Digital Marketing Plan
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Course
Tutor
Due Date
Digital Marketing Plan
Home for Good (HFG) that offers charitable services, particularly with the objective finding a home for children who seek for shelter through local organizations and churches in the UK. The client requests for recommendations on how to improve its digital marketing plan, taking into account that the firm is just in its infancy stage when it comes to digital marketing. The group acknowledges that digital marketing offers it a global reach such that it is possible to find new markets and trade internationally for only a slight investment (Chaffey & Ellis-Chadwick, 2019). Moreover, the client’s desire suggests that the company want to enjoy the lower costs associated with digital marketing. The team seems to understand that an adequately planned and well targeted digital marketing plan can reach the suitable customers at a much reduced cost than traditional marketing techniques. Consequently, the report outlines a plan that would enable HFG to improve its digital marketing framework. It elaborates what the firm needs to do to develop a more competitive marketing plan that is based on advanced technology.
Situation Analysis
The not-for-profit organisation has made significant strides towards adopting a digital marketing plan, but more need to happen to come up with a more effective and competitive system. Performing a SWOT analysis of the HFG’s attempts to develop a digital marketing plan indicates that whereas the plan has strengths, it also has weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that could deter the achievement of the targeted goals. The following table provides an overview of the SWOT analysis of the organisation’s attempts to embrace a digital marketing plan;
| Strengths HFG’s web performance is above average. Analysis indicates that the page view is about 186,000 whereas the average spend time is 1 minute and 23 seconds compared to the average seconds per page (Klipfolio, 2022). The organisation’s website’s bounce arte is 65.98%, thus surpassing the recommended range of 26-40%. The group has made some strides towards developing its social media presence. Specifically, it relates with stakeholders through platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. | Weaknesses Whereas the final statement on the website reveals that the interest in the web page appears to be high, the web page does not give the utmost services and consumer value that it could have provided to the interested groups. Page like percentages on Facebook have not been impressive since November 2021 by nearly 75%, thus depicting a significant depreciation in Facebook use. Facebook’s page reach has not been impressive save for a slight increase in April and again in July 2021, but with another drop of 21.5% by the end of 2021. |
| Opportunities Explores various digital marketing avenues.Already has some knowledge on using e-mail, social media and Internet-based advertising pages.The financial strength can allow it to develop an effective digital marketing platform. | Threats Even though the website’s user acquisition has not been very low, general trends at the end of 2021 showed significant inconsistencies, and could possibly threaten the firm’s attempt to improve its digital marketing via its website. Facebook page visits dropped significantly towards the end of 2021 by nearly 67%. |
Objectives
The SMART model serves as the basis for setting the objectives that guide this practice. It means that the objectives are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound. However, failing to rely on this framework in developing the objectives could result in unrealistic formulations that could either be difficult or impossible to achieve. The following are the key objectives guiding the practice;
- By the end of the intervention and improvement processes, the team should have achieved a search engine optimization for the company’s web page.
- To minimise bounce rates in the web page by the time the newly developed digital marketing plan would have been installed.
- To reduce the fuss in the web page and improve ease of navigation at the time of enacting the newly formulated plan.
- Improve the access to social media while at the same time enhancing the rate of social media participation at the time of implementation.
- Advance social media engagement by increasing the content at the time of enacting the newly formulated digital marketing plan.
- Aspire to develop an improved, customised, and omnichannel marketing platforms and practices.
The identified objectives link to HFG’s wider organisational objectives and visions. The primary goal of HFG is to achieve demonstrable advancement in the aim of ending chronic homelessness, by helping those belonging to the key priority homelessness areas to achieve and retain housing with suitable support initiatives. However, the group should be able to communicate its aspiration using the most effective approach. Therefore, being able to relay the firm’s objective through digital marketing platforms provides a suitable opportunity to achieve the homelessness-focused program’s chief objective.
Strategy
The most effective digital marketing plan for HFG is to make considerable improvements in the already existing structures, especially with regard enhancing the weak areas. A suitable approach in this case is to conduct advanced training on how to address the weak areas and achieve the targeted information. It is encouraging that the firm already has basic structures, especially with the way it uses its website to engage stakeholders and relay vital information. An opportunity that the group can use to improve the training practice is that more facilities nowadays offer valuable insight into how to improve digital marketing practices. Moreover, it is also now possible to learn how to improve digital marketing practices via online tutorial pro programs that have come as a reprieve to many people. However, the primary challenge the team may encounter in its attempt to train workers and equip them with skills on how to engage more people through the firm’s website and social media avenues is the resistance from some members of staff who may not be prepared for change. Consequently, the team should follow a suitable plan that would enable concerned employees to undergo necessary training. An effective approach to promote change, or encourage workers in charge of marketing practices to undergo the training is the Kurt Lewin’s change model. The initial phase when using the change model is unfreezing, which entails telling members why they need to embrace change (Hussain et al., 2018). The second phase in the model is change, which involves enacting the anticipated transformations, which in this case is undergoing the training. The final process when using the model is refreezing, which entails adopting measures that would encourage members to cling to the enacted changes (Hussain et al., 2018). The change is really necessary and the group must pay attention to all key aspects to achieve impressive results.
The organization would achieve impressive results in facilitating the training process by following the McKinsey 7-S model that identifies the areas of an organization that must perform well for the organization to succeed. The seven elements that HFG needs to consider when deploying the model fall into two chief divisions – hard and soft elements. The hard elements are strategy, structure, and systems, while the soft elements are shared values, staff, style, and skills (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). Strategy in this case requires the firm to have a plan for creating and upholding a competitive advantage over competing firms. The organization should rely on a clear path while pursuing the training that would equip employees with advanced skills on how to engage stakeholders via the firm’s website and social media avenues (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). The initiative is likely to succeed if the structure is effective enough, which refers how the structured forms coordinate to contribute towards achieving a common goal. Besides, the group would succeed in its training practices by having effective systems in place (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). The group in this case should encourage procedures and activities that get the work done. In addition, having shared values will facilitate the realization of the targeted aspirations. Also important is the leadership approach enacted to steer the entire process. Organisational leaders need to support all proposals and enact adequate resources towards making the venture prosperous. Moreover, the employees should demonstrate general skills and capabilities while undergoing the training to benefit from the whole exercise (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). The actual competencies and skills that employees display while undergoing the empowerment process will allow them acquire new information that may require critical thinking or prior knowledge on how digital marketing works. Engaging and facilitating the training while adhering to the McKinsey 7-S model provides a suitable chance to achieve the targeted objectives.
Tactics
In addition to training employees, a tact that would help the company to hasten its enactment of an effective digital marketing plan is to sensitise target audience about the company’s aspiration to increase its interaction via digital platforms. Hence, the group may be compelled to put posts on all its digital platforms, including the group’s website and social media avenues. The team in charge of marketing practice may be compelled to place similar information on other channels such as electronic media avenues like TV and radio stations. The team while doing this should not forget that it tries to reach audiences through different digital media avenues and creating awareness that the firm is renewing its interactions on digital media on certain avenues while disregarding the others may not be effective. It is encouraging that the organisation has a large budget that would allow it to conduct the exercise without much constraint. However, the group may be forced to change tact while calling on the target audience to increase their interaction with the firm via digital media avenues considering that its activities on various social media channels, especially Facebook is decreasing.
Nonetheless, the group would be more successful in its call for the audience to increase their indulgence of the firm via digital media platforms if the group employs the 7Ps marketing mix strategy model that offers valuable insight on how to appeal to consumers. Consequently, the group should inform the target audience that it would improve the quality of its services and would consider the views and interests of every individual. The team while considering the first P (product) need to inform the target audience that the group is committed to give the needed support, and will provide a variety of services to help as many people as possible (Samani & Toroujeni, 2017). Concerning the second p (promotion), should build a respectful public relations with all its target audiences while using effective communication strategies to appeal to as many people as possible. A fundamental aspect to consider while sensitising people is to stress on the fact that the group will offer affordable prices (Samani & Toroujeni, 2017). Also important is to remind people about the various places or avenues through which they can access the company’s services. The fifth P (people), the sixth P (process), and the seventh P (physical evidence) are equally essential when sensitising members to increase their engagement via digital media avenues. People requires the firm to install competent individuals who will be able to appeal to as many individuals as possible to increase their interaction with the firm through its social media avenues, while process requires the company to be customer focused in its call, ad to be guided by evidence and research findings (Samani & Toroujeni, 2017). Finally, the team while urging stakeholders to become more interactive via digital media forms should provide physical evidence of is staff, sales, and online experiences among other factors that would make the target audience heed to the call. Effective application of the 7Ps would contribute significantly in the organisation’s attempts to engage major parties.
Actions
The most appropriate approach in this case is to embrace the concept of omni-channel marketing, which is a technique where an establishment promotes and markets its services and products via all channels, apparatus, and avenues using multifaceted approaches. The benefit with omni-channel marketing is it offers the chance to reach buyers where they are with more enticing offers (Payne et al., 2017). The group in this case must display much proficiency in engaging stakeholders or offering customer support via digital avenues such as video chats, live conversations, messaging, and phone conversations (Payne et al., 2017). Whatever the approach or avenue, the experience should be relevant to the customer and consistent (Payne et al., 2017). Therefore, working towards creating a seamless communication approach by centering on omni-channel marketing offers a suitable opportunity to engage more people while offering more personified and customised services.
Nonetheless, the initiative is more likely to succeed if the team in charge of the process employs the 4 Cs of integrated communication – clarity, consistency, credibility, and competitiveness. Clarity advocates for the creation of a message that is simple and clear, and which is not likely to challenge the audience in any way (Pardede, 2020). Moreover, the team should be consistent in interacting with clients across the omni-channel marketing platforms. Being consistent reinstates confidence among clients, and helps the firm to avoid inappropriate confusion. Furthermore, the idea the firm transmits across the various omni-channel marketing avenues should be credible such that customers can relate or create sense out of them (Pardede, 2020). More fundamentally, the group should strive as much possible to be competitive in its engagement approaches with customers across the various avenues. Adequate adherence to the 4Cs of integrated communication presents a better chance to succeed in omni-channel marketing.
Control
The team should consider certain key metrics that would help to understand whether the group is headed towards the right path in implementing its digital marketing plan or not. A key performance indicator (KPI) in this case is an increase in participation, especially on Facebook where activities have taken a downward trend, especially in the recent past. Increases likes and responses would suggest that the training and sensitisation impacted positively on the group’s desire to improve its marketing practices over digital platforms. A suitable framework in this case is Mendelow stakeholder analysis that examine stakeholders’ attitude towards a particular initiative (Ginige et al., 2018). The firm in this instance categories stakeholders into four divisions – low power/low interest, low power/high interest, high power/low interest, and high power/high interest (Ginige et al., 2018). Stakeholders in all these categories, especially those who belong to the high power/high interest category should show positive response towards all initiatives. More fundamentally, HFG should be able to enjoy a return on investment (ROI) on the project. Normally, the firm should appeal to more stakeholders via digital media platforms while witnessing an improvement in activity in all these avenues.
Objective Hierarchy and Relationship
| Organisational Objectives | Marketing Objectives | Critical Success Factor | KPI |
| To improve digital marketing practices by August 2022. | To expand in the UK and global market via brand awareness. | To improve interaction via the firm’s website by August 2022. | Increased engagement and response in digital platforms. |
| To facilitate communication by the time the plan is implemented. | To increase revenue generation by the time the plan is implemented and used for various months. | To improve interaction via the firm’s social media avenues by August 2022. | Positive response from stakeholders. |
References
Chaffey, D., & Ellis-Chadwick, F. (2019). Digital marketing: strategy, implementation and practice. London: Pearson.
Ginige, K., Amaratunga, D., & Haigh, R. (2018). Mapping stakeholders associated with societal challenges: A methodological framework. Procedia Engineering, 212, 1195-1202. doi:10.1016/j.proeng.2018.01.154
Hussain, S., Lei, S., Akram, T., Haider, M., Hussain, S., & Ali, M. (2018). Kurt Lewin’s process model for organizational change: The role of leadership and employee involvement: A critical review. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, 3, 123-127. doi:10.1016/j.jik.2016.07.002
Klipfolio. (2020). Average time on page: Understanding Google analytics. Retrieved April 4, 2022, from https://www.klipfolio.com/metrics/marketing/average-time-on-page
Kocaoglu, B., & Demir, E. (2019). The use of McKinsey s 7S framework as a strategic planning and economic assestment tool in the process of digital transformation. Presscademia, 9(9), 114-119. doi:10.17261/Pressacademia.2019.1078
Pardede, P. (2020). Integrating the 4Cs into EFL integrated skills learning. Journal of English Teaching, 6(1), 71-85. doi:10.33541/jet.v6i1.190
Payne, L., Peltier, J., & Barger, V. (2017). Omni-channel marketing, integrated marketing communications and consumer engagement: A research agenda. Journal of Research in Interactive Marketing, 11(2), 185-197. doi:10.1108/JRIM-08-2016-0091
Samani, F., & Toroujeni, S. (2017). Investigating the role of marketing mix elements (7Ps) and strategic planning in development of Iranian English language departments. IJSELL, 5(4), 50-59. doi:10.20431/2347-3134.0504008
Digital Marketing Plan
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Course
Tutor
Due Date
Digital Marketing Plan
Home for Good (HFG) that offers charitable services, particularly with the objective finding a home for children who seek for shelter through local organizations and churches in the UK. The client requests for recommendations on how to improve its digital marketing plan, taking into account that the firm is just in its infancy stage when it comes to digital marketing. The group acknowledges that digital marketing offers it a global reach such that it is possible to find new markets and trade internationally for only a slight investment (Chaffey & Ellis-Chadwick, 2019). Moreover, the client’s desire suggests that the company want to enjoy the lower costs associated with digital marketing. The team seems to understand that an adequately planned and well targeted digital marketing plan can reach the suitable customers at a much reduced cost than traditional marketing techniques. Consequently, the report outlines a plan that would enable HFG to improve its digital marketing framework. It elaborates what the firm needs to do to develop a more competitive marketing plan that is based on advanced technology.
Situation Analysis
The not-for-profit organisation has made significant strides towards adopting a digital marketing plan, but more need to happen to come up with a more effective and competitive system. Performing a SWOT analysis of the HFG’s attempts to develop a digital marketing plan indicates that whereas the plan has strengths, it also has weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that could deter the achievement of the targeted goals. The following table provides an overview of the SWOT analysis of the organisation’s attempts to embrace a digital marketing plan;
| Strengths HFG’s web performance is above average. Analysis indicates that the page view is about 186,000 whereas the average spend time is 1 minute and 23 seconds compared to the average seconds per page (Klipfolio, 2022). The organisation’s website’s bounce arte is 65.98%, thus surpassing the recommended range of 26-40%. The group has made some strides towards developing its social media presence. Specifically, it relates with stakeholders through platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. | Weaknesses Whereas the final statement on the website reveals that the interest in the web page appears to be high, the web page does not give the utmost services and consumer value that it could have provided to the interested groups. Page like percentages on Facebook have not been impressive since November 2021 by nearly 75%, thus depicting a significant depreciation in Facebook use. Facebook’s page reach has not been impressive save for a slight increase in April and again in July 2021, but with another drop of 21.5% by the end of 2021. |
| Opportunities Explores various digital marketing avenues.Already has some knowledge on using e-mail, social media and Internet-based advertising pages.The financial strength can allow it to develop an effective digital marketing platform. | Threats Even though the website’s user acquisition has not been very low, general trends at the end of 2021 showed significant inconsistencies, and could possibly threaten the firm’s attempt to improve its digital marketing via its website. Facebook page visits dropped significantly towards the end of 2021 by nearly 67%. |
Objectives
The SMART model serves as the basis for setting the objectives that guide this practice. It means that the objectives are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound. However, failing to rely on this framework in developing the objectives could result in unrealistic formulations that could either be difficult or impossible to achieve. The following are the key objectives guiding the practice;
- By the end of the intervention and improvement processes, the team should have achieved a search engine optimization for the company’s web page.
- To minimise bounce rates in the web page by the time the newly developed digital marketing plan would have been installed.
- To reduce the fuss in the web page and improve ease of navigation at the time of enacting the newly formulated plan.
- Improve the access to social media while at the same time enhancing the rate of social media participation at the time of implementation.
- Advance social media engagement by increasing the content at the time of enacting the newly formulated digital marketing plan.
- Aspire to develop an improved, customised, and omnichannel marketing platforms and practices.
The identified objectives link to HFG’s wider organisational objectives and visions. The primary goal of HFG is to achieve demonstrable advancement in the aim of ending chronic homelessness, by helping those belonging to the key priority homelessness areas to achieve and retain housing with suitable support initiatives. However, the group should be able to communicate its aspiration using the most effective approach. Therefore, being able to relay the firm’s objective through digital marketing platforms provides a suitable opportunity to achieve the homelessness-focused program’s chief objective.
Strategy
The most effective digital marketing plan for HFG is to make considerable improvements in the already existing structures, especially with regard enhancing the weak areas. A suitable approach in this case is to conduct advanced training on how to address the weak areas and achieve the targeted information. It is encouraging that the firm already has basic structures, especially with the way it uses its website to engage stakeholders and relay vital information. An opportunity that the group can use to improve the training practice is that more facilities nowadays offer valuable insight into how to improve digital marketing practices. Moreover, it is also now possible to learn how to improve digital marketing practices via online tutorial pro programs that have come as a reprieve to many people. However, the primary challenge the team may encounter in its attempt to train workers and equip them with skills on how to engage more people through the firm’s website and social media avenues is the resistance from some members of staff who may not be prepared for change. Consequently, the team should follow a suitable plan that would enable concerned employees to undergo necessary training. An effective approach to promote change, or encourage workers in charge of marketing practices to undergo the training is the Kurt Lewin’s change model. The initial phase when using the change model is unfreezing, which entails telling members why they need to embrace change (Hussain et al., 2018). The second phase in the model is change, which involves enacting the anticipated transformations, which in this case is undergoing the training. The final process when using the model is refreezing, which entails adopting measures that would encourage members to cling to the enacted changes (Hussain et al., 2018). The change is really necessary and the group must pay attention to all key aspects to achieve impressive results.
The organization would achieve impressive results in facilitating the training process by following the McKinsey 7-S model that identifies the areas of an organization that must perform well for the organization to succeed. The seven elements that HFG needs to consider when deploying the model fall into two chief divisions – hard and soft elements. The hard elements are strategy, structure, and systems, while the soft elements are shared values, staff, style, and skills (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). Strategy in this case requires the firm to have a plan for creating and upholding a competitive advantage over competing firms. The organization should rely on a clear path while pursuing the training that would equip employees with advanced skills on how to engage stakeholders via the firm’s website and social media avenues (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). The initiative is likely to succeed if the structure is effective enough, which refers how the structured forms coordinate to contribute towards achieving a common goal. Besides, the group would succeed in its training practices by having effective systems in place (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). The group in this case should encourage procedures and activities that get the work done. In addition, having shared values will facilitate the realization of the targeted aspirations. Also important is the leadership approach enacted to steer the entire process. Organisational leaders need to support all proposals and enact adequate resources towards making the venture prosperous. Moreover, the employees should demonstrate general skills and capabilities while undergoing the training to benefit from the whole exercise (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). The actual competencies and skills that employees display while undergoing the empowerment process will allow them acquire new information that may require critical thinking or prior knowledge on how digital marketing works. Engaging and facilitating the training while adhering to the McKinsey 7-S model provides a suitable chance to achieve the targeted objectives.
Tactics
In addition to training employees, a tact that would help the company to hasten its enactment of an effective digital marketing plan is to sensitise target audience about the company’s aspiration to increase its interaction via digital platforms. Hence, the group may be compelled to put posts on all its digital platforms, including the group’s website and social media avenues. The team in charge of marketing practice may be compelled to place similar information on other channels such as electronic media avenues like TV and radio stations. The team while doing this should not forget that it tries to reach audiences through different digital media avenues and creating awareness that the firm is renewing its interactions on digital media on certain avenues while disregarding the others may not be effective. It is encouraging that the organisation has a large budget that would allow it to conduct the exercise without much constraint. However, the group may be forced to change tact while calling on the target audience to increase their interaction with the firm via digital media avenues considering that its activities on various social media channels, especially Facebook is decreasing.
Nonetheless, the group would be more successful in its call for the audience to increase their indulgence of the firm via digital media platforms if the group employs the 7Ps marketing mix strategy model that offers valuable insight on how to appeal to consumers. Consequently, the group should inform the target audience that it would improve the quality of its services and would consider the views and interests of every individual. The team while considering the first P (product) need to inform the target audience that the group is committed to give the needed support, and will provide a variety of services to help as many people as possible (Samani & Toroujeni, 2017). Concerning the second p (promotion), should build a respectful public relations with all its target audiences while using effective communication strategies to appeal to as many people as possible. A fundamental aspect to consider while sensitising people is to stress on the fact that the group will offer affordable prices (Samani & Toroujeni, 2017). Also important is to remind people about the various places or avenues through which they can access the company’s services. The fifth P (people), the sixth P (process), and the seventh P (physical evidence) are equally essential when sensitising members to increase their engagement via digital media avenues. People requires the firm to install competent individuals who will be able to appeal to as many individuals as possible to increase their interaction with the firm through its social media avenues, while process requires the company to be customer focused in its call, ad to be guided by evidence and research findings (Samani & Toroujeni, 2017). Finally, the team while urging stakeholders to become more interactive via digital media forms should provide physical evidence of is staff, sales, and online experiences among other factors that would make the target audience heed to the call. Effective application of the 7Ps would contribute significantly in the organisation’s attempts to engage major parties.
Actions
The most appropriate approach in this case is to embrace the concept of omni-channel marketing, which is a technique where an establishment promotes and markets its services and products via all channels, apparatus, and avenues using multifaceted approaches. The benefit with omni-channel marketing is it offers the chance to reach buyers where they are with more enticing offers (Payne et al., 2017). The group in this case must display much proficiency in engaging stakeholders or offering customer support via digital avenues such as video chats, live conversations, messaging, and phone conversations (Payne et al., 2017). Whatever the approach or avenue, the experience should be relevant to the customer and consistent (Payne et al., 2017). Therefore, working towards creating a seamless communication approach by centering on omni-channel marketing offers a suitable opportunity to engage more people while offering more personified and customised services.
Nonetheless, the initiative is more likely to succeed if the team in charge of the process employs the 4 Cs of integrated communication – clarity, consistency, credibility, and competitiveness. Clarity advocates for the creation of a message that is simple and clear, and which is not likely to challenge the audience in any way (Pardede, 2020). Moreover, the team should be consistent in interacting with clients across the omni-channel marketing platforms. Being consistent reinstates confidence among clients, and helps the firm to avoid inappropriate confusion. Furthermore, the idea the firm transmits across the various omni-channel marketing avenues should be credible such that customers can relate or create sense out of them (Pardede, 2020). More fundamentally, the group should strive as much possible to be competitive in its engagement approaches with customers across the various avenues. Adequate adherence to the 4Cs of integrated communication presents a better chance to succeed in omni-channel marketing.
Control
The team should consider certain key metrics that would help to understand whether the group is headed towards the right path in implementing its digital marketing plan or not. A key performance indicator (KPI) in this case is an increase in participation, especially on Facebook where activities have taken a downward trend, especially in the recent past. Increases likes and responses would suggest that the training and sensitisation impacted positively on the group’s desire to improve its marketing practices over digital platforms. A suitable framework in this case is Mendelow stakeholder analysis that examine stakeholders’ attitude towards a particular initiative (Ginige et al., 2018). The firm in this instance categories stakeholders into four divisions – low power/low interest, low power/high interest, high power/low interest, and high power/high interest (Ginige et al., 2018). Stakeholders in all these categories, especially those who belong to the high power/high interest category should show positive response towards all initiatives. More fundamentally, HFG should be able to enjoy a return on investment (ROI) on the project. Normally, the firm should appeal to more stakeholders via digital media platforms while witnessing an improvement in activity in all these avenues.
Objective Hierarchy and Relationship
| Organisational Objectives | Marketing Objectives | Critical Success Factor | KPI |
| To improve digital marketing practices by August 2022. | To expand in the UK and global market via brand awareness. | To improve interaction via the firm’s website by August 2022. | Increased engagement and response in digital platforms. |
| To facilitate communication by the time the plan is implemented. | To increase revenue generation by the time the plan is implemented and used for various months. | To improve interaction via the firm’s social media avenues by August 2022. | Positive response from stakeholders. |
References
Chaffey, D., & Ellis-Chadwick, F. (2019). Digital marketing: strategy, implementation and practice. London: Pearson.
Ginige, K., Amaratunga, D., & Haigh, R. (2018). Mapping stakeholders associated with societal challenges: A methodological framework. Procedia Engineering, 212, 1195-1202. doi:10.1016/j.proeng.2018.01.154
Hussain, S., Lei, S., Akram, T., Haider, M., Hussain, S., & Ali, M. (2018). Kurt Lewin’s process model for organizational change: The role of leadership and employee involvement: A critical review. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, 3, 123-127. doi:10.1016/j.jik.2016.07.002
Klipfolio. (2020). Average time on page: Understanding Google analytics. Retrieved April 4, 2022, from https://www.klipfolio.com/metrics/marketing/average-time-on-page
Kocaoglu, B., & Demir, E. (2019). The use of McKinsey s 7S framework as a strategic planning and economic assestment tool in the process of digital transformation. Presscademia, 9(9), 114-119. doi:10.17261/Pressacademia.2019.1078
Pardede, P. (2020). Integrating the 4Cs into EFL integrated skills learning. Journal of English Teaching, 6(1), 71-85. doi:10.33541/jet.v6i1.190
Payne, L., Peltier, J., & Barger, V. (2017). Omni-channel marketing, integrated marketing communications and consumer engagement: A research agenda. Journal of Research in Interactive Marketing, 11(2), 185-197. doi:10.1108/JRIM-08-2016-0091
Samani, F., & Toroujeni, S. (2017). Investigating the role of marketing mix elements (7Ps) and strategic planning in development of Iranian English language departments. IJSELL, 5(4), 50-59. doi:10.20431/2347-3134.0504008
Digital Marketing Plan
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Course
Tutor
Due Date
Digital Marketing Plan
Home for Good (HFG) that offers charitable services, particularly with the objective finding a home for children who seek for shelter through local organizations and churches in the UK. The client requests for recommendations on how to improve its digital marketing plan, taking into account that the firm is just in its infancy stage when it comes to digital marketing. The group acknowledges that digital marketing offers it a global reach such that it is possible to find new markets and trade internationally for only a slight investment (Chaffey & Ellis-Chadwick, 2019). Moreover, the client’s desire suggests that the company want to enjoy the lower costs associated with digital marketing. The team seems to understand that an adequately planned and well targeted digital marketing plan can reach the suitable customers at a much reduced cost than traditional marketing techniques. Consequently, the report outlines a plan that would enable HFG to improve its digital marketing framework. It elaborates what the firm needs to do to develop a more competitive marketing plan that is based on advanced technology.
Situation Analysis
The not-for-profit organisation has made significant strides towards adopting a digital marketing plan, but more need to happen to come up with a more effective and competitive system. Performing a SWOT analysis of the HFG’s attempts to develop a digital marketing plan indicates that whereas the plan has strengths, it also has weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that could deter the achievement of the targeted goals. The following table provides an overview of the SWOT analysis of the organisation’s attempts to embrace a digital marketing plan;
| Strengths HFG’s web performance is above average. Analysis indicates that the page view is about 186,000 whereas the average spend time is 1 minute and 23 seconds compared to the average seconds per page (Klipfolio, 2022). The organisation’s website’s bounce arte is 65.98%, thus surpassing the recommended range of 26-40%. The group has made some strides towards developing its social media presence. Specifically, it relates with stakeholders through platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. | Weaknesses Whereas the final statement on the website reveals that the interest in the web page appears to be high, the web page does not give the utmost services and consumer value that it could have provided to the interested groups. Page like percentages on Facebook have not been impressive since November 2021 by nearly 75%, thus depicting a significant depreciation in Facebook use. Facebook’s page reach has not been impressive save for a slight increase in April and again in July 2021, but with another drop of 21.5% by the end of 2021. |
| Opportunities Explores various digital marketing avenues.Already has some knowledge on using e-mail, social media and Internet-based advertising pages.The financial strength can allow it to develop an effective digital marketing platform. | Threats Even though the website’s user acquisition has not been very low, general trends at the end of 2021 showed significant inconsistencies, and could possibly threaten the firm’s attempt to improve its digital marketing via its website. Facebook page visits dropped significantly towards the end of 2021 by nearly 67%. |
Objectives
The SMART model serves as the basis for setting the objectives that guide this practice. It means that the objectives are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound. However, failing to rely on this framework in developing the objectives could result in unrealistic formulations that could either be difficult or impossible to achieve. The following are the key objectives guiding the practice;
- By the end of the intervention and improvement processes, the team should have achieved a search engine optimization for the company’s web page.
- To minimise bounce rates in the web page by the time the newly developed digital marketing plan would have been installed.
- To reduce the fuss in the web page and improve ease of navigation at the time of enacting the newly formulated plan.
- Improve the access to social media while at the same time enhancing the rate of social media participation at the time of implementation.
- Advance social media engagement by increasing the content at the time of enacting the newly formulated digital marketing plan.
- Aspire to develop an improved, customised, and omnichannel marketing platforms and practices.
The identified objectives link to HFG’s wider organisational objectives and visions. The primary goal of HFG is to achieve demonstrable advancement in the aim of ending chronic homelessness, by helping those belonging to the key priority homelessness areas to achieve and retain housing with suitable support initiatives. However, the group should be able to communicate its aspiration using the most effective approach. Therefore, being able to relay the firm’s objective through digital marketing platforms provides a suitable opportunity to achieve the homelessness-focused program’s chief objective.
Strategy
The most effective digital marketing plan for HFG is to make considerable improvements in the already existing structures, especially with regard enhancing the weak areas. A suitable approach in this case is to conduct advanced training on how to address the weak areas and achieve the targeted information. It is encouraging that the firm already has basic structures, especially with the way it uses its website to engage stakeholders and relay vital information. An opportunity that the group can use to improve the training practice is that more facilities nowadays offer valuable insight into how to improve digital marketing practices. Moreover, it is also now possible to learn how to improve digital marketing practices via online tutorial pro programs that have come as a reprieve to many people. However, the primary challenge the team may encounter in its attempt to train workers and equip them with skills on how to engage more people through the firm’s website and social media avenues is the resistance from some members of staff who may not be prepared for change. Consequently, the team should follow a suitable plan that would enable concerned employees to undergo necessary training. An effective approach to promote change, or encourage workers in charge of marketing practices to undergo the training is the Kurt Lewin’s change model. The initial phase when using the change model is unfreezing, which entails telling members why they need to embrace change (Hussain et al., 2018). The second phase in the model is change, which involves enacting the anticipated transformations, which in this case is undergoing the training. The final process when using the model is refreezing, which entails adopting measures that would encourage members to cling to the enacted changes (Hussain et al., 2018). The change is really necessary and the group must pay attention to all key aspects to achieve impressive results.
The organization would achieve impressive results in facilitating the training process by following the McKinsey 7-S model that identifies the areas of an organization that must perform well for the organization to succeed. The seven elements that HFG needs to consider when deploying the model fall into two chief divisions – hard and soft elements. The hard elements are strategy, structure, and systems, while the soft elements are shared values, staff, style, and skills (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). Strategy in this case requires the firm to have a plan for creating and upholding a competitive advantage over competing firms. The organization should rely on a clear path while pursuing the training that would equip employees with advanced skills on how to engage stakeholders via the firm’s website and social media avenues (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). The initiative is likely to succeed if the structure is effective enough, which refers how the structured forms coordinate to contribute towards achieving a common goal. Besides, the group would succeed in its training practices by having effective systems in place (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). The group in this case should encourage procedures and activities that get the work done. In addition, having shared values will facilitate the realization of the targeted aspirations. Also important is the leadership approach enacted to steer the entire process. Organisational leaders need to support all proposals and enact adequate resources towards making the venture prosperous. Moreover, the employees should demonstrate general skills and capabilities while undergoing the training to benefit from the whole exercise (Kocaoglu & Demir, 2019). The actual competencies and skills that employees display while undergoing the empowerment process will allow them acquire new information that may require critical thinking or prior knowledge on how digital marketing works. Engaging and facilitating the training while adhering to the McKinsey 7-S model provides a suitable chance to achieve the targeted objectives.
Tactics
In addition to training employees, a tact that would help the company to hasten its enactment of an effective digital marketing plan is to sensitise target audience about the company’s aspiration to increase its interaction via digital platforms. Hence, the group may be compelled to put posts on all its digital platforms, including the group’s website and social media avenues. The team in charge of marketing practice may be compelled to place similar information on other channels such as electronic media avenues like TV and radio stations. The team while doing this should not forget that it tries to reach audiences through different digital media avenues and creating awareness that the firm is renewing its interactions on digital media on certain avenues while disregarding the others may not be effective. It is encouraging that the organisation has a large budget that would allow it to conduct the exercise without much constraint. However, the group may be forced to change tact while calling on the target audience to increase their interaction with the firm via digital media avenues considering that its activities on various social media channels, especially Facebook is decreasing.
Nonetheless, the group would be more successful in its call for the audience to increase their indulgence of the firm via digital media platforms if the group employs the 7Ps marketing mix strategy model that offers valuable insight on how to appeal to consumers. Consequently, the group should inform the target audience that it would improve the quality of its services and would consider the views and interests of every individual. The team while considering the first P (product) need to inform the target audience that the group is committed to give the needed support, and will provide a variety of services to help as many people as possible (Samani & Toroujeni, 2017). Concerning the second p (promotion), should build a respectful public relations with all its target audiences while using effective communication strategies to appeal to as many people as possible. A fundamental aspect to consider while sensitising people is to stress on the fact that the group will offer affordable prices (Samani & Toroujeni, 2017). Also important is to remind people about the various places or avenues through which they can access the company’s services. The fifth P (people), the sixth P (process), and the seventh P (physical evidence) are equally essential when sensitising members to increase their engagement via digital media avenues. People requires the firm to install competent individuals who will be able to appeal to as many individuals as possible to increase their interaction with the firm through its social media avenues, while process requires the company to be customer focused in its call, ad to be guided by evidence and research findings (Samani & Toroujeni, 2017). Finally, the team while urging stakeholders to become more interactive via digital media forms should provide physical evidence of is staff, sales, and online experiences among other factors that would make the target audience heed to the call. Effective application of the 7Ps would contribute significantly in the organisation’s attempts to engage major parties.
Actions
The most appropriate approach in this case is to embrace the concept of omni-channel marketing, which is a technique where an establishment promotes and markets its services and products via all channels, apparatus, and avenues using multifaceted approaches. The benefit with omni-channel marketing is it offers the chance to reach buyers where they are with more enticing offers (Payne et al., 2017). The group in this case must display much proficiency in engaging stakeholders or offering customer support via digital avenues such as video chats, live conversations, messaging, and phone conversations (Payne et al., 2017). Whatever the approach or avenue, the experience should be relevant to the customer and consistent (Payne et al., 2017). Therefore, working towards creating a seamless communication approach by centering on omni-channel marketing offers a suitable opportunity to engage more people while offering more personified and customised services.
Nonetheless, the initiative is more likely to succeed if the team in charge of the process employs the 4 Cs of integrated communication – clarity, consistency, credibility, and competitiveness. Clarity advocates for the creation of a message that is simple and clear, and which is not likely to challenge the audience in any way (Pardede, 2020). Moreover, the team should be consistent in interacting with clients across the omni-channel marketing platforms. Being consistent reinstates confidence among clients, and helps the firm to avoid inappropriate confusion. Furthermore, the idea the firm transmits across the various omni-channel marketing avenues should be credible such that customers can relate or create sense out of them (Pardede, 2020). More fundamentally, the group should strive as much possible to be competitive in its engagement approaches with customers across the various avenues. Adequate adherence to the 4Cs of integrated communication presents a better chance to succeed in omni-channel marketing.
Control
The team should consider certain key metrics that would help to understand whether the group is headed towards the right path in implementing its digital marketing plan or not. A key performance indicator (KPI) in this case is an increase in participation, especially on Facebook where activities have taken a downward trend, especially in the recent past. Increases likes and responses would suggest that the training and sensitisation impacted positively on the group’s desire to improve its marketing practices over digital platforms. A suitable framework in this case is Mendelow stakeholder analysis that examine stakeholders’ attitude towards a particular initiative (Ginige et al., 2018). The firm in this instance categories stakeholders into four divisions – low power/low interest, low power/high interest, high power/low interest, and high power/high interest (Ginige et al., 2018). Stakeholders in all these categories, especially those who belong to the high power/high interest category should show positive response towards all initiatives. More fundamentally, HFG should be able to enjoy a return on investment (ROI) on the project. Normally, the firm should appeal to more stakeholders via digital media platforms while witnessing an improvement in activity in all these avenues.
Objective Hierarchy and Relationship
| Organisational Objectives | Marketing Objectives | Critical Success Factor | KPI |
| To improve digital marketing practices by August 2022. | To expand in the UK and global market via brand awareness. | To improve interaction via the firm’s website by August 2022. | Increased engagement and response in digital platforms. |
| To facilitate communication by the time the plan is implemented. | To increase revenue generation by the time the plan is implemented and used for various months. | To improve interaction via the firm’s social media avenues by August 2022. | Positive response from stakeholders. |
References
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Hussain, S., Lei, S., Akram, T., Haider, M., Hussain, S., & Ali, M. (2018). Kurt Lewin’s process model for organizational change: The role of leadership and employee involvement: A critical review. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, 3, 123-127. doi:10.1016/j.jik.2016.07.002
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