The last step of the strategic marketing planning process is the formulation of a strategic marketing plan and budget for each target market, which have to be approved by the organisations board of directors. This is the stage at which the specific formulation of the marketing mix is undertaken.
However, it is worth remembering that many of the concepts, as well as many of the specific techniques, will work equally well whether they are directed at goods or services. In particular, developing a marketing strategy is much the same for goods and services, in that it involves selecting target markets and formulating a marketing mix. Theodore Levitt suggested that "instead of talking of goods and of 'services, it is better to talk of "tangibles and "intangibles". Levitt also went on to suggest that marketing a physical product is often more concerned with intangible aspects (frequently the product service elements of the total package) than with its physical sales after service is very important inservice sector properties.
Marketing tactics will be developed besides the action programmes, detailing what are to be done, when by whom at what costandover what period of time. When the objectives have been set, the marketing managers have to refine the strategic marketing plan, which will have a 5-10 year timeframe to the annual marketing plan, which has a one year timeframe, and then turn it over to the operational marketers to implement.