10 Marketing Plan Examples + Free Templates (2025)

You’ve just built the next big thing. It’s calledWhat Was I Saying: a smartphone app for people who lose their train of thought mid-sentence. Genius.

To prepare for launch, you tell your team: “Get influencers. Buy some ads. Ship it to the App Store.” But launch day hits—the influencers ghosted, the ads misfired, the app’s still pending, and no one knows who dropped the ball.

And there’s no marketing plan in sight.

That’s where this guide comes in.

Ahead, you’ll find 10 real-world marketing plan examples—plus free marketing plan templates, to help you map out marketing campaigns that actually land.

What is a marketing plan?

A marketing plan is a blueprint for how you’ll promote your business, product, or campaign. The plan lays out your goals, who you’re targeting, what channels you’ll use, and how you’ll measure success—all tied to a timeline and budget.

One of the clearest ways to structure your marketing plan is the six-part SOSTAC framework developed by marketing expert Paul Smith.

Here’s how the SOSTAC framework breaks down:

• Situation: Where are we now? Your current position in the market. Think: audience insights, competitive analysis, what’s working (and what’s not).
• Objectives: What do we want to achieve? Your goals: specific, measurable, and tied to real business outcomes. Traffic, sales, email signups, retention? Pick your targets.
• Strategy: How are we going to get there? The high-level approach: what audiences you’re prioritizing, what messages you’ll lead with, and where you’ll show up.
• Tactics: What are the exact tools and channels? The nuts and bolts: SEO, paid ads, influencer campaigns, email flows, content. 
• Action: Who’s doing what, when, and how? Assign ownership, map your timeline, and make sure each task has a clear next step.
• Control: How will we measure success? Define your KPIs, set up tracking, and build in checkpoints so you can adjust as you go.

An effective marketing plan connects goals to action, but it also connects the past to the present. Year-over-year data helps brands like Magnolia Bakery make smarter decisions. Its senior marketing manager, Adam Davis, says that Magnolia’s Shopify platform has been live for more than two years now, and the most valuable data sets for it have been the year-over-year learnings. 

Adam explains: “So many things have changed in the last two years, with COVID and inflation. … My best advice would be to look at the analytics tab in Shopify at a very high level. Before you drill into the details of, OK, let’s look at customer types, etc., look at marketing channels.”

Marketing strategy vs. marketing plan 

While both marketing strategies and marketing plans are necessary to meet key performance indicators (KPIs), the two aren’t the same. 

• A marketing strategy involves the overall marketing efforts you take to position your business, wherein the marketing goals you set ladder up to company-wide initiatives.
• A marketing plan on the other hand details the specific steps you’ll take to achieve your business marketing objectives within a specific time frame.

For example, to increase traffic to your ecommerce site, your digital marketing strategy might be to run ads on social media platforms where your content has performed well organically. Your marketing plan would include the steps needed to bring that social media campaign to life—including a paid marketing plan for when to run ads and for how long.

Types of marketing plans

Marketing plans are typically broken down by focus (like a product launch), timeline (annual vs. campaign-specific), or channel/strategy (like content or digital marketing).

Here are four of the most common marketing plan formats:

Annual marketing plans

A year-long roadmap that outlines high-level business goals, major campaigns, key channels, and budget allocations.

Example: A global skin care brand planning new market entries, influencer partnerships, and brand activations across four quarters—all mapped to revenue targets and seasonal trends.

Best for: Established brands managing multiple teams or markets.

Digital marketing plans

Digital marketing plans focus entirely on online channels: SEO, email, paid ads, social media, influencer marketing, and beyond. They’re typically refreshed monthly or quarterly.

Example: An apparel brand sets a Q3 goal to increase conversion rates. Their digital marketing plan includes CRO-focused landing pages, retargeting ads on Instagram, and weekly A/B testing for email flows.

Best for: Ecommerce and DTC brands with digital-first growth strategies.

Content marketing plans

A content marketing plan is a detailed plan for creating and distributing valuable, audience-focused content like blogs, videos, guides, user-generated content (UGC), and more.

Example: A home goods store builds a content hub with style guides, cleaning tutorials, and holiday gift ideas. The goal is to drive SEO traffic, build email subscribers, and nurture long-term brand loyalty.

Best for: Brands investing in organic growth, trust-building, and long-term engagement.

💡Pro tip: Use search intent to shape your content calendar. What are your customers Googling before they buy?

Product launch marketing plans

A tightly scoped plan that drives awareness, interest, and sales for a new product or feature—before, during, and after launch.

Example: A fitness brand teams up with a wellness influencer to launch a new line of supplements. Its launch plan includes early-access signups, a countdown campaign on social, and exclusive bundles for launch week.

Best for: Limited-edition drops, feature releases, or go-to-market (GTM) campaigns.

10 successful marketing plan examples

Every great marketing plan starts with a challenge. These successful marketing plan examples below show how real brands solved real problems with marketing tactics that actually moved the needle.

For each marketing plan example, we’ll break down:

• The problem they were trying to solve
• The marketing moves they made
• The takeaways you can apply to your own marketing plan

1. How Great Jones revived SMS revenue by pairing it with email 

The challenge: SMS was flatlining.

Shopify merchant Great Jones, known for its colorful enamel cookware, had already done what many DTC brands hadn’t or couldn’t—built out a solid SMS marketing channel early on. It was growing, it was driving revenue … until it wasn’t. 

The solution: Treat SMS and email like a team.

The brand’s email marketing agency, 624, already understood how Great Jones’ customers moved through the marketing funnel. And more importantly, where they dropped off.

Instead of running email and SMS as separate plays, they rebuilt the plan from the ground up to work cross-channel. 

Great Jones CEO Sierra Tishgart explains that a detailed marketing plan helps the team focus its creative efforts: “It’s really helpful to have the structure of goals while also recognizing that we’re a young creative brand.”

The results:

• +97% SMS campaign click-through rate
• +70% SMS flow revenue
• +40% SMS campaign revenue
• −7% campaign unsub rate
• −25% flow unsub rate

💡Takeaway: Don’t silo your channels. Use email for education and nurturing, SMS for time-sensitive offers and reminders. When the message feelsright, people click.

2. How Sabai used customer insights to build a mission-first marketing plan

The challenge: Competing with “fast furniture” as a new brand.

Fresh out of law school and frustrated by the lack of affordable, sustainable furniture, Phantila Phataraprasit didn’t wait for a solution. She built one. 

But without industry connections or a big marketing budget, Sabai needed to find a way to earn its audience’s trust and attention in a saturated category.

The only way in was through deep customer understanding.

The solution: Research-first brand positioning and product strategy.

Instead of guessing what mattered to buyers, Shopify merchant Sabai built its marketing plan around first-party insights. The team ran customer interviews, tested sustainability messaging with fake ads, and used email, web, and social data to validate assumptions.

That same feedback loop inspired the launch of Repair Don’t Replace: a program designed to keep Sabai furniture out of landfills while reinforcing the brand’s long-term mission. “It’s more economical for the customer, it’s producing less waste, and it’s another revenue driver for us as well,” Phantila shared on an episode of Shopify Masters. 

The results:

• The Repair Don’t Replace campaign became a loyalty driver, deepening engagement with sustainability-minded customers. 
• In 2025, the Sabai Elevate Sofa was named Best Sustainable Couch on Forbes’ Vetted list.

“From the packaging to the eco-friendly fabrics to the brand’s Revive program, the Elevate is a couch you can feel good about purchasing,” says a certified Forbes product reviewer. 

💡Takeaway: Customer insights should drive what you build. Instead of using research to optimize messaging around existing products, Sabai let customer feedback shape their actual business strategy—creating the Repair Don’t Replace program that solved real customer problems while differentiating their brand.

3. How ALOHA used research to stand out in the wellness snack aisle

The challenge: Standing out in a saturated consumer packaged goods (CPG) market.

Shopify merchant ALOHA is competing in a category filled with low-cost alternatives, mass-market health claims, and shifting trends in nutrition and values. The challenge then is to stay true to their mission and cut through the wellness noise.

The solution: Deep market research to shape differentiation strategy.

“In a rapidly changing category, research allows us to keep an ear to the ground, tracking shopping, eating, and media consumption habits,” says Julia Shapiro, VP of brand and content. 

ALOHA invested in a full suite of primary research—not just to learn more about their existing customers, but to understand the people who weren’t buying yet.

They conducted:

• Customer surveys and focus groups to discover consumer preferences and brand perception.
• Category-wide surveys to benchmark against competitors.
• A full SWOT analysis to explore how shoppers were making decisions and where ALOHA fit in the mix.

“Our SWOT helped us to better understand the options shoppers are faced with and why they might choose one brand over another, including ours,” Julia says.

The results: 

• The launch of ALOHA’s Paʻakai bar was a direct result of this marketing approach. Made with macadamia nuts and Hawaiian sea salt sourced from local farms, the product stood out for its purpose. Ten percent of proceeds were donated to education programs in Hawaiʻi.
• The campaign directly contributed to ALOHA’s ongoing give-back program with Kupu. As of 2025, it’s raised more than $62,000 (and counting) for Kupu, supporting youth-led environmental programs across Hawaiʻi.

💡Takeaway: Use research to find white space in saturated markets. ALOHA studied non-buyers and the entire category to discover the gap that led to their Hawaiian-sourced Paʻakai bar.

4. How the University of Illinois used segmented storytelling to improve student conversions

The challenge: A shrinking in-state applicant pool and rising national competition.

In 2021, Illinois high school graduates, especially from underrepresented groups, were declining in number. At the same time, more out-of-state and private universities were aggressively targeting Illinois students, especially in Chicagoland. 

The marketing team at the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign (UIUC) needed to strengthen in-state appeal and boost out-of-state visibility, all while navigating unpredictable application cycles.

The solution: A multichannel plan built on segmentation, behavior, and funnel-stage messaging.

Instead of sending generic college brochures, UIUC built a layered strategy based on where students were in the admissions funnel—prospect, inquiry, applicant, admit, or enrollee—and used that to shape content, tone, and timing across every channel.

Its key marketing initiatives in the marketing plan include:

• Segmented email flows for underrepresented, out-of-state, transfer, and high-achiever audiences
• Direct mail campaigns with keepsake materials (e.g., admit letters, stickers) to build affinity
• Search-targeted blogs and SEO content to engage prospects before they knew they were interested
• Digital ads (Facebook, Instagram, Google) with A/B testing and tracking pixels to improve targeting
• Student-driven YouTube content, including Day in the Life and Touring Time series
• Event-based lead acquisition through college fairs, high school visits, and virtual programming
• Pop-up form research and surveys to understand stealth applicants and content preferences

The results:

The 2021–2022 admissions cycle marked a turning point for UIUC:

• More than 63,000 applications—a 33% increase over the previous year.
• 45% acceptance rate, down from roughly 60% the year before, making UIUC significantly more selective.

“We came in over our original target, and more students accepted their offer of admission and enrolled than what we anticipated,” shared Andy Borst, director of undergraduate admissions.

💡Takeaway: Map your marketing strategy to your customer’s decision journey. Instead of generic outreach, the University of Illinois created different content and messaging for each stage of the admissions sales funnel, from prospect to enrollee, allowing them to deliver the right message at the right time.

5. Safe Haven: How a nonprofit used integrated marketing to build awareness and drive donations

The challenge: In 2022, Safe Haven Family Shelter needed to raise awareness for its mission—helping families experiencing homelessness—while also driving year-end donations, increasing volunteer engagement, and promoting multiple fundraising events throughout the year.

The solution: Safe Haven’s team created a structured, year-round marketing plan built around four pillars:

• Industry authority: Positioning themselves as a thought leader through blog content, podcast appearances, and staff-authored articles.
• Brand awareness: Launching a brand refresh, a new website, and a consistent omnichannel identity.
• Loyalty and engagement: Creating segmented email calendars (via MyEmma), print newsletters, and donor spotlights to deepen relationships with their community.
• Event marketing: Supporting key events like Dancing for Safe Haven and Hike for Safe Haven with tool kits, billboard ads, and coordinated social campaigns.

The results:

• According to Safe Haven’s 2022 annual report, Dancing for Safe Haven raised $667,000 in 2022—nearly double its $375,000 budget goal.
• Hike for Safe Haven brought in $165,000 against a $150,000 target, also exceeding its goal.

💡Takeaway: Build your nonprofit marketing around pillars. Safe Haven created a year-round strategy with four clear focus areas: authority, awareness, engagement, and events, allowing them to coordinate efforts across marketing campaigns while maintaining consistent messaging.

6. How Aston Martin Aramco F1 is using beauty partnerships to drive female fan engagement

The challenge: Formula 1’s audience has historically skewed male. But that’s changing. Women now make up over 41% of the fan base.

The Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team saw an opportunity to build deeper emotional connections with this growing audience segment. But how do you translate high-octane motorsports into lifestyle relevance without diluting the brand’s elite positioning?

The solution: A lifestyle-forward marketing plan targeting female fans through beauty and wellness experiences.

As of July 2025, Aston Martin has partnered with:

• British luxury skin care brand Elemis, which became the first-ever “Official Skincare Partner” of the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team in a multi-year deal 
• Matcha Union, for a fan-focused pop-up in Covent Garden, offering free matcha drinks and exclusive giveaways
• Glaize, to create limited-edition, Aston Martin green nail wraps—an exact match to the AMR25 F1 car. With more than 30 billion views on #nailtok, the campaign has tapped into a booming digital trend.

Rob Bloom, CMO, called this marketing plan a “full-funnel” strategy tied to brand reach, social engagement, CRM sign-ups, and merchandise/event conversions.

The results (so far):

• More than 250 million impressions from the “FanMade” out-of-home activation, generated through fan-created TikTok content and outdoor advertising.
• 80% of the F1 team’s revenue [gated] now comes from commercial partnerships, with growth directly tied to new lifestyle/beauty activations like spa experiences and nail art.

💡Takeaway: Expand your brand into adjacent lifestyle categories that your target market already loves. Aston Martin F1 created authentic partnerships around skin care, matcha, and nail art that connected motorsports to existing female interests.

7. How Stanley is evolving from viral tumbler to global lifestyle brand

The challenge: A viral product moment isn’t enough for long-term growth.

Stanley’s 40 ounce Quencher tumbler exploded in popularity and even landed on Saturday Night Live. Revenue surged from $73 million in 2019 to $750 million in 2023. But as sales plateaued and “Stanley cups” began trending down in youth fashion surveys, the question became: What’s the next play?

The solution: Launch a “fourth era” to become a true lifestyle brand.

Ridley’s marketing playbook repositions Stanley beyond hydration, targeting global markets and lifestyle use cases with:

• Product expansion: Launching new offerings like protein shaker cups, coffee and yerba mate bottles, “pre-party” flasks, and sleek men’s waterware.
• Geographic scaling: Hiring 800 employees, with 42% of new hires based outside North America—with roles in Europe, South America, and Asia.
• Celebrity partnerships: Collaborations with Post Malone, Nelly Korda, and plans for Messi, all designed to inject pop culture into the brand image.
• Purpose-built targeting: Moving from a female Gen Z base to male professionals and global audiences, supported by sleek new product aesthetics and cultural resonance

The results (so far):

• With celebrity tie-ins and global campaign spikes, sponsorship income has expanded dramatically—12 times since 2021, with 20% to 25% annual growth projected.

💡Takeaway: Use viral success as a foundation, not a ceiling. Stanley is leveraging its tumbler moment to build a global lifestyle brand through strategic product expansion, geographic scaling, and celebrity partnerships.

8. How Notion’s Faces campaign took over LinkedIn

The challenge: Notion has always had a distinct brand identity, right down to the illustrated portraits of its employees. But these fun “Notion Faces” were never public-facing—until January 2025.

Notion teamed up with Creator Match to turn a little-known internal tradition into a full-blown user-generated content (UGC) campaign. According to AJ Eckstein, CEO of Creator Match, this was “a full-scale takeover.”

The solution: A creator-led launch in five acts.

With just three weeks of prep (during the holidays, no less), Notion’s two-person influencer team partnered with more than 50 LinkedIn creators to orchestrate a multi-stage rollout:

1. Headshot swap: Creators replaced their profile pics with mysterious “LOADING …” avatars to spark curiosity.
2. The teaser: Scrappy LinkedIn posts with blurred or “screenshot-style” visuals built anticipation, with some racking up more than 40,000 views.
3. Launch day: Dozens of creators revealed their custom Notion Faces with posts themed around “New Year, New You.” The campaign mixed story-driven, funny, remote-work-themed, and educational content.
4. Post-launch UGC explosion: More than 900 organic posts from fans followed in the days after launch, with people sharing their own Notion Faces.
5. Delight tactic: Notion sent personalized gift boxes including Notion-themed cookies and handwritten notes to creators.

“We created this funnel effect where you couldn’t log on without seeing a Notion Face. It hit that FOMO effect perfectly, and people immediately wanted to know, ‘What is this, and how do I get involved?’” explains Danielle Ito, influencer marketing lead at Notion.

The results:

• More than 900 UGC posts.
• More than 40,000 views on teaser content.
• Executed more than 50 international partnerships in Japan and Korea.
• “Vibe Score: Immaculate,” according to sentiment tracking tool Siftsy.

💡Takeaway: Turn internal culture into external campaigns by partnering with creators who can authentically amplify your brand. Notion transformed their employee-only illustrated portraits into a coordinated LinkedIn takeover, including celebrity participants like Snoop Dogg, demonstrating how authentic brand assets can drive massive engagement through community voices.

9. How Calm used silence to win the 2024 election night

The challenge: 73% of US adults reported feeling anxious about the 2024 US presidential election, with election night being particularly stressful. 

Election night in the US is one of the most emotionally charged, noise-saturated media moments of the year. While news outlets competed for attention with dramatic headlines and nonstop coverage, Calm, the meditation and sleep app, saw an opportunity to stand out by doing the opposite.

The solution: Create a counter-programming moment that reinforces Calm’s core brand promise: to be a sanctuary in stressful times. 

The team bought a 30-second primetime national TV ad block on CNN, ABC, and Comedy Central to give viewers 30 seconds of silence.

Not to sell features, but to offer relief. “We wanted to meet people where they were with a real-time moment of calm, delivered through an unexpected 15- to 30-second silent ad break between the updates and alerts,” said a Calm spokesperson. 

They also hosted a San Diego Zoo livestream on Instagram and offered free content including election-themed sleep stories.

The results:

• A massive viral social media response included celebrities like Jake Paul calling it “hilarious” and fans declaring Calm “the winner of the US election.”
• Twitter mentions spiked by 248% during election coverage.
• The eight-hour version of the silent spot racked up 58 million views.

💡Takeaway: Use cultural moments to demonstrate your brand promise in action rather than just talking about it. Calm literally gave viewers a moment of calm, turning their core value proposition into the actual experience and generating massive viral attention by embodying what they stand for.

10. How Visit Austin used market research to reignite tourism post-pandemic

The challenge: In the wake of pandemic-era travel bans, Austin faced a steep drop in tourism revenue.

Visit Austin, the city’s nonprofit tourism board, needed to restore traveler confidence and reignite interest in the city as a destination—despite ongoing public health uncertainty and reduced international footfall.

The solution: Visit Austin marketing strategy was anchored in detailed research and recovery-focused execution. They outlined a five-priority action plan:

1. Data-informed messaging based on audience sentiment and pandemic-related travel behavior.
2. Targeted media campaigns in drive and fly markets, with heavy rotation across digital, TV, and print.
3. Event recovery marketing supporting the return of SXSW, conventions, and sporting events.
4. Equity and inclusion strategy to attract diverse visitors and highlight BIPOC-owned businesses.
5. Hotel and venue support via tools like the Austin Meeting Planner Guide and client incentives.

The plan also included a new budget structure backed by the Tourism Public Improvement District (TPID), allowing for long-term sustainability and faster reinvestment into high-performing initiatives.

The results: 

• Austin welcomed 30.1 million domestic visitors, resulting in a 9.3% increase in visitor volume year-over-year.
• $11.1 billion economic impact generated from visitor spending.
• $1.1 billion in taxes generated, saving $1,536 per household.

💡Takeaway: Use research to rebuild trust and demand after major disruptions. Visit Austin studied pandemic-era travel behavior and sentiment to create data-informed messaging, targeted recovery campaigns for events, and equity-focused initiatives.

Now let’s help you create a marketing plan of your own with proven templates.

Marketing plan templates

These free marketing plan templates take care of the structure so your marketing team can focus on the strategy.

Each one’s built for a different type of business or workflow. Pick the format that fits your team, your timeline, and how you like to work.

1. Shopify’s free marketing plan template

Best for: Ecommerce merchants and direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands planning campaigns tied to product launches, sales cycles, or seasonal moments.

What’s inside: This editable Word/Google Doc template includes:

• Executive summary + company goals
• Team roles and responsibilities (with fields for names, titles, and ownership)
• Quarterly planning by channel with budget + SMART goals
• Target audience breakdown (age, income, objections, etc.)
• Competitive research grid comparing USPs, pricing, messaging, and more
• SWOT analysis
• Channel-by-channel content planning (e.g. X, TikTok, Email)
• Quarterly measurement tracker to log results across SEO, paid ads, etc.
• Retrospective section to note what went well and what didn’t—and how to adjust next time

Built for Shopify sellers by Shopify—lightweight, flexible, and perfect for monthly or quarterly planning.

👉Get Shopify’s free marketing plan template here.

2. The US Small Business Administration’s (SBA) marketing plan example

Best for: Brick-and-mortar businesses, service providers, or local shops that need to target specific geographic markets.

What’s inside: This filled-out PDF example includes:

• A fully filled-in marketing plan example for a fictional auto repair shop (J&K Auto Repair)
• Clear sections covering target market, SWOT analysis, competitive research, budget breakdown, and ROI tracking
• Budget examples down to the dollar (e.g., $500 for a billboard, $200 for local newspaper ads)

While it’s not directly editable, the template is pretty easy to reference and great for seeing an example of how a complete small business marketing plan comes together.

👉Get SBA’s free marketing plan template here.

3. Smartsheet’s executive marketing plan template

Best for: Startups or early-stage companies pitching to stakeholders, VCs, or internal execs.

What’s inside:

• 21-page editable plan in PDF format
• Fields for mission/vision, target audience, situational analysis, pricing strategy, and KPI benchmarks
• Designed to showcase long-term thinking and strategic clarity

👉Get Smartsheet’s free marketing plan template here.

Bonus: If you’re managing a team and want your plan to live where the work happens, ClickUp’s free marketing plan template is also worth checking out. You can’t download it, but it’s a solid option if you already use (or want to use) ClickUp to run your campaigns.