Marketing Plan for Rockness Festival - Essay Example

MARKETING PLAN FOR ROCKNESS FESTIVAL Return on marketing investment Marketing plan is the overall organization’s effort inmarketing its products and services. Marketing plan outlines strategies and actions which include business structures, the goals it wants to achieve, projected growth, financial requirements and the expected returns on the invested funds. Return on market investment is the process of measuring response in the market in terms of sales and profit generated. Rockness festivals has adopted two forms of determining if the investment on marketing is going to give out a positive return; short-term and long-term return on marketing investment forms (Doyle, 1998). Rockness can be able to know the return on marketing investment (ROMI) by calculating using this formula: ROMI = (increment in revenue located for marketing × margin contribution (%) market expense)/ (market expenses) In short-term form, Rockness has used simple index measurement on the amount of revenue that it can be generated for every unit spent on marketing. It has considered spending the amount of money in advertising plan, when calculated will get 500% on return on marketing investment taking target incremental contribution margin as 60%. Rockness has taken target margin and multiplied with return on marketing investment making the expenses on marketing 300%. Therefore, returns will be approximately 200%. This means that for every unit Rockness invest on advertisement, gains added will be about 200%. Long term plan functions are to create market awareness. When Rockness festival becomes known to many people, it will lead to increase in its market value. Commonly known as brand awareness, advertisements create a situation where value of long-term marketing activities and short-term revenue can be determined (Doyle, 1998). Rockness have used brand valuation technique to evaluate how brand name can be build when it spend more on marketing, and see what value it has on the balance sheet. Rockness festival have a short-term form as a tool to assist in identifying less productive activities and invest more on the activities which are more productive. Measurable marketing has been measured together with marketing objectives, which are working towards increasing revenue and increasing brand awareness (Solomon, 2003). Rockness has also redirected investment to well performing activities from the funds it pulled away from those activities that were underperforming. Political analysis Rockness has scanned and analyzed political environment of the area where it is carrying out its activities. Political factors cannot be controlled by the Rockness festival organizers (Jeannet and Hennessey, 2005). However, these factors are important since decisions relating to investment on the marketing plan depend on the identified factors. Rockness has considered stakeholders’ political stands in formulation of its marketing plans. Legal analysis Current laws of the home market are the key area which Rockness festival followed closely when coming up with the local marketing strategies. Most fans of the Rockness are locals from around Scotland and United Kingdom. In this regard, marketing plans will be reviewed so as to meet local regulatory policies (Smith, 2006). Promotional mix Rockness festival organizers have employed several promotional mixes by adopting five disposal way of reaching customer. Advertisement is the first promotional mix that will use to deliver a message to the customers (Pride and Ferrell, 2001). Rockness will use mass media to do advertising; mass media has a big area of coverage that will reach local and international customers. The festival group will specifically use radio and television to advertise the Rockness festival. Proposed mass media channel is BBC Radio 1, official media sponsor, and United Kingdom new music station X-FM. Estimated budget investment on advertising is 30% of promotion funds. Another promotional mix that can be used for marketing is by personal selling. Theoretically, personal selling involves delivery of goods and services directly to potential customers. This promotional strategy aims at reaching customers at their door step, and persuading them to acknowledge value of certain products or services. In this case, Rockness festival will employ this technique in persuading customers to appreciate services offered within the festival. Rockness will employ this technique by reaching customers and face to face persuading them to come and attend the show. This can give customers a chance to ask questions about Rockness festival, and receive direct feedback. Personal selling strategy can be face to face, through telephone or interacting directly through the internet. 13% of promotional funds are allocated to personal selling. Rockness will also do marketing through either media or non-media communication as part of sales promotion. This can be done for a limited time; it will be for one month before the date the festival will take place. Sale promotion can be done in several ways, which are; trade shows, contests plus coupon and exhibitions (Ryan and Jones, 2009). Selling Tickets in advance at a reduced price will encourage more people to buy. 15% of total promotional funds will be allocated to sales promotion. Customer encouragement can be done through public relations by conveying significant news to the public, and presenting favorable information in the media. Public relation plays a role in creating a good image on the public’s eye (Paley, 2005). Potential customers will relate with Rockness festival based on how the public views the festival. Rockness will use the third party sources to market Rockness festival by publishing it on magazines and articles, television and radio presentation, issue advertising and charitable contribution. 17% of all promotion funds will be allocated to public relation. Direct marketing can be done in order to communicate with customers. Rockness will employ advertising techniques such as interactive websites, outdoor advertising, and use of fliers, mobile messaging and promotional letters. Direct marketing will be instrumental in delivering first hand information to customers in their respective settings (Wind and Mahajan, 2001). Also, customers with additional concerns regarding Rockness festival can have an opportunity of submitting their inquiries through direct marketing platforms. Techniques within this marketing style, especially mobile messaging and use of interactive websites will enhance customer relationship; hence leading to wider and solid coverage of a given market segment. 25% of promotional funds are allocated to direct marketing. Place for Rockness festival The place to hold the event and selling of tickets has been selected based on the convenience of customers in reaching the venue with less difficulty. With respect to customers’ convenience, strategic places have been selected to reach potential attendants and sell tickets to them. The big concern here is reaching the customer at the right place and at the right moment. This is a marketing aspect for determining the channel to use in reaching customer in the simplest way (Smith, 2006). Rockness have remained relevant by taking into account the simplicity which the customer can buy our tickets by finding tickets easily and getting right information about these entry documents. Tickets will be sold in different ways and modes. Because of increased internet access, customers will get them online. Customers will have to log into a website and buy the tickets by submitting their payments electronically. Tickets will also be delivered by distributors at a wholesale price. Choice of the distributors will be based on location they intent to distribute them to the retailers. Using distributors to sell tickets will make it easy for the retailers since customers will get the tickets without having to come to Rockness festival offices. This has proven to be efficient as retailers will reach many customers. Tickets selling points will also be set, mostly in public places such as; supermarkets, social places like cinema hall entrances, colleges parks and universities. Tickets will also be sold at the venue’s entrance on the eve of the Rockness festival. Tickets price To satisfy Rockness marketing needs, total cost of the festival will be the only element which determines the final ticket prices. Calculating total event cost involves factoring in many factors like opportunity cost of time consumed, cost of conscience and the cost of acquiring logistical goods and services (Paley, 2005). Rockiness festival price analysis has been defined as part of marketing strategy. Since customers are sensitive to special offers and discounts. Therefore, advance tickets will be sold at a discounted price. In the context of advance purchases, one buys tickets at reduced prices different from prices which tickets will be sold at the gate on the day of the festival. Rockness can also provide offers to customers by saying that for every five tickets purchased, the customer making the purchase gets one free. The quality of entertainment services to customers will make it easy and fast to deliver satisfaction. In this case, Rockness have based ticket prices on total cost, and also considered the commercial price which the customer will be willing to pay. SMART criteria SMART criteria give the organizers guideline of setting objectives of the activity (Paley, 2005). Event growth and commanding market share can be achieved by increasing the number of acts by 10%. This can be achieved by inviting more rock bands and groups to perform at the festival. The progress indicator will be measured by the response of tickets sold. Based on Rockness festival 2013 statistics, 30,000 tickets were sold. Rockness festival 2014 targets selling over 54,000 tickets to customers, this level of marketing outcome is about 80% increase from last year’s sales. Since 2014 event will be the biggest of all festival we have held, we have to make this objectives realistic. The number of presentation stages will be increased to four. In addition, we have to increase Rockness promotional activities by assigning more money to publicity through printing about Rockness festival in newspapers, articles and other publications. Electronic media will be another form of doing publicity by incorporating more radio and television stations to advertise the event. Conclusion We have employed all the techniques in the marketing mix modeling to ensure that business plan is going to work. Investing on Rockness festival is worthy; return on investment is positive with generation of enough revenue. Marketing strategy analysis is essential for every business so as to make investment decisions that will ensure returns. Reference list Doyle, P. (2000). Value-based marketing: Marketing strategies for corporate growth and shareholder value. Chichester: Wiley. Jeannet, J. P, & Hennessey, H. D. (2005). Global marketing strategies. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Paley, N. (2005). The managers guide to competitive marketing strategies. London: Thorogood. Pride, W. M., & Ferrell, O. C. (2001). Marketing: Concepts and strategies. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co. Ryan, D., & Jones, C. (2009). Understanding digital marketing: Marketing strategies for engaging the digital generation. London: Kogan Page. Smith, M. (2006). 27 proven marketing strategies to boost your practice profits. Coto De Caza, CA: Healthcare Success Strategies. Solomon, M. R. (2003). Conquering consumer space: Marketing strategies for a branded world. New York: AMACOM. Wind, Y., & Mahajan, V. (2001). Digital marketing: Global strategies from the worlds leading experts. New York: Wiley. Read More