What Is Strategic Planning?

           The process of developing and maintaining a strategic fit between the organization's goals and capabilities and its changing marketing opportunities is called Strategic planning. Planning is basically concerned with what are we going to do and how are we going to do it? Organizations, which are not able to perform the effective planning, are actually planning for failures. To meet changing conditions in their industries, companies need to be farsighted and visionary, and must develop long-term strategies. Strategic planning involves developing a strategy to meet competition and ensure long-term survival and growth. The marketing function plays an important role in this process in that it provides information and other inputs to help in the preparation of the organization's strategic plan.

            Planning is performed to:
1. Address changing environment and consumers
2. Develop shared goals within organization
3. Address competitive threat
4. To anticipate the future
5.Determine actions that are needed to achieve objectives

Now let me explain the types of strategic Planning.

Strategic planning is mainly of three types:

1. Strategic Planning
2. Tactical Planning
3. Operational Planning

a. Strategic Planning: Major activities in strategic planning process include developing the company's goals and plans.
b. Tactical Planning: Tactical planning is concerned with translating the general goals and plans developed by strategic managers into objectives that are more specific and activities.
c. Operational Planning: Operational planning is used to supervise the operations of the organization. It is directly involved with non-management employees, implementing the specific plans developed with tactical managers.

             A process of determining objectives what you want to accomplish, deciding on strategies how to accomplish the objectives, and implementing the strategy which make the plan come to life is called strategic planning. The process occurs within a specified time frame. Marketing and advertising strategies are chosen from an array of possible alternatives. Intelligent decision making means weighing these alternatives and choosing the best approach. Often there is no completely right way, but there may be a best way to accomplish the objectives.

             Even those experienced in advertising sometimes have a hard time telling the differences between an objective and a strategy. Both are important to successful marketing and advertising plans; they are related to each other, but they are also different and serve different purposes. An objective is a goal to be accomplished the destination.

             A strategy is the mean by which the objective is accomplished the route to the destination. For example if the objectives so reinforced brand loyalty for the products, advertisers could use any number of strategies. Suppose an advertiser wants to create brand loyalty by emphasizing how the brand delivers more of a certain benefit than competing brands. The company could compare the brand to its leading competitors, through demonstration, testimonials, and economical or funny stories, or a straightforward, fact based sales approach.

We need strategic planning for the Identification of communication needs and resources are the most crucial and the most difficult element in communication achieving goals.

We need communication planning to get the target point, it is essential for us to know that:
• What is scope of communication?
• What is the real need of communication of the organization?

It is also very essential to know what is meant by planning and what the needs for communication planning are. In order to improve the structure and operational problems faced by the organization in the present era.
Following are the things which are required to a strategic planning.

1. We should have full knowledge of history for which institution we are planning.
2. We must know what the are exactly doing or offering and total structure of the organization.
3. Our objectives should be clear, that we want out of our communication strategy.
4. Knowledge about the barriers or hurdles in our communication is a must.
5. The strategy which that organization is already following should be in our knowledge.
6. We have to keep in mind all the benefits they are offering to their audiences; it will be a plus point in strategy.
7. Now we will do audience segmentation, figure out all the beneficiaries.
8. Analyse their needs, demands and concerns.
9. Assessment of communication needs.
10. We will analyse present communication activities.
11. At this stage we will critically evaluate their communication activities.
12. By keeping in view all above analyses we will purpose a communication strategy.