The purpose of this paper is to develop a brief marketing plan to launch our product named Fchat i.e. a group chatting application specifically developed for the students and corporate workers. Its security, customization and simple engagement Artificial Intelligence makes it competitive and attractive for the potential users.
Introduction
Product Description
Our product, Fchat, is unique and competitive from other similar virtual services because it aims to provide interactivity and connectivity even at the places where the connectivity networks are very weak or almost inaccessible. While other products such as WhatsApp and Skype require high definition and high quality connections, we aim to overcome the gap. The Fchat provides group communications and interactions even in dire conditions with Wi-Fi as well as Bluetooth and other weaker networking mechanisms. This makes our service application unique and accessible for all types of users.
Compatibility is another feature of our product that ensures extensive connectivity, global interactions and adaptability. Our product is compatible for mobile OS (iOS, Android, Windows) as well as desktop OS. Therefore, ensuring the widest coverage of users.
Objectives
Product: Smart Phone App for Group Chat (Fchat)
Unique Aspect: Compatibility with all mobile Operating Systems
Objectives
With Fchat, group communications and interactions can be made more reliable and rapid as it will work with Wi-Fi as well as Bluetooth and other weaker networking mechanisms.
With Fchat, contributors with different smart phone OS can get connected. For example, this application will be compatible with Apple OS, Android, Windows, etc.
With Fchat, participants can customize the usage policies of the group according to the need e.g. customized group for classmates, etc.
Social Responsibility
Following are some of the social responsibilities for our product, Fchat:
Green Technology: The app will be made as per the criteria of green technology. For this purpose, following actions will be taken:
Ensure that the app consumes lower level of energy;
Calculating energy emissions of app according to EPA limitations
Self-Censor Technology: the app will have inbuilt feature of controlling the distribution and sharing of obscene material. For this purpose:
The developers will conduct a periodic audit on half yearly basis to observe the new ways of sharing and passing on obscene materials online.
Corporate Volunteerism:
We will ensure that a specific portion of our income from App is given for charity purposes.
External Market Analysis
Pricing
Initially, the price for our App will be $5 for half yearly membership. And this price will reduce by 25% in case of referred members.
After continuous use of 1 year, the membership fee will be waived off.
If a group leader or manager is able to add 50 members within a specific group, the membership fee of remaining additions will be waived off.
Rationale for Pricing Strategy
Since our market competitors include WhatsApp, Viber, etc. that are now distributed almost free of cost along with quality services. This ensures that our strategy should be effective enough to penetrate into an otherwise strongly established market.
If we would distribute our product free of cost, it will destroy its market image and reputation. In order to distribute it as a premium product, we have to price it according.
Positioning
In order to position my product better in the market, I will ensure that it is positioned in the best and most alluring manner amongst the already available competitive products. For this, the aim is to position it in multi-dimensional manner. Following are some of the aspects through which it will be positioned as: trendy, cool, necessary, interactive and innovative.
Customer Value: the product will be positioned as a value-added service for the customer that will provide it unique benefits of interactivity, security, trendy and creative in competitive price.
Price Value: the price of the product will not only determine its attractiveness for the target audience bust also the status of the product. For this purpose, our trial version will be free for first 6 months. However, we will not make price much lower than our competitions as that will cost us the reputation of the product.
Class: the product will be positioned as high class trendy product with competitive value of providing total data security for the users.
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
Innovative and unique idea
Creative requirement analysis
Competition keeps the interest in the development intact
Compatibility and simplicity of the App
There will be a continuous updating process
Information privacy and confidentiality
Weaknesses
Higher competition due to market giants like WhatsApp and Viber
Chances of eavesdropping and information leakage
Higher cost can be an issue
Opportunities
Healthy competition
Diverse compatibility
Global approach
Threats
Threat of new entrants
Cost competition
Hacking or malicious attacks on the servers.
Section C: Marketing Strategy
Market Research
The market we are trying to penetrate is the Mobile Social Media that has already become an established platform. Social media on telephones has significantly lifted inside of the previous decade. The main alternatives on a mobile telephone were either telephone calls or content informing (Kaplan, 2012). With the most recent mobile telephones out now you can download applications which permit you utilize social networking destinations, for example, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. This permits individuals to get to their records as the internet on a PC would (Kaplan, 2012). This is basic to the point that there at times isn't have to utilize the PC as utilizing your imposters snappier and sparing time. Other telephone applications, for example, Viber, WhatsApp permits you to converse with your contacts for free, share pictures and call each other for free (Kaplan, 2012). Alongside the content informing process mobile telephones nowadays have a lot of social media joined to it as it gives a heap of access to your family and companions (Kaplan, 2012).
In order to penetrate into this consumer base, we need to promote our product from a different prospect. As already described, we aim to promote our product through its sensitive accessibility even in low range regions where the connectivity is very weak. Our product also can establish its own network circle through Bluetooth connectivity.
Fig 1: Consumer Base of Social Media Apps (Fitchard, 2013)
Social Media Networking and Digital Marketing
Since the advent of Social Media in the early 21st century, it has revolutionized the way users interact, communicate and influence each other at the global level. It has also brought significant changes and modifications in marketing domain as well. One of the key changes that Social Media have brought for marketing domain is regarding the impact on brand positioning and its associated marketing strategies.
Significance of the Study
Considering the power of competitiveness for customers, and they need to manufacture doable brand esteem, buyers appropriately transform into the essential fixation for any marketing brand positioning. Marketers should in this manner prosper to get the thought of shopper and make a customer recognition that would impact them to need to share the marketers brand with their companions. A significant part of the time people are continually restless to share something that is sensational and of impetus to them. Regardless of the way that the rule motivation behind why Social Media stages were made was to interface people in total discourse, then again, marketers found these stages drawing in the market their companies despite how their brands are not welcome in Social Media. Some online customers consider them to be being one of a kind and odd (Tuten and Solomon, 2017).
Associations have found Social Media as a place where they can build rich; unmediated purchaser encounters impressively speedier than already. This has given Social Media an ability to help brand positioning; ask people to endeavor things which may unavoidably incite more arrangements returns especially when the campaign happens to become a web sensation (Saravanakumar and SuganthaLakshmi, 2012). Commonly a respectable brand isn't tied in with being picked over an opponent in the market area, yet rather, it should offer a response to the prospects issue.
In this way online brand positioning isn't only about another brand finding its way in the Social Media field, in any case, really, it is a brand that is starting at now settled which can be rehashed online. It is in this way that a fair brand positioning procedure for both online and detached brand positioning should be set up to help all channels to have a mutual synergetic effect (Hoffman and Fodor, 2010). A couple of associations have possessed the ability to have vague brands and characteristics that are typical for a reality of their separated brands.
Role of Social Media in Marketing
De Vries et al. (2012) clarifies that in any case, correspondence is the middle estimation of Social Media frameworks, not all consumer categories comparably fit for all marketing goals in light of the way that most by far of the stages are not correspondingly proper for data, composed exertion, and despite to develop connections (De Vries et al. 2012). The purpose of social frameworks is primarily for correspondence and exchange of contemplations of interest among peer get-togethers or gatherings. As demonstrated by (Packer, 2011) in any case, it is through progressive correspondence began by the marketer on the interactive social frameworks that a whole deal connection can be made and maintained between the business and the consumer (Packer, 2011). The creator, of course, intimates that the data provider is the ones influencing their specific gatherings with their social framework to grow.
Nevertheless, the trouble confronting associations intending to interact with social frameworks is the best approach to control correspondence condition inside the framework, with an ultimate objective to guarantee that their brand picture is secured. Stelzner (2014) in this way assume a certified social framework should give people a trusting, a sentiment duty regarding the gathering and if that isn't seen, there is potential for orchestrating people to be furious. Consequently, for associations to be productive in using social advancements, the underlying advance is to prepare and alter internal parts, frames approach with the business goals.
Online marketing has a lot of qualities; the speed of getting to the data is first and incredibly smart, other than that internet has no geographical cutoff points. Despite cost ampleness, the marketer, also, has the opportunity to explore new suppliers at a couple of past interest costs. Toward the day's end all the marketing research coordinated through the internet is especially monetarily smart (Lipsman et al. 2012). On the other hand, the marketing department race to point out some genuine shortcoming that online marketing face. The essential issue is that social and lingo contrasts may introduce inconveniences in data gathering transversely finished national cutoff points. Additionally, it can be difficult to guarantee that the individual responding is the individual the marketer supposes they are (Lipsman et al. 2012).
Social Media Factors Affecting Brand Positioning
Clients and consumers
The most basic factor to be considered is the approach through which brand attract consumers. It requires the effort of a marketer to grant the brand a great part of the time remembering the true objective to make brand positioning. A reputed brand online will pull in a more broad mass of visitors. The marketer can know the kind of exposure their brand positioning have in the Social Media organize.
Affecting Perceptions
A marketer should evaluate and identify whether the kind of impact they have on their group is negative, positive or fair-minded. This can be assessed by the kind of remarks people post. The data got will engage marketer to make redresses wherever imperative.
Interactivity
The level of interactivity can be directed by the consumers who respond to the brand message. Strong consumer engagement must be worked by usage process (Michaelidou, Siamagka, and Christodoulides, 2011). It is basic to working up how frequently the remark a marketer posted was shared online, or the amount of the people who tapped on their like catch. How much a consumer is locked in is an unmistakable marker that they have interest in what the marketer is advancing.
Consumer Loyalty and attribution
This can be explained by how routinely the group continues remarking on the marketer's messages. The kind of messages the follower's post can help choose on the off chance that they are dedicated or not. Consumer unwavering quality can be settled with the kind of tributes they offer identifying with the brand.
Brand Strategy
Identity Building
Plan: for identity building of the product, we will market it in Job Fairs, Business Exhibitions, and corporate expos in accordance to our target audiences.
Objective: Create a unique identity.
Deadline: 6 months prior to release date.
SEO
Plan: Optimize the Search engines and marketing of our official website in such a way that it is ranked top on Google, Yahoo! And MSN.
Objective: Global recognition and product awareness among online users.
Deadline: 6 months prior to release date.
B2C & B2B Branding
Plan: Since we will be targeting direct consumers as well as small businesses, we will establish a B2C and B2B organizational model.
Objective: developing a B2C & B2B organizational model.
Deadline: 6 months prior to release date
Section D: Controls
Consumer Decision Making
Need Recognition
Initially, the consumers need to be provoked to recognize their need for a safe, customizable and secure chat application for greater interactivity and collaboration. For this purpose, we would market our product recognition through:
Social media awareness campaigns
On-campus events and functions
Campaign drive involving youngsters and their activities
Information Search
For getting relevant information about our product, we will be using following mediums to interact with our consumers and let them search more about the product and its specifications:
Social media pages and notes for detailed information
Blogging
Promotional campaigns with demonstrations
Evaluation of Alternatives
This phase of the decision will also be part of promotion where the customers will be given interactive charts and tables for comparative analysis of similar products. These tables will be available online.
Purchase
For initial purchase the students can purchase the free trial of the product through online registrations.
Post-Purchase Evaluation
To collect feedback and post-purchase evaluation we will design digital surveys and questionnaires that will be distributed through social media and web page.
Relationship Development
One of the most important and key elements of promoting creating product awareness is to build strong, firm and trustworthy relationships with customers as well as all involved stakeholders and shareholders. Following are the relationships that will be specifically focused and engaged to create relationship building.
Developers, Testers and QA Team
Identify Relationship goals
Set out objectives
Modulate the development phase
Communicate and interact extensively
Ensure engaging meetings and discussion sessions
Bloggers and Research Analyst
Explain and discuss objectives
Conduct a requirement analysis
Communicate in a positive manner through formal and informal meetings
Communicate through online tools, emails and face-to-face meetings.
Students and Community Centers
Communicate the goals, objectives, specifications, benefits, etc.
Listen attentively to their demands and requirements
Establish a connectivity and sense of trustworthiness
Organize meet-ups, sessions and small events for product marketing and awareness.
Promotions
Following will be the basics of our promotional strategy:
Advertisement and Promotion
The app will be advertised vigorously and in a formal way to ensure it has appeal for youngsters and students. However, it will be ensured that the category and main purpose of app is not over-shadowed in glamorous advertisements. Some of our advertisement mediums will be:
Magazines
Television
Online
Facebook pages
Twitter
Google Plus
Sales
For promotional purposes, a trial and beta version of our product will be available for free download through online portals, Facebook page, etc. This will also help us in generating user feedback.
Public Relations
As already stated, we will be using the social media and online networking to ensure extensive connectivity and interactivity with our targeted audiences at global level. This will help us in establishing reliable and firm public relations regardless of the geographical boundaries.
Distribution Strategy
Our focus is specifically on distributing our product in the right way to the right target audiences, therefore, following distribution plan is carefully designed according to our needs and requirements:
Distribution Channels
Since we are distributing an application, the best channels that can be used for its distribution are:
Online official website of the company that is legally registered and secured for online payments and transactions;
Available as application package from the company distribution office through:
CDs/DVDs
Smart devices
Pen devices, etc.
Supply Chain Strategy
The Supply Chain for the distribution of this app will be virtual in nature. Our main focus will be to distribute it to at least One hundred thousand consumers within 1 year of its release. And then we will stop its distribution to upgrade the service and enhance its performance efficiency for broader range of consumers based on the feedback received. The re-distribution will start after 3 months’ period. The old version, in this time period, will be available for free download.
Logistics and Inventory Management, Mode and Carrier Selection
Since this is an app, there will be no formal and physical logistics, carrier or other procedures. However, for the inventory management, our focus will be on constantly enhancing the efficiency and performance of our servers to remove any chances of information leakage, system crash reports, etc.
Conclusion & Reflection
Respective assignment and the process of developing the marketing plan helped us identify various marketing challenges and the ways in which they can be handled.
Marketing is one of the most important and challenging organizational dimension. Any negligence or mistake in marketing campaign can make a high quality product an instant failure costing the company their investment as well as reputation. Therefore, in order to make sure that the product and services are being marketed in proper and appropriate manner, it is important that the marketers must be well aware of the challenges they may face and how to overcome those challenges. Following are some of the main challenges that the marketers may face.
Marketers often have to face the challenge of being not able create sufficient awareness of their products and administrations (Mullins, Walker & Boyd Jr, 2012). This is fundamental as the marketer needs to get the consideration of the product or administration before he or she can assign the ways and means of getting deals or business through his or her group. This is a challenge the same number of marketers have no clue how to generate awareness of their products and administrations (Mullins, Walker & Boyd Jr, 2012). This can be comprehended by utilizing all ranges accessible to the marketer to get past to the customers. For this, the marketer must be tuned into the right media and methods. Comprehension of utilizing the methods where the right group of onlookers is will offer the marketer some assistance with generating awareness among potential customers about the products (Mullins, Walker & Boyd Jr, 2012).
Numerous marketers confront the challenge of targeting viably. Targeting is a basic part of marketing. The marketer needs to discover the target group of onlookers and this should be possible by making the product or administration open and appealing to the potential buyer (Mullins, Walker & Boyd Jr, 2012). What does the product or administration offer to the customer? This is the issue to reply. What need does the product or administration satisfy in the customer? Once these inquiries are addressed emphatically, the marketer will have the capacity to get the customers' considerations to his products or administrations. (Mullins, Walker & Boyd Jr, 2012)
It is difficult to make a successful promotion if the marketing can't stay aware of marketing patterns and strategies. A fruitful marketer needs to stay aware of the evolving times, and times are evolving quick (Mullins, Walker & Boyd Jr, 2012). Different strategies are created; new innovations pop up at various times. The marketer needs to stay side by side of these adjustments so as to be a win at his or her field. The key segment to fruitful marketing is to know precisely where the target group of onlookers is and utilize the new marketing strategies and patterns to stand out enough to be noticed (Mullins, Walker & Boyd Jr, 2012).
The improper utilization of social media to create customers and incomes is another challenge confronted by numerous marketers (Mullins, Walker & Boyd Jr, 2012). Most have no clue how to oversee social media. It is insufficient to just have a record. The proper management of the social leads is additionally imperative to the accomplishment of the assignment. Once the marketer figures out how to properly deal with his social leads, he or she can start designating the assignment of figuring out how to his group (Mullins, Walker & Boyd Jr, 2012).
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