2. Overview of the E-Marketing
Planning Process
How can information technologies assist
marketers in building revenues and market
share or lowering costs?
How can firms identify a sustainable
competitive advantage with the Internet
when so little is understood about how to
succeed?
3. Overview of the E-Marketing
Planning Process
The best firms have clear visions that they translate,
through the marketing process, from e-business objectives
and strategies into e-marketing goals and well-executed
strategies and tactics for achieving those goals.
This marketing process entails three steps:
- Marketing plan creation,
- Plan implementation,
- Evaluation/corrective action.
4. Creating an E-Marketing
Plan
E-marketing plan: It is a guiding, dynamic document that links
the firm’s e-business strategy (e-business model) with
technology-driven marketing strategies and lays out details for
plan implementation through marketing management.
The e-marketing plan serves as a roadmap to guide the
direction of the firm, allocate resources, and make tough
decisions at critical junctures.
There are two common types of e-marketing plans:
- The napkin plan,
- The venture capital plan.
5. The Napkin Plan
Dot-com entrepreneurs were known to simply jot their ideas on
a napkin over lunch and then run off to find financing.
The big company version of this is the just-do-it. An employee
has an idea, and convinces management to just do it.
These plans sometimes work and are sometimes even
necessary but they are not recommended when substantial
resources are involved. Sound planning and thoughtful
implementation are needed for long-term success in business.
6. The Venture Capital E-Marketing Plan
Small to mid-sized firms and entrepreneurs with start-up ideas
usually begin with a napkin plan without going through the entire
traditional marketing planning process.
BUT as the company grows and needs capital, it has to put
together a comprehensive e-marketing plan.
Where does an entrepreneur go for capital?
- Sometimes bank loans,
- Most of the time, it is equity financed,
- Private funds (friends and family),
- Angel investors,
- Venture capitalists.
7. The Venture Capital E-Marketing Plan
Investors are looking for a well-composed business plan,
and more importantly, a good team to implement it.
The business plan should contain enough data and logic to
prove that:
The e-business idea is solid,
The entrepreneur has some idea of how to run the business.
8. The Venture Capital E-Marketing Plan
9 questions that every business plan should
answer:
1. Who is the new venture’s customer?
2. How does the customer make decisions about
buying this product or service?
3. To what degree is the product or service a
compelling purchase for the customer?
4. How will the product or service be priced?
9. The Venture Capital E-Marketing Plan
9 questions that every business plan should
answer:
5. How will the venture reach all the identified
customer segments?
6. How much does it cost (in time and resources)
to acquire a customer?
7. How much does it cost to produce and deliver
the product or service?
8. How much does it cost to support a customer?
9. How easy is it to retain a customer?
10. The Venture Capital E-Marketing Plan
VCs look for a way to get their money and profits
out of the venture within a few years:
- The golden exit plan is to go public and issue stock in an
initial public offering (IPO),
- As soon as the stock price rises sufficiently, the VC
cashes out and moves on to another investment.
All VCs’ investments are not successful. But if even
one out of 20 is an Amazon.com, the risk was well
worth the reward.
