Marketing and social Engagement

Question : Difference Between Marketing and Engagement ? Answer : Introduction The current report revolves around the marketing plan of the Angels of Beauty Australia. It is evident that every industry has become dynamic in terms of needs and economy. Due to this changing needs and economy, the organization in each industry has to think of a developed plan for addressing the upcoming challenges or shaping the market for further growth. However, though the effective marketing plan provides the better outcome to the organization, it is necessary for the firms to implement the plans effectively. When it comes to salon and spa industry people tend to enjoy pampering especially when feeling low, which is the basic reason that keeps the salon and spa industry strong at the time good and bad economic times. The current report provides a developed marketing plan with significant social media content for Angels of Beauty Australia, which is an established firm running their services for long time. The firm has the capability to invest on social media to increase the mar ket share. Background of the organization Angels of Beauty has been running its operation successfully for a couple of years providing glamorous hair and beauty services under the direction of celebrity hairdresser. In 2009 salon strengthened its market in the market and opened up the outlets in Brisbane and today the firm has been found in the prestigious locations throughout Melbourne, Sydney, Gold Coast and other places. The organization has large market share due to its increasing number of customers across the country. The firm offers an increasing range of services including the hairdo, hair spa, styling, color and many more. Due to its tremendous quality of products and services, the firm has acquired multiple awards since 2008 (Sandlin, 2014). In the last year, the firm has been selected as the AHFA VIC hairdresser of the year finalist. Marketing team The marketing team of Oscan Oscal Salons includes Modern Marketing Team Leader/Editor, community manager, Contributor, Designer, Analytics, SEO/SEM specialist and Outside Expert (Coleman, Wu Luther, 2014). The members holding each position play different role to make the plan succeed with the goals and objectives. The marketing team leader develops the content strategy, content production, goal setting and metrics and determines the team performance. The community manager distributes the content while involving the customers as well as prospects holding a great responsibility. Likewise, the content manager plays the role of the engaging employees, particularly the salespeople, who know the customers needs and demands. On the other hand, SEO/SEM specialists could provide recommendation and guidance for the social media content strategies for the developed product. Product and service As the discussed earlier, the firm has developed multiple category of services including style cutting, which has sub-category, styling, Retexturising, add length and thickness, color, highlighting, rituals and many more. Likewise, the Angel of Beauty has multiple types of products Redken, Kerastase, paris, Aveda, SHU UEMURA, GHD, Showpony and many more. However, as the market share of the firm is increasing, the customer demands are also increasing. Therefore, the firm needs to the think of developing a new product and create awareness among the customers through social media, as social media helps to reach the wide market. However, before developing the product, the firm needs to learn about needs and demands of the customers by social media. Figure 1: Products and services of Angel of Beauty (Source: Angels of Beauty, 2017) A market analysis (Including direct and indirect competitors) It is observed that as Angels of Beauty has been running its operation over decades, the firm has strengthened its position in the market. As put forward by Taylor et al., (2014), Australian hair salon industry include about 40,000 establishments including beauty and barbershops with the annual revenue of around AUS$ 12 bn. The demand is driven by demographics as well as population growth. On the contrary, the profit of individuals depends on the technical expertise as well as marketing skills. The large organizations remain active in the economic scale in purchasing and marketing, whereas the small firm could compete successfully by offering superior service at the favorable locations. As stated by Rybowska (2014), the Australian salon industry is highly fragmented and almost 20 largest companies including the Angel of Beauty generate about 15% of the revenue. The revenue growth is predicted to increase over the next five years, growing at an average annual rate of 3.2% to $34.8 bn by 2019. This could be driven by the increases in per capital disposals income and declining unemployment over the five-year period. As opined by Kucukusta and Guillet (2014), the higher disposal income would lead the hair salon customers to spend more on higher-value service such as manicures, pedicure, hair modification treatments. Similarly, the industry profit is expected to increase to see gains, which would encourage more new business to get into the industry. Profits have maximized from 1.9% in 2009 to 5.9% in 2016. It is further identified that continued profits would be more fundamentally because of the increased sales of higher value products. Direct competitors- Though Angels of Beauty have been performing its operation over a long period; the presence of large firms such as The Grooming Room, Dolce Hair Extension International, Bouquet Garter put the pressure on Angels of Beauty. Indirect competitors- Unlike the direct competitors, the indirect competitors of Angels of Beauty are the suppliers that provide the firm the necessary products. The demands of indirect competitors are high as the establishment of the hair shops are increasing in Australia. PESTLE analysis Political environment- When it comes to hair salon and spa industry, there is a little way in the trade restriction as well as the tariff to be considered. Many employees within the organization are the significant part and the government is paying attention to the parents to bring them back to work for the development of employment (Mohamed, 2014). Therefore, it can be mentioned that salon and health spa industry observes an increasing number of workers. Figure 1: PESTLE analysis of Salon Industry, Australia (Source: Sihancova, 2014) Economic environment- When it comes to economic environment, some key areas are such as inflation rate, interest rate and general economic downturn. The salons and spa industry are usually considered luxury products; thereby, when there is an economic downturn, the number of economic downturn, the number of customers would probably reduce. As stated by Grbz, Albayrak and Alaybeyo?lu (2014) when the individuals have the less disposal income because of the high inflation levels they would be less inclined spend money on the luxury items. Moreover, the current economic climate is relatively weak as well as individuals are not in the sufficient state of wealth to spend large amount on their hair spa treatment. Therefore, Angels of Beauty would have to rely on the premium customers such as high-income people and celebrities. Socia-cultural- It is observed that socio cultural presents a much more positive outlook. In the context of hair salon and spa industry, the organizations are doing extremely well with an increasing number of young women carving lucrative careers. There is an increasing demand for health and spa facilities. As opined by Paul and Bihani (2014), there is an increasing demand from the older people for health spa and hair treatment as well as increasing ability by these individuals having the ability to afford such treatments. Thus, these changing demands could lead to the substantial diversification. Technology- As discussed in the earlier part of the report, the consumer demand of the customers in hair salon and spa industry especially in the area of health and beauty. In addition, there is an increasing demand for health spa to make sure that not only they have the latest technology; they also have the trained staff members. Legal- While considering the hair salon and spa, it is not surprising that health and safety legislations could be plentiful as well as restrictive. Therefore, it is necessary for the organizations in this industry to comply with the fundamental health and safety regulations. Therefore, when Angels of Beauty is in the need of innovation, they could utilize the platform of social media. However, it has to comply with the regulations of online trade. Environmental- While considering the environmental issues, it is necessary for the salons to focus on the factors that determine the success of the business. The companies should consider the environmental issues with which it should comply. In the case of health spa, this would probably be in respect to dangerous substance such as message oils as well as cleaning chemicals. SWOT analysis The SWOT analysis covers the key strength and the weaknesses within the organization as well as describes the opportunities and the threats faced by Angels of Beauty. Strength v Tremendous retail space in well-travelled mall v Well-trained staff with good hair cutting skills with an increasing style repertoire and customer-focused business practice v The staff at Angels of Beauty have the industry experience as the customers of Angels of Beauty are usually the celebrities v A wide range of services offered v Competitive price Weakness v As Angels of Beauty tend to use the premium pricing strategies, the people with low and middle income cannot take the service of the shop. This affects the customer base of the firm. v The firm has to struggle to appear continually on the edge in respect of fashion and style v Lack of social media engagement v Increasing competitors in the industry v Suppliers power high in the industry Opportunities v A steady growing market could be traditionally unaffected by the economic environment v The firm could gain the ability to minimize marginal fixed costs as the customer base increase v Proper involvement in social media could help the firm to attract the target customers from the remote area v Threats v The firm has the tough competition from already established firms v Frequent change in the traffic pattern as they relate to the mall where the Angels of Beauty is located Table 1: SWOT analysis (Source: Taherdoost, Sahibuddin Jalaliyoon, 2014) Marketing research and information The market research and the information found regarding the hair salon industry in Australia indicate that the firm has to face a state of competition and the buying patterns of the customers. Traditional barbers- The traditional barbers rarely serve the appointments; it is usually a walk in service. When the barbers are usually willing to provide whatever cut the people are interested, as they usually provide straight-forward haircuts. Therefore, they are not the big concerns for Angels of Beauty. Franchised Quick Salons- This category may involve the Supercuts or the best cut. This is the franchised version of other salon. However, the customer bases of type of firm are comparatively less. Consumer behavior analysis It is identified that people having the high income tend to prefer to use the luxury items offered by the salons. However, due to economic downturn in the country, a large percentage of the customers have become reluctant towards the luxury services provided by the hair salons and spas. Nevertheless, the premium customers have the tendency to select the premium products. Target market- The organization Angels of Beauty would focus on target three different market segments when it comes to sell its products and services. Men- Men could typically make 75% of the customers as they have shorter requiring a faster and simpler job Women lacking the ability to afford an upscale salon-Apart from the premium customers, the salon should provide the services that they could afford. This could help the firm to increase the customer base. However, as Angels of Beauty may not be successful in offering the upscale service for the women in affordable price as it has built the reputation with the premium clients. Teenagers- It is evident that trends are widely embraced by the teenagers whenever a new trend comes in the appearance. Therefore, besides the celebrity section, the brand could develop the products and services for the teenagers. This could be much easier to promote as a large percentage of teenagers spend a huge time on the social media. They can easily be accessed. Marketing plan (4ps) of analysis of the product and branding Products- The organization should develop a service, which includes four different items in single package. Thus, this 4 in one service includes Cosmetic Tattooing/ Eyebrow threading and shapping, waxing, spray tanning, skin treatment. This new service would bring more customers if the customers awareness are treated with the help of social media. Figure: 4ps marketing (Source: Mohamed, 2014) Price- The pricing strategy of this service would be based on the competitive pricing model with other similar service providers. Promotion- On the first purchase of the service, the customers would be provided with the discount of the 20%. In addition to this, the service would be promoted through the social media platforms. A new web page including the content of the service would be launched on facebook, Twitter, YouTube. Place- The outlet or store should be located in crowded part or the downturn of the city. Thus, they customers do not have to travel a lot find the shop. Distribution options- All AOBs products and services would be dispensed from its centrally located stores Outline of Integrated Marketing Communication plan (IMC)- The success of the new service would be placed to customers or the customers would be communicated mainly through the social media as it would help to reach the wide market including the remote areas. The organization should develop an advertising content or the video featuring the content of the services. The video featuring the content would be shared on each poplar social media platform such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and other commercial sites. In addition, with the help of B2B marketing strategy, Angel of Beauty salon could share the video and advertising content on the online retail sites. This would be costly and the firm may have to make large investment. Importance of social media marketing for hair salons It is a known fact that many of the customers or people are on social media platforms. Thus, the marketers have the reasons to promote their products and services through social media. It is observed that each social media platform has its own way of communicating with the users. As put forward by Roy, Maxwell and Carson (2014) retargeting the past customers that might not have done business with the firm for a while, the customer base can be increased. However, as the customer acquisition as well as increased exposure would be the primary focal area of the social media efforts. Facebook- Facebook is absolute necessity for every business owner and it is not only for the stylist and for salons. The salon owners are usually not o facebook; thereby, they should open a business accounting right away. It helps to stay in front of the current customers as well as enhance retention. It definitely helps to gain exposure. Twitter- Undoubtedly, the power of Twitter is highly underrated. It is a common fact that most of the customers are not on Twitter; however, the folks on Twitter are social media power users and they express their feelings online. In addition, the people of top stage of the society like celebrities mostly use Twitter. Thus, Salon could receive the popularity if one of the celebrities pays a visit after seeing the promotion on Twitter. YouTube: YouTube is one of the largest video sharing platforms used by billion of people around the world. Thus, showing the content on YouTube could be a great opportunity for Angel of Beauty to acquire customers. Recommendation- Share relevant posts that engage customers- Angel of beauty could post that customers want to respond to and prefer giving their opinions on. An effective example will be to ask question like Summer is coming! What will be your summer hair cut of choice. Figure: An example sharing content on Facebook (Source: Faccebook.com, 2017) Post picture and lots of them- One of the smart ways of doing this business could use Facebook as a visual medium. Angel of Beauty should be displaying the work that is most proud of. The pictures should include the holiday themed manicure or gorgeous party hairstyle and the picture of the outlet to show the best it could do. Figure: A post of Hair Style on Facebook (Source: Facebook.com, 2017) Providing justification for the recommendation It is necessary to promote the business to get increasing number of customers. As the firm is the in the need of accessing the wide audience, it needs to rely on the social media. Social media undoubtedly is a wide platform engaging millions of people. Thus, the firm has to post the pictures of the products and services to steal the attention of the users. In addition, as there have been millions of users, the firm will be able to learn the new demands and needs by the sharing the posts. Social media is one the tremendous platform to display that Angel of Beauty follows the trends to satisfy the needs. Thus, the users would learn the services that are stealing attention of people around the country. Financial and operational plan Number of activities Budget Store Front display AUD$ 5000 Plain Dealer advertisement AUD$ 8000 Products and services AUD$ 8000 Advertisement- Video to share on social media AUD$ 24000 Skilled employee to offer the service AUD$ 5000 Total AUD$ 50000 Table 2: Financial Plan Implementation and control strategy Implementation plan- Service requirement- The organization needs to buy the items for offering the 4 in one service, which include Cosmetic Tattooing/ Eyebrow threading and shapping, waxing, spray tanning, skin treatment. The high quality products of waxing and spray tanning should be bough that has no side effect on the skin. Service implementation details- Before offering the service to customers, the workers should be trained by highly professional experts who have industry experience. No. of activities Time Developing the advertising video with models and celebrities It would take a week A web page featuring the video should be developed It would take a month Selection of social media platform- YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Netflix It would take a week Popularity of the advertising content should be measured weekly- Likes, comments and other feedbacks It would take almost two month Further enhancement of the page and video content It would take a month Contingency planning-(Risk and difficulties) Issues generating enough sales through the week An expected slow first and second quarter that could have a significant effect on cash flow Road construction near the store would have a significant effect on consumer traffic Control strategy- The purpose of the marketing plan is to serve as the guide for achieving success meeting the objectives. Thus, the following areas should be treated carefully to gauge the performance. Revenue: Monthly and Annually Expense: Monthly and Annually Repeat business Customer satisfaction Strategy evaluation Reference list: Angels of Beauty. (2017).Angels of Beauty. Retrieved 4 January 2017, from https://angelsofbeauty.com.au/ Chan, J. M., Yazdanifard, R. (2014). How social media marketing can influence the profitability of an online company from a consumer point of view.Journal of Research in Marketing,2(2), 157-160. Coleman, L. J., Wu, P. L., Luther, R. (2014). Hair-brained or great-hair business?: Assessing alternative markets and product-service designs for successful startups by small-retail entrepreneurs.Journal of Business Research,67(6), 1136-1144. Grundn, K., Lagrosen, S. (2014). Social Media Marketing: A Win-win Situation. InProceedings of European Conference on Social Media(pp. 201-207). Grbz, T., Albayrak, Y. E., Alaybeyo?lu, E. (2014). Criteria weighting and 4P's planning in marketing using a fuzzy metric distance and AHP hybrid method.International Journal of Computational Intelligence Systems,7(sup1), 94-104. Halford, J. T., Hsu, S. H. (2014). Beauty is wealth: CEO appearance and shareholder value.Available at SSRN 2357756. Ioan?s, E., Stoica, I. (2014). Social media and its impact on consumers behavior.International Journal of Economic Practices and Theories,4(2), 295-303. Kavoura, A. (2014). Advertizing activities in social media and the creation of a community belonging in the digital era.Zeszyty Naukowe Ma?opolskiej Wy?szej Szko?y Ekonomicznej w Tarnowie, (2 (25)), 97-106. Kim, K., Ko, E., Lee, M. A., Mattila, P., Hoon Kim, K. (2014). Fashion collaboration effects on consumer response and customer equity in global luxury and SPA brand marketing.Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science,24(3), 350-364. Kucukusta, D., Guillet, B. D. (2014). Measuring spa-goers preferences: A conjoint analysis approach.International Journal of Hospitality Management,41, 115-124. Mohamed, A. B. P. (2014).Marketing dilemma: ai confinement spa case study(Doctoral dissertation, School of Entrepreneurship and Business, Universiti Malaysia Kelantan). Olamilekan, O. A., Dastane, O. (2014). Employee Emotional Competency in Establishing Consumer Satisfaction and Loyalty: Mediate Role of Rapport in Malaysia Spa and Beauty industry. Paul, T., Bihani, P. (2014). Expectation Based Customer Oriented Marketing Mix-A Conceptual Framework.International Journal of Research and Development-A Management Review (IJRDMR),3(1), 53-60. Perloff, R. M. (2014). Social media effects on young womens body image concerns: Theoretical perspectives and an agenda for research.Sex Roles,71(11-12), 363-377. Pirozhnik, I. (2014). Services of sanatorium and spa treatment in the tourist product of Belarus.Tourism role in the regional economy, 224. Prieler, M., Choi, J. (2014). Broadening the scope of social media effect research on body image concerns.Sex Roles,71(11-12), 378-388. Marketing and Social Engagement Question: Discuss about theMarketing and Social Engagement. Answer: Introduction The aim of this report is to utilise marketing theories and consider Disneyland Theme Parks for the next potential destination, Dubai. The theme park has been a great success and stepping stone in the Hong Kong Market (Kweh Cohen, 2016). This report provides a brief background of Disneyland Worldwide. Further, the Dubai market environment is analysed by identifying the potential target markets. The lessons learned from the Hong Kong market is presented so that they are not repeated in future expansion destinations. A SWOT analysis is undertaken if Disney enters the Dubai market. The 7P marketing mix strategy is adopted for making recommendations. Background Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Worldwide, Inc was founded in 1945 (Higgins Huque, 2014). It is responsible for building and managing companys vacation resorts and theme parks with a leisure orientation. Disney has its theme park launched in three destinations. Disney launched its theme park in Hong Kong in the year 2005 which was a joint venture between Walt Disney Company and Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (Higgins Huque, 2014). Dubai Market Environment The UAE is becoming a holiday destination that welcomes 5.5 million visitors annually (Picsolve 2015). According to Barnard (2016), Abu Dhabi and Dubai are ready for investing in theme parks. Dubai government is ready to increase its tourist visit to 20 million from 13.2 million by 2020 (Barnard 2016). With the competitive landscape, Dubai is making efforts and capital investment to increase the amount of attractions. UAE is a home to wealthy citizens and their luxurious spending habits make adventurous park a lucrative industry. The potential target market is children and adults aged 0-25 (Barnard 2016). Lessons Learned from Previous Mistakes According to the case study, Tokyo Disneyland provided a false sense of security for overseas expansion when it duplicated its American theme in 1983. Euro Disney in Paris created sensitivity issues as the French culture was completely ignored by Disney. The theme park was also accused of exporting the American culture into Europe. The dress code and management style was also American. The language, pricing of tickets, alcohol consumption issues also damaged its brand reputation in Paris. Therefore, it is learned that Disney must gel with the culture while creating the theme park. It is noticed that the theme park in Hong Kong considers Feng Shui highly important as the people consider it to create harmony between earth and humanity. Traditional and customary practices are conducted all over the park. Disney takes numbers, colours and even food based on Hong Kong culture. Hence, the key lesson learned is that Disney must gel with the local culture it expands the operations in (Buzind e, Choi, Wang, 2012). SWOT Analysis Strengths Disney has a reputed brand image that would boost Dubai adventure industry. Disney has a nourishing business and is the highest revenue generating theme parks. Weaknesses The target audience of Disney is children and there is a need to diversify target market (Dong Siu, 2013). The theme has been a failure in Paris leading to brand damage that could affect Dubai market. Opportunities There is a great scope of market development in Dubai. There is great employment opportunity involved in Dubai with the creation of theme park. Threats Localization is a significant threat as the venture may fail if it does not meet the culture. The political intervention of Dubai may cause hindrance in development of theme park. Recommendations The marketing mix strategy can be used for Dubai as under: Marketing Mix Description Product A theme park, water park and golf course can be used in the Disney entertainment complex. Clothing and accessories for children may also be offered (Hyun et al., 2016). Price Premium pricing strategy may be applied as Dubai has wealthy citizens. The products and services may be positioned as luxurious. Discount pricing approach can be applied for bundle deals or annual pass holders. Further, ticket prices can be altered as dynamic pricing approach while managing the crowd. Place The theme park shall be huge and the location must be chosen in a manner that must have abundant space for different themes. Promotion Targeting kids and adults, Disney can run promotions throughout the year through print media, television, internet and travel agencies. Physical Evidence The architecture, infrastructure, signage, ride experience, atmosphere and taglines are the elements of physical evidence that can be used in Dubai. Disney must put efforts to make the experience of visitors magical. People The employees shall be well trained, courteous and provide excellent service to the visitors. They must be capable of educating the consumers and providing them with maps so that it is convenient for them. The employees must be efficient to manage crowd of thousands of people regularly (Tsang et al., 2012). Process The people can directly visit the park and buy tickets at the counter. Additionally, online booking can be made available for park entry, dining or accommodation facilities. Conclusion Conclusively, Disney must adopt with the UAE culture to ensure success. The lessons learned from the blunders of Paris must not be repeated in Dubai or any other international market. The theme park operators must also keep a check on the positioning and effectiveness of the marketing strategies applied. The strategies can be modified as and when required. The elements must be consistent while creating trust and loyalty among its visitors. Pricing can be adjusted based on the crowd. References Barnard, L. (2016).UAE looks to capitalise on all the fun of theme parks | The National.Thenational.ae. Retrieved 6 December 2016, from https://www.thenational.ae/business/travel-tourism/uae-looks-to-capitalise-on-all-the-fun-of-theme-parks Buzinde, C., Choi, Y., Wang, A. (2012). Tourism Representations of Chinese Cosmology: The Case of Feng Shui Tourism.Annals Of Tourism Research,39(2), 975-996. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.annals.2011.11.015 Dong, P. Siu, N. (2013). Servicescape elements, customer predispositions and service experience: The case of theme park visitors.Tourism Management,36, 541-551. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2012.09.004 Higgins, C. Huque, A. (2014). Public Money and Mickey Mouse: Evaluating performance and accountability in the Hong Kong Disneyland joint venture publicprivate partnership.Public Management Review,17(8), 1103-1123. https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14719037.2014.881533 Hyun, K. H., Min, A., Kim, S. J., Lee, J. H. (2016). Investigating cultural uniqueness in theme parks through finding relationships between visual integration of visitor traffics and capacity of service facilities. International Journal of Architectural Computing, 14(3), 247-254. Kweh, J. Cohen, J. (2016).Hong Kong Disneyland: when big business meets feng shui, superstition and numerology. Retrieved from https://wps.pearsoned.com.au/wps/media/objects/10810/11070031/hong_kong_disneyland_when_big_business_meets_feng%20shui_superstition_and_numerology.pdf Picsolve,. (2015).UAEs Attraction and Theme Park Industry. Retrieved from https://www.picsolve.biz/files/2514/3168/6982/Picsolve_Insights_Report_UAE_2015.pdf Tsang, N., Lee, L., Wong, A., Chong, R. (2012). THEMEQUALAdapting the SERVQUAL Scale to Theme Park Services: A Case of Hong Kong Disneyland.Journal Of Travel Tourism Marketing,29(5), 416-429. https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10548408.2012.691391