Target Group Analysis - JetNet Services - Essay Example

Target Group Analysis for Marketing Report (Marketing Plan) Background In each sector and to each target audience, business-to-business direct marketing generates inquiries, leads and straight sales, as well as serving companies to set up and maintain their brand attendance. Introduction JetNet Services is a full service company specialized in covering all sectors related to publishing, from the conception to the realization of a campaign . This does not only cover the classical print media, but also a broad range of new media such as Internet, Web design, Web based content management system (CMS), multimedia. Besides, JetNet Services supply expert IT-counseling including support for PC as well as for Mac. It is JetNet Services' goal to enable their clients to a professional positioning in the Internet which is the main access to information and communication of nowadays and the future - together with providing all support necessary in case the client wishes to purchase optimally suited hard- and software. 1. Product description There are four business units, offering their services and products for four different purposes but having the same management and exchanging information within the company. The advantages of this for the client are short communication paths; one contact person who manages all the contacts in the company (i.e. A case manager) and a range of in-house services and products. Research suggests that the four units do not actually have separate targets. There are primarily two broad targets: Internet Unit and IT Support Unit; Graphic Unit and Multi-media Unit targets. These groups have enough overlap that they may be broadly looked at in a similar light. There is also a primary target for all four units as a package. The first section describes the Internet-Business Unit and IT Support Unit. However, there is some overlap of target markets for the other 3 business units (graphic design, multimedia, IT-Consulting). 2. Target group analysis for Internet Unit and IT-Support Unit Two main target groups exist for the Internet and It_support Units. (Shurmer 1993, p. 240) Small and middle enterprises without their own marketing departments broadly comprise the first group. The two primary sub groups of this section are differentiated by the demographic information of their business leader. Young entrepreneurs heading start-up companies are the first of these leaders. The young entrepreneur is aged 20-35 years old, and is early on in his career. The second sub-group leader is an older entrepreneur, aged 36-55 years, with an established career, and a firmly entrenched company. (Igel 2001, p.159) Small and middle enterprises with their own in-house marketing and/or technical support departments make up the second broad group. Within this category, there are also two sub groups based on the demographic information of the decision maker. Here, the first target is the marketing manager: he is typically male and manages the entire marketing department. The second is the marketing assistant: most often female and reporting directly to the marketing manager. 2.1 Young startup entrepreneur The young entrepreneur is aged 25-35 and has just founded a company. He needs professional services for designing and implementing his company's website. A website is a must have for him because several start-up consultancies recommended creating a website as the first step in marketing a new business, followed by purchasing professional stationary and business cards for Corporate Design/ Corporate Identity purposes. The young entrepreneur grew up using the Web and he is competent in the technical skills involved in using the Internet for business and personal matters (i.e. knows how to browse the Internet, search Goggle, and send email) and he also is open to the technology and knows the marketing benefits that the Web offers (such as being a cheap marketing platform, up to date information, and reaching a wide audience). (Trondsen 1996, p.571) 2.1.1 Older entrepreneur The older entrepreneur understood the business world prior to the Internet Age. He hasn't completely mastered the more technical aspects of the Web, but has had to learn how to send email, surf the Web and perhaps search using Google, in order to stay abreast of the competition. The older entrepreneur has realized that he needs a website becausehis competitors have one and/or his younger personnel have requested a website (as it's a must have for them).(Wikipedia 2006) Thus, the technology of the Internet is still something that is new to him and he's not always convinced of it's effectiveness; being used to doing business in a face-to-face scenario with clients, he is often uncomfortable with the virtual communication system prevelent in today's marketplace. Due to his lack of technical understanding, he needs a lot of assistance, support, and hand-holding from the company that creates his website, and will select a company that offers a full-range of support services targeted to his demographic. (Kekre 2001, p.1460) 2.1.2 Marketing Manager The marketing manager is about 30-50 years old and may have started his career as marketing assistant and worked his way up. He could also be a professional manager, with a degree in marketing and have directly gotten his job as a manager, rather than worked his way up through the company. (This might cause him to have less professional empathy with his assistant and affect his opinion of her recommendations.) Often, he works full-time or overtime, as he is responsible for the entire marketing department. The website is part of the company's marketing-mix and marketing-plan. The manager must implement the company's website , but he will employ an external agency to do the actual work, as he does not have the necessary staff in-house. 2.1.2.1 Marketing Assistant The marketing assistant gets assigned the task to complete the project (website) from her boss, the manager. She is younger than he is, most often a female (World Bank 2006), and uses the Web to do her research. (Citizen's Online 2005) She also is very loyal, professionally, and will first ask the agencies that she has already worked with on previous projects of this type. (World Bank 2006) According to the World Bank, women represent a larger segment of available workers in the age range 29-50. While the general population over 50 has doubled in recent decades, women have filled many positions once occupied by men. (2006) As women represent a larger section of the workforce, they represent a larger section of the target market, as well, filling higher level positions in the marketplace throughout the course of their careers, as well as heading more start up enterprises. However, in most first-world nations, women are most often found in middle management assistant and customer service positions. (World Bank 2006) The largest regional area of of economic growth is the services industry, which has grown approximately 25% per annum over the past five years. This area comprises marketing, banking, insurance, real estate and other service related activities. The services industry utilizes all four business units in selling their products. While most female service workers would have obtained at least a moderate level of computer literacy, they would have specific needs in the IT sector with support from multimedia and graphics in their positions as sales aides in such services as marketing, real estate, banking and insurance. These companies would all buy solutions from outside sources. (World Bank 2006) 2.2.2.2 Small and middle enterprises without marketing department While initial targeting strategies aimed at small entrepreneurial companies might produce immediate sales, retention in this group is likely to decline over a five year period, while the target group consisting of established businesses is more likely to make up a continuous, long term customer base. (Swiss Federal 2006) 2.2.2.1 Young start-up entrepreneur The young entrepreneur is used to the medium of the Web; it has existed since he was young. 78% of people in this age group use the Web on a regular basis. (Citizen's Online 2005) He uses Google to search for his information and he's very open to new technologies. The risk-potential is variable in this group, as some young entrepreneurs are very risk-averse and want security and service and are willing to pay a higher price for it. On the other hand, another group of young entrepreneurs will use all the services the Web offers, including using freelance bidding services such as RentACoder.com or foreign agencies (i.e. outsourcing outside of their own country), in order to receive the same technical services at a cheaper price, but without necessarily receiving the same guarantees of support and security that a traditional domestic firm would offer for a higher price. (Marketing Today) The young entrepreneur is seeking to fulfil Marlow Layer IV or III. He is motivated by intrinsic means, because he wants his business to prosper and attract new clients by having a website, as well as to continue to meet the needs of his current clients. He is the decision maker for his company and may feel more in common with the user of the website than an older leader would. 2.2.1.2 Older entrepreneur According to the statistics, the older entrepreneur doesn't use the Internet as often as his younger counterpart. (Citizen's Online 2005) He has not fully understood the benefits that the Internet has to offer, and remembers the business world without it. He often is anxious regarding technical services, as the new technology has changed the business world completely. He must first grasp the benefits and advantages of the Internet and it's services. The agency must educate him about these benefits before they can close the sale. His technology risk-potential is very small, as he heads an established company and doesn't want to damage his company's reputation. Once the older entrepreneur is convinced that the project is worthwhile, he's motivated to implement the best project possible and will count on the services of the Web agency. He is also fulfilling Marlow Layer IV or III. The old entrepreneur is motivated by intrinsic means, he wants his business to prosper and attract new clients by having a website. He also wants to show that his company is modern and has a website (giving the possibility to access a new market segment).(Chakrapani 2005, p.36) He is the decision maker and sometimes the user of the service/website/product, (more likely, he delegates the website usage to someone else). 2.2.2 Small and middle enterprises with own marketing department 2.2.2.1 Marketing Manager The Internet is primarily a communications channel and makes up a significant part of the company's marketing-strategy. The marketing manager must defend his marketing strategy at the advisory board meetings and only has a fixed budget to use for marketing purposes. (Chakrapani 42) He must defend the need for a website and present figures and numbers to back up his recommendations. WebThe reputation of the Web agency is very important to him because of this, and he will seek out an agency that he perceives to be trustworthy. Although, he wants to be involved in the decision making process, he does not have the requisite technical knowledge to understand the full project implementation. In order to maintain the balance of trust, the project manager of the Web agency must give the client the feeling that he's making the important decisions, but keep the technical aspects obscure. The marketing-manager has a very low risk-potential, as he must report to his boss and therefore must be able to count on the Web agency and their results. If the Web agency has delivered good results in the past, he would rather use a trusted agency instead of searching for a new one. Also, if he pays more (as it's not his own money), he spends the budget on procuring an agency with high quality services and a good reputation, so he will not choose the cheapest Web agency. This is an example of Maslow's Layer IV. The manager is a decision maker, but often not the user of the service/product/website. 2.2.2.2 Marketing Assistant The marketing assistant's case is the same as marketing manager, but she must report to the marketing manager. She must also justify her decisions in front of the marketing manager. She is motivated primarily by the fact that if she does her job well, she may get promoted to a higher level. (Atkinson 2004, p.53) The marketing assistant is not the ultimate decision maker, but is a user of the website. Maslow's Layer IV is the motivation for her. The marketing assistant is younger, than the manager, and has a different approach to technology. Allowing for the implementation of an Internet based communications plan, her profile shows frequent Internet usage and a tendency to purchase linked products on-line. The profile of the CAMEO classification, 5C, highlights that Internet practice and usage are above average within this segment. It would thus be useful to assign a higher propensity toward using Internet based medium to reach a wider audience when targeting this section. (China News) 3. Graphic Design Unit The primary target market in entrepreneurial small business would be start-up companies making an initial purchase of graphic design materials as well as integrated business units in Web Services and IT Support. Clients would consist of a younger group, less conservative, more familiar with product offerings and more amicable to suggestion. While initially, they might need less support, their overall purchase pattern, after an initial full package purchase, would be defined by their growth rate. Growth rates in newer small companies are unproven, and statistically have a larger margin for failure. Also, companies that are more IT oriented are more likely to do extensive comparative shopping for products and services they have knowledge of. While these companies may make larger purchases initially, they are actually less likely to be long term clients. (Kekre, p.1460) 3.1 Overview of Target Groups in Graphic Design Unit and Multi-media Unit The graphic design component of this target group would be aimed at two main sectors of the population. Older established business groups or corporations, and younger companies starting out seeking a full package of marketing services, including traditional Corporate Identity services such as logos and letterhead, and multi-media services including Flash presentations, Website splash animations, and multi-media advertising. 3.1.1 Sub-groups of Main Target Groups Older established businesses would make up a larger percentage of potential clients, because this percentage of the overall market has greater need for computer related services and established revenues with which to make purchases. (Rao 1994, p.36) 3.1.2 Decisions Makers Involved While many decision makers in established business groups might have limited experience with the IT market, they would have vast selection experience in other areas of advertising and marketing. (Rao 1994, p.33) Established means older, more conservative in their visual aesthetics, and more conservative in their purchasing habits. While they would have younger, computer literate individuals in their employ, purchasing decisions which reflect policy changes would probably fall into the sectors of senior department heads. 3.2.1 Services Desired They would be the group most in need of cross-platform business units, and they would be the group least likely to purchase a complete package of services at one time. This defines an area of multi business unit sales between Graphic design, Web Services and IT support. Over 40 conservative purchasers suffering from technophobia would most likely start with a hybrid of the familiar advertising platforms available, such as print, and a site to do online business. Lack of familiarity with IT and WEB terminology would not impact sales potential to this group as much as the alienation created by insular terminology and the dearth of comparative pricing information readily available. 3.3 Target Market Clustering Larger corporations, equally as conservative in purchasing habits, would have needs for graphic design purchases ranging through all four business units. (Messerschmitt 2004, p.65) Even if they had in house marketing departments, staff needs for outsourced would include more sophisticated projects such as multi media presentations with inserted design graphics for training seminars, sales presentation animations and public advertising. 3.3.1. Reasoning Behind Clustering Most in house marketing departments do not handle large volumes of printed materials regularly, such as retail, or are not marketing firms in their own right, would not be able to handle this level of complexity product in-house. Also, the print shops and the multi-media departments are disparate, and may not be able to integrate custom solutions. The clients for these services typically demand a high level of service, and will prefer a one stop solution to working with several unrelated firms. 4. Clustering Across all Four Business Units These groups exemplify that the 'standard' target consumer who will purchase all four services as a package is likely to be in the 40/50's age group, an established CEO/President of a small company, without a marketing departmental, or the manager/VP of a company with its own marketing department. The target markets themselves emerge varied in communal grade inside the elevated to mid grades and the age of the groups, this illustrates that the product on present attracts a more prosperous visitor, as opposite to those with low levels of prosperity (Herszberg 2002). This information ought to at the present be used to add to the probability of achievement for prospect marketing campaigns, with a few of the options obtainable tinted beneath, along by recommendations for an accurate advertising movement. It is also helpful to the business as a whole to recognize who your customers are, what type of people they are, their interests, and where they come from, to effectively market products. (Dolan, 21) The outcome can and ought to be used to direct all aspects of the promotions mix as well as guiding the overall marketing strategy. Personality ad-hoc campaigns can also be based on these outcomes as can be seen by the subsequent examples. References Atkinson, A. A., Kaplan, R. S. and S. M. Young 2004, Management Accounting. International 4th Ed. New Jersey: Pearson Education International. 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Krishnan, and Kannan Srinivasan 1995, Drivers of Customer Satisfaction for Software Products: Implications for Design and Service Support, Management Science, Volume: 41, Issue: 9 (September), pp: 1456-1470 Marketing Today, Inc. 2004, Email Trend Report Shows Email Continuing to Drive Online Sales. Accesed on 31 August 2006 at URL: http://marketingtoday.com/emarketing/1204/email_drives_sales.htm Messerschmitt, D. G. and C. Szyperski 2004, Marketplace Issues in Software Planning and Design. IEEE Software. Volume: 21, Issue: 3 (May/June), pp:62-70. Rao, P.M., and J. A. Klein 1994, Growing importance of marketing strategies for the software industry. Industrial marketing management, Volume: 23, Issue: 1 (February), pp: 29-37 Shurmer, M. 1993, An investigation into sources of network externalities in the packaged PC software market. 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