The strategies for developing a traditional marketing plan vary widely, according to the form of advertising used and the type of business. In some companies, particularly small businesses, the entire staff will contribute to planning and execution. Larger companies often have marketing departments dedicated to creating advertising campaigns that use traditional marketing.

The first step in developing a plan is to choose print, broadcasting, direct mail, or telemarketing. This choice depends on the budget and the marketing message conveyed. For example, a store that’s announcing a sale will use more immediate impact strategies like broadcasting or print, while a business launching a general awareness campaign might choose direct mail, which stays in consumers’ hands for a longer period of time.

For print and broadcast marketing, the business must arrange to purchase advertising space. The timing of this step depends on the lead time, or how far in advance the advertising space must be purchased. Some print media, such as wide-circulation magazines, have lead times of several weeks.Other markets have shorter times, with some newspapers allowing next-day ad placement.

The development of marketing materials also varies depending on the form. Direct mail and print campaigns require graphic design and copywriting. For telemarketing, the advertisers write a script for the sales representatives to follow. Radio ads may be either produced and pre-recorded, or scripted and read by on-air personalities. Finally, television commercials can either be written by the marketing department and produced in-house, or contracted out to production companies.