Introduction

The Importance of Marketing

As relationship building becomes a key to success in business, marketing is becoming more and more important in today's competitive business environment. As a result, businesses and organizations like the Boy Scouts of America are incorporating this important element into their strategic planning process. In 2001, the BSA debuted its 2002-2005 National Strategic Plan, which includes marketing and strategic positioning as one of five critical elements essential for the continued growth of the organization.

The plan emphasizes the importance of telling Scouting's story to target audiences, coordinating national and local marketing programs, and encouraging the development of marketing support committees in all councils. More specifically, the strategic plan calls for the BSA to

Improve, clarify, and focus the image of Scouting by placing emphasis on the outcomes of the BSA's values-based program rather than its methods.
Continue to strengthen the Scouting program by reinforcing relationships with chartered organizations.
Increase message frequency to target audiences using messages that reach those most predisposed to join Scouting and target populations with the fastest growing available youth.
Improve total marketing training for council and regional personnel to include media and crisis communications.
Increase the use of cluster marketing in order to create more efficient and less costly marketing efforts.
Provide local councils with marketing plans and materials that enhance local efforts.

The combination of increased competition for people's time and the complete inundation of the media makes marketing absolutely necessary for new unit development. Although advertising can play a key role in a marketing plan, the best marketers do not simply promote products with advertising. They develop relationships with their target audiences, which sets them apart in the audience's mind as vital and necessary to the community.

Now is the time for councils to engage a strong marketing plan to attract adults and youth to Scouting. With the challenges youth face today, there is a greater need than ever for the Boy Scouts of America's values-based program. To help the public better understand the mission and benefits of Scouting, every council must communicate to them. When community organizations and parents understand that Scouting is a resource they can use to enhance their developmental programs and teachings, the more apt they are to become involved in Scouting and to encourage youth to take part in the program.

Well-planned, integrated communications will enhance a council's relationships with volunteers, youth members, and donors by making them feel more involved and keeping them informed about new developments in Scouting and the council.

Attracting and maintaining new members requires a combination of personal, direct, and mass communication efforts, organized in a thorough marketing plan created by the local council marketing committee. When formulating a marketing plan, councils should study past marketing efforts, set goals for the future, and make decisions on how to best achieve those goals. The plan should chart the overall direction for the council and name the major steps to be taken to achieve council goals.

The council marketing plan should be an extension of the council's strategic plan and formulate how the council cultivates relationships with target audiences to ultimately achieve its strategic objectives. A marketing plan outlines the tactical approaches councils employ in order to be successful.

This workbook is intended to serve as a guide for developing a council marketing plan. The summaries provided describe the major elements of a plan and should help you formulate a plan based on council needs. Please note, there are many other resources available to guide you, and various authors define the different sections and use distinct terminology to describe the components of a marketing plan. However, each has common key elements.

Remember, a marketing plan's success does not lie in how it is laid out on paper; it lies in how well the plan is communicated to those who take ownership of it, how well they understand their role in carrying out the plan, and its results.

Developing a Local Council Marketing Plan

The Merits of Marketing (marketing.scouting.org) is a resource for local councils, developed by the Marketing & Communications Division of the National Council, Boy Scouts of America.