# Growth Plan Template

The Growth Plan is the flagship client-facing deliverable produced in Part 8 of the engagement methodology. It synthesises every internal document (Parts 1–7) into a single narrative that answers: *"How will we grow this business digitally, and what will it cost?"*

## What makes a good Growth Plan

1. **Tells a story** — flows logically from diagnosis (what we found) → strategy (what we recommend) → execution (how we do it) → measurement (how we know it is working)
2. **Is evidence-based** — every recommendation grounded in data from the analysis phases. No "we think" — only "the data shows" with cited source
3. **Sets clear expectations** — budget, timeline, expected outcomes (three scenarios), what the client needs to do
4. **Is understandable by non-marketers** — the client CEO who reads this should understand the strategy without a marketing dictionary
5. **Is actionable** — does not just say what to do; says who, when, with what resources, and how to measure success

## The 11-Section Structure

### Section 1: Executive Summary

**Purpose:** The CEO reads this. Make it count.

**Length:** 1 page maximum.

**Content:**

- Key findings (3–5 bullets — the most important things from the analysis)
- Recommended strategy (the headline strategic move in 1–2 sentences)
- Expected outcomes (the moderate scenario, with the conservative–aggressive band)
- Investment required (total budget, breakdown into fixed + variable)
- Timeline (the 30 / 60 / 90 / Q2 / Q3 / Q4 milestones in one sentence)
- The single most important thing the client needs to know

### Section 2: Business Context

**Purpose:** Set the stage for why the strategy is what it is.

**Length:** 2–3 pages.

**Content:**

- Summary of business analysis (Core Doc 3.1) — what the business is, how it makes money, key strengths and constraints
- Industry landscape — market size, growth trajectory, competitive intensity
- Competitive position — where the brand sits, key competitors, positioning today
- Critical assumptions — the major Stone facts and validated Opinions that shape the strategy

This section is grounded in Core Doc 3.1 (Business & SBU Analysis), Part 4.4 (Market Analysis), and Part 4.2 (Competitor Positioning). Do not re-state these documents in full — synthesise the most strategically relevant insights.

### Section 3: Target Audience

**Purpose:** Who we are targeting and why.

**Length:** 2–3 pages.

**Content:**

- Primary persona summary (with the 6-question actionable persona format)
- Secondary persona (if relevant)
- Why these personas were chosen (tie back to TG scoring from Core Doc 3.2)
- Anti-personas — who we explicitly do NOT target and why
- For B2B: the Decision-Making Unit summary per persona

This section is grounded in Core Doc 3.2 (Segmentation Framework). The personas presented here are the priority personas, not all explored personas.

### Section 4: Strategic Positioning

**Purpose:** Where the brand sits in the market, how it differentiates, the core message.

**Length:** 2 pages.

**Content:**

- Positioning statement (the formal one-sentence)
- Brand promise + 3–5 supporting proof points
- The 3–5 messaging pillars
- Tone-of-voice profile (with one on-tone vs off-tone example)
- What we are deliberately NOT saying (don't-say rules)

This section is grounded in Core Doc 3.3 (Brand Positioning & Communications).

### Section 5: Channel Strategy

**Purpose:** Which channels, why, and how they work together across the funnel.

**Length:** 3–4 pages.

**Content:**

- Channel selection summary (which channels are in scope and which are explicitly deferred — see [channel-families.md](channel-families.md))
- Per-channel role (which funnel stage each serves)
- Channel sequencing logic (which feeds which)
- In-Market vs Out-Market split (with rationale — see [in-market-out-market.md](in-market-out-market.md))
- Media mix across paid / organic / earned / owned

This section is grounded in Core Doc 3.4 (DMFlow). The detailed per-channel docs (Part 9) are referenced but not reproduced here.

### Section 6: Budget & Media Plan

**Purpose:** Monthly / quarterly budget allocation by channel. Fixed vs Variable. Total investment.

**Length:** 2–3 pages with tables.

**Content:**

- Total monthly fixed budget (committed)
- Variable budget envelope (additional budget that can be deployed if performance warrants)
- Per-channel allocation table (with rationale)
- Quarterly budget pacing (how spend ramps quarter to quarter)
- Year-1 total investment
- Investment vs expected return (LTV:CAC math)

This section is grounded in Core Doc 3.4 Step 5 + Step 9. See [unit-economics-framework.md](unit-economics-framework.md) for the math.

### Section 7: KPI Framework

**Purpose:** What we measure, targets for each KPI, reporting cadence. How we know it is working.

**Length:** 2 pages with tables.

**Content:**

- Primary KPI (the one number that matters most for the period)
- Secondary KPIs (3–5)
- Per-channel KPIs
- KPI targets in three scenarios (Conservative / Moderate / Aggressive)
- Reporting cadence (daily / weekly / monthly / quarterly)
- Attribution model used
- Known measurement limitations

### Section 8: Implementation Timeline

**Purpose:** 30 / 60 / 90-day milestones. What happens first, second, third. Clear sequencing.

**Length:** 2–3 pages with timeline visual.

**Content:**

- **Days 1–30 — Foundation:** tracking infrastructure, initial campaigns on proven channels, baseline metrics, creative assets, content calendar, keyword research, competitor monitoring setup
- **Days 31–60 — Validation:** analyse initial performance vs KPI targets, first A/B tests, expand to secondary channels, begin SEO + content marketing, first monthly report
- **Days 61–90 — Optimisation & Scale:** double down on winners, pause / restructure losers, variable budget recommendations, launch awareness layer (TOFU), begin email / WhatsApp nurture, first quarterly review
- **Quarter 2 milestones:** what should be true by end of Q2
- **Quarter 3 milestones:** what should be true by end of Q3
- **Year-end goals**

### Section 9: Team & Resource Plan

**Purpose:** Who does what — agency team, client team, external partners.

**Length:** 1–2 pages.

**Content:**

- Agency / consulting team roles and responsibilities
- Client team roles (especially what the client must own — content approvals, brand assets, sales handoffs)
- External partners (creative production, video, photography, influencer agencies, etc.)
- Approval workflows and SLAs
- Critical dependencies that could delay execution

### Section 10: Risk & Contingency

**Purpose:** What could go wrong. What we do if it does.

**Length:** 1–2 pages.

**Content:**

- Top 3–5 risks across market, competitive, regulatory, operational, and execution dimensions
- For each risk: likelihood, impact, mitigation strategy, trigger conditions for invoking the mitigation
- Contingency budget (typically 10–15% of total budget held in reserve)
- Decision-making authority for invoking contingency

### Section 11: Expected Outcomes

**Purpose:** Conservative, moderate, and aggressive projections. Never promise a single number.

**Length:** 2 pages with scenario tables.

**Content:**

- The three-scenario forecast (see [three-scenario-forecasting.md](three-scenario-forecasting.md))
- Per-quarter forecast (Q1 / Q2 / Q3 / Q4)
- Triggers that move us between scenarios
- What the team will be tracking to know which scenario is unfolding
- Conditions under which the plan would be revised

## Total Length Target

A complete Growth Plan typically lands at **20–30 pages**. Beyond 30 pages, the client stops reading. Below 20 pages, the depth is insufficient.

If the engagement scope demands more depth, produce a separate Yearly Planner (Part 8 second deliverable) that goes deeper on the calendar / channel cadence.

## Quality Discipline

- **Every claim cites a source.** Sources include: client-provided data (cite document), public sources (cite URL), Core Doc references (cite document and version).
- **Every projection states assumptions explicitly.** No naked numbers.
- **Every recommendation flows from analysis.** No conclusions the body does not support.
- **Visual evidence where helpful.** Charts, tables, scenario diagrams. But nothing decorative.
- **Plain language.** The CEO who reads this is not a marketing specialist. Marketing jargon must be explained or avoided.

## How the Growth Plan is produced

The Growth Plan is not written from scratch — it is **synthesised** from the internal documents already produced in Parts 1–7. The skill that produces the Growth Plan reads:

- Living Project Instruction File (current truth)
- Core Docs 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4 (v2 if available, v1 otherwise)
- Part 4 documents (4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4)
- Part 7 preparation documents
- Performance baseline data if any

And produces the 11-section deliverable in client-facing language.

Use:

```
/digital-marketing-pro:engagement growth-plan
```

The output lands at `engagements/{engagement-id}/part-08-growth-plan/growth-plan.md` and is exported to PDF + DOCX for client delivery.

## Related references

- [engagement-flow-methodology.md](engagement-flow-methodology.md) — Part 8 in context
- [yearly-planner-template.md](yearly-planner-template.md) — companion deliverable
- [three-scenario-forecasting.md](three-scenario-forecasting.md) — Section 11 forecasting
- [unit-economics-framework.md](unit-economics-framework.md) — Section 6 + Section 7 math
- [in-market-out-market.md](in-market-out-market.md) — Section 5 + Section 6 budget logic
- [channel-families.md](channel-families.md) — Section 5 channel taxonomy
