum advantage of the market. This strategic view on the market may not be a business plan but it is a ‘plan to do business’.

The marketing action plan then follows – who does what and when. Marketing action plans cover every area of the business but often focus heavily on promotion and sales activities, the external elements of communication that are very necessary to keep your company name in front of existing and potential customers.

Nowadays it is possible to source just about any product or service you want from anywhere. What keeps you ahead of the competition is your brand, your brand awareness and your visibility in your target market. At the end of the day, the brand that you develop is one of the major assets of the business that you have to sell. So manage it!

Companies who have applied the principles outlined in the game on this website have seen visible results in their sales or business processes.