A marketing plan can be a part of an overall business plan for a company.  A marketing plan is a written document that provides direction for the marketing activities that a company needs to complete in order make money.  The whole idea behind the creation of a marketing plan is to help a company map out strategy and set goals to make the business successful.  A marketing plan helps to communicate the goals, objectives, and strategies of a company to its employees.  In order to make a marketing plan, a company must first be able to understand want their target market wants.  After a company understands what their target market wants, they must then choose what type of marketing strategy they will use.  There are 3 types of strategies a company can incorporate in their marketing plan; Affinity marketing, Alliance marketing, and ambush marketing are 3 different types of strategies a company can choose from when looking for ways to market their product.  Also when creating a marketing plan, a company must decide whether there goal is long term or short term.  Lastly there are 10 components a company must include in their marketing plan in order to make the plan successful.