Mannatech Final - Internet Business Models

Mannatech.com Advertising Strategy Draft 2 Executive Summary Contents TOC quot;
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Executive Summary PAGEREF _Toc245647398 2 HYPERLINK quot;
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Introduction PAGEREF _Toc245647399 5 HYPERLINK quot;
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Statement of Work PAGEREF _Toc245647400 6 HYPERLINK quot;
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Methodology PAGEREF _Toc245647401 7 HYPERLINK quot;
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Findings PAGEREF _Toc245647402 8 HYPERLINK quot;
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Competitive Analysis PAGEREF _Toc245647403 9 HYPERLINK quot;
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Research PAGEREF _Toc245647404 9 HYPERLINK quot;
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Analysis PAGEREF _Toc245647405 10 HYPERLINK quot;
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Recommendations PAGEREF _Toc245647406 11 HYPERLINK quot;
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Path Forward PAGEREF _Toc245647407 11 HYPERLINK quot;
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Target Markets PAGEREF _Toc245647408 13 HYPERLINK quot;
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Summary PAGEREF _Toc245647409 13 HYPERLINK quot;
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Location of Sales PAGEREF _Toc245647411 16 HYPERLINK quot;
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Communication Methods PAGEREF _Toc245647414 48 HYPERLINK quot;
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Social Network communication PAGEREF _Toc245647415 48 HYPERLINK quot;
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E-mail Advertisements PAGEREF _Toc245647416 51 HYPERLINK quot;
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Advertisement Communication with Mannatech Associates PAGEREF _Toc245647417 53 HYPERLINK quot;
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Sponsorships PAGEREF _Toc245647418 54 HYPERLINK quot;
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Interstitial Ads PAGEREF _Toc245647419 54 HYPERLINK quot;
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Banner Ads and Skyscraper Ads PAGEREF _Toc245647420 55 HYPERLINK quot;
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Rich Media PAGEREF _Toc245647421 56 HYPERLINK quot;
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Pop-up Ads PAGEREF _Toc245647422 56 HYPERLINK quot;
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Pop-under Ads PAGEREF _Toc245647423 57 HYPERLINK quot;
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Advertising PAGEREF _Toc245647424 59 HYPERLINK quot;
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Analysis PAGEREF _Toc245647426 63 HYPERLINK quot;
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Summary PAGEREF _Toc245647429 90 HYPERLINK quot;
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Works Cited PAGEREF _Toc245647430 91 HYPERLINK quot;
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Appendices PAGEREF _Toc245647431 93Executive Summary2Introduction5Statement of Work6Methodology7Findings8Target Markets9Summary9Research9Location of Sales12Recommendations41Path Forward42Advertising44Research44Analysis48Recommendations57Path Forward73Summary75Works Cited76Appendices78 Introduction Statement of Work Methodology Findings Competitive Analysis Research We assessed over fifty Multi Level Marketing companies to determine if any of them use online advertising to generate revenue. We reviewed all the big firms’ sites as well as few of the small ones (revenue generated). From our initial research we found that none of the Multi Level Marketing sites we looked at featured outside advertisers on their websites, at least not on the home page. Since we did not have the member log in information for the sites we were unable to review the member-specific content. Our next step was to do online research and find websites similar to Mannatech.com (not necessarily Multi Level Marketing companies) to see if they used outside advertising. We analyzed sites targeted toward MLM associates and potential associates to see what kind of advertisers they feature on their sites. The main thing we found was a clickable Facebook or Twitter ad that sends users to those homepages. Based on our research, we found that no one advertises on their official websites but some of the Multi Level Marketing employees advertise on their personal websites. To further assess the interest for placing advertising on MLM’s website, we developed a survey that we sent to potential advertisers. We conducted a survey to see what companies may be interested in placing ads on Mannatech’s website. We send out a 6 question survey to various companies to assess interest for advertising on Mannatech’s website. Analysis If Mannatech decides to include online advertising on their sites, it will be the first MLM, as far as we know, to do this. This could be a good or a bad thing. One question wequestion we should consider is why are other MLMs not using outside advertising on their sites? One possible reason is that advertisers may not want to advertise on MLM’s sites because of their reputation. Another reason may be because MLMs don’t get as many hits as other retail sites. We developed a survey to determine if companies are interested in including advertisements on MLMs websites and if so, what type of companies should Mannatech try to target. Here are the findings from our survey:lt;br />To date 8 responses were received. Out of the 8 responses, 1 company said it has previously places ads on an MLM site (the MLM specialized in weight loss products) 2 responders said they would be interested in placing an ad on an MLM site, while 6 said they would not be Of those that would be interested: 1 responder said his/her company would create their own ad 1 responder would let Mannatech design the ad 1 responder said he/she would utilize third party to design the ad Based on the survey, one reason why other MLMs are not including outside advertising on their websites may be that they are not finding enough companies who would want to advertise with them. This can be a major concern for Mannatech. If Mannatech decides to have ads on its website, the first major and potentially difficult task will be to find companies who are willing to advertise. Another thing we considered to help us determine whether or not Mannatech should include ads on their site is how those ads will affect the associates and impact Mannatech’s revenue. We can look at a couple of key questions: If the advertisement customers click on gives them a bad deal (i.e. faulty product or buying somewhere else is cheaper) or “tricks” them into getting in a long term contract, how will they view us as a company? Maybe in a negative way because this could hurt the company’s image and therefore hurt the number of people coming back to the website or even the company If the customers click on the advertisement, will they spend too much time on the other site and forget why they got online? Customers could possibly get side-tracked, but they would probably come back to the site since more than likely they visited the site to order products for their customers and that will make them money. Recommendations With the current scenario, we believe it will be a difficult task to find advertisers for the Mannantech’s website. Since no other company out there is advertising to its down lines, this might be a risk. Mannatech can further extend the survey we accomplished to additional companies and try and see if there are enough companies who are interested in placing ads on their website. Path Forward We recommend that Mannatech first contact all of its vendors and business partners to determine if any of those companies would be interested in posting ads on Mannatech’s website. Since these companies already have a relationship with Mannatech this would be a good opportunity to gradually implement outside advertising on the company’s site. Once Mannatech feels confident that having outside advertising meets its business objectives, the company can then seek out other companies who may want to advertise with them. Target Markets Summary Mannatech, Inc. sells health enhancement, skin care and weight/fitness products using a direct selling MLM model. The Mannatech website is a place where members can order products, communicate and track sales. The website has approximately 500,000 registered users. Located across the globe, these individuals are of differing cultural and socio-economic backgrounds and speak a myriad of languages. Members are organized in a tree-like structure with people at the top of the tree benefiting from the sales of people at the bottom of the tree. The purpose of this section is to identify the characteristics of members that use the web site. Understanding the target market will allow Mannatech to better evaluate the pros and cons of advertising on the website. If Mannatech proceeds with website advertising, target market information is helpful in determining the types of advertised products, design of web ads and member segmentation. Understanding the Mannatech members and communities determines which advertising strategy is most appropriate for the typical Mannatech registered user. Research Market as a Whole (Direct Selling Market Information) This information is based on information collected from the Direct Selling Association surveys. Main Reason for Becoming a Direct Sales Representative ,[object Object]

31% It's your (primary) business and making money through direct sales is important to you

29% Discount/wholesale/free products

4% Other2862739120492Ethnicity Breakdown: Caucasian: 78% Hispanic: 13% African-American: 5% Asian: 1% Other: 2% 26289002060575Total Household Income: $150K+: 8% $100K - $149.9K: $14% $75K - $99.9K: 16% $50K - $74.9K: 21% $35K to $49.9K: 14% $15K to $34.9K: 16% Less than $15K: 11% Education 0491490Number of People involved in selling direct marketing products: Estimated Total direct selling sales: Location of Sales (reported as a percent of sales dollars) Hours spent on direct selling per week Average Percent of Time Spent on... Gender of people involved in selling direct marketing products: Age of people involved in selling direct marketing products: Marital Status of people involved in selling direct marketing products: Mannatech Market Demographics This information is from research provided by Mannatech, Inc. corporate including the Mannatech Customer Experience Scorecard1 and the Omniture Site Catalyst Countries Report2. Age According to the Mannatech Customer Experience Scorecard1, registered users are between hethe ages of 25-55+. Those 55+ over account for over 50% of registered users. Gender The majority of Mannatech users are female. ,[object Object]

33%MaleIncome Levels Over 60% of visitors’ household incomes are in the $30,000-$99,999 range. ,[object Object]

$150,000 or more7%Education Level Approximately half of users have an undergraduate degree or higher. ,[object Object]

University Undergraduate Degree31%

Other37%Nationality/Ethnicity2 Approximately 45% of registered users conduct their business and live in the United States. Marital Status Nearly three-fourths of users are married. 1 Married73% Divorced/Separated12% Single, never marries7% Widowed4% Living with partner3% Behavioral Analysis Research User Status Our plan of action is to determine a user’s status with regard to Mannatech (Nonusers, Ex-users, Potential Users, First-time Users, Regularand Regular Users). Research (which will be explicated further in a different section of the report) shows that the core target market is current registered users who sign in to the Mannatech website. Further analysis may be used to determine status in terms of associates, members, non-members and prospective customers. Primary Motivators 47% of Mannatech users visit the site to manage their personal Mannatech business. 29% access the site to purchase products. Only 2% peruse the site to learn about Mannatech business opportunity. Analysis The breakdown of Mannatech visitors indicates that the vast majority of site visitors are either Mannatech associates or members. Thus, the vast majority of site visitors will be logging into the private pages in order to manage their Mannatech business or to purchase. Recommendation If one of the main motivators for visiting the Mannatech site is to conduct business, related advertisements would be appropriate and beneficial. If there are advertisements for companies and products which may help the visitors conduct their business in a more streamlined manner, this may motivate visitors to click on one of the ads for information. Accordingly, the ads must be designed and marketed in a way which would have the user make a subconscious association between the advertised product and Mannatech product sales. As an example, AT&T can target their ad for the Mannatech site by correlating with Mannatech to offer special Mannatech-specific benefits in addition to a general discount. Mannatech associates are also motivated by the need to be successful business people. This means that they will be aware of any cash outflow, and thus will constantly be looking for more economical ways to do business. Marketing ads to the typically frugal natures common incommon in most entrepreneurs greatly increases the opportunity for click through. Path Forward Looking forward, Mannatech needs to focus on their target market (the true believers) and this market’s interest in growing their business. Further research on the typical companies Mannatech associates utilize to conduct their business may be advantageous. In addition, Mannatech should gather an internal sample of the target market and conduct a relevant survey. The survey would be effective in determining how Mannatech registered users would feel about advertising on the Mannatech site. Analysis of the results would help Mannatech understand if users find advertising beneficial or a distraction. Moreover, a survey would reveal answers to questions about the type of advertising users would prefer or find most distracting. Once Mannatech does an internal research of ad types, the company may even include samples in their survey. An internal financial analysis of costs and returns with regard to both internal, Mannatech-oriented advertising and third-party advertising is necessary. The analysis may also include other important factors such as intangible expenditures and earnings with regard to the Mannatech reputation, credibility, the loyalty of users. All the different factors, some of which may seem irrelevant, must be taken into account before entering this new advertising and website content strategy. With regards to third-party advertising, it is imperative that Mannatech keep the end-users in mind. Ads on the website should be companies that would assist users in forming and staying in contact with downlines and growing their business. Mannatech must conceive internal benefits to correlate with third-party advertisements and entice users. Also, Mannatech must monitor the benefits received from third-party advertising parties if third party advertising is placed on the site. Geography Research 78% of registered Mannatech users are located in the United States. Of the remaining 22%, 11% are located in Canada. Analysis The majority of Mannatech registered users are located in North America. Recommendation Since North America amounts to the majority of Mannatech users, advertising should be limited to products available in North America. A statement should be placed close to the ad indicating that the offer is only available in North America to avoid confusion among international members. Members should be surveyed before and after advertising is placed on the site to gauge member reaction. If web advertising enhances the value chain in North America and the members are not irritated by the advertising, then it can be expanded to other countries such as Australia and New Zealand. Benefits The majority of Mannatech business comes from North America. Focusing on the North American market allows Mannatech the opportunity to test the market at a low cost. Starting the advertising in one part of the world is more cost-efficient. The target market in North America is mainly English-speaking. Therefore, no translation is required. In addition, the U.S. boasts higher technological standards. Web advertising methods are not restricted due to the target market’s bandwidth or connection speed. Drawbacks No matter the location, some advertising deals may not be available to all registered users in every part of North America. Canada and the United States have different governing bodies with different regulations and rules. Different firms provide different services depending on their city of operation. The software to pinpoint the geographic location may be expensive. As with any connection to a third-party, there is the possibility of diminishing Mannatech’s credibility. Mannatech must have some control over advertising content and type. Focusing the advertising project on North America limits the full possible benefits of the project. Path Forward Mannatech should investigate the costs and benefits of geographic segmentation of web content. Content could be tailored to the language and location of the end user member. Ads could be targeted to ensure that the advertised products are available and useful to members. Associate Profile: Online Sales The auction site eBay and social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Orkut and LinkedIn were reviewed to enhance our understanding of Mannatech member interactions outside of the Mannatech web site. Research Only eBay and www.checkoutmannatech.com were found to have any Mannatech products for sale. EBay sellers are primarily low volume sellers that appear to be leaving the direct selling business. One Mannatech associate even offered to sell his downline of sale people. Mannatech prohibits its associates from selling on eBay and has created a specialized website www.manaprotect.com for people to submit complaints of unauthorized selling on the web. All other web links that were found offering Mannatech products for sale looped back to the Mannatech main page or an associate page on www.mannapages.com. Mannatech position for saleLocation: North Carolina Seller User ID: cberglundView similar active items | Sell one like this 0 Bids$7,500.00 The few repeat Mannatech products sellers are heavy discounters. Repeat EBay Sellers Mannatech price $1572 Shoppinglady50 12 Jars Advanced Ambrotose Mannatech 150g 150 g 5.3oz INTERNATIONAL BUYERS WELCOME * US BUYER FREE SHIPPINGLocation: Texas Store: A Brand Name Designer...Seller User ID: shoppinglady50View similar active items | Sell one like this Buy It NowSold$749.99Free shippingOct-20 07:53 Mannatech Price $262 Cat57man Enlarge(2) Advanced Ambrotose Mannatech 150g 150 g 5.3 oz gramFree Priority Mail Shipping for U.S. Buyers exp. 05/11Location: Texas Store: A Bargain Price Parad...Seller User ID: cat57manView similar active items | Sell one like thisBuy It NowSold$148.49Free shippingOct-19 16:23 Analysis Mannatech online sales are primarily through the main Mannatech web site. Creating an independent web site to sell Mannatech products is difficult due to strict policies regarding the display of Mannatech products. Blog postings regarding the creation of a websites to sell Mannatech products mentioned the difficult policies that exist. The majority of Mannatech members have decided that a private web site is more trouble that it is worth. In summary, legitimate sellers of Mannatech products are not easily found on the internet. Mannapages for members do not appear to be heavily used by members. The existing Mannapages do not offer much in the way of customization or usability. Unauthorized sellers are not common, but when found, are heavily discounting the product and devaluing the brand. Mannatech has successfully ensured that the vast majority of online selling is performed on the official site and that all links found on the web consolidate to the Mannatech web site. Recommendations Mannapages for members should be enhanced to provide real functionality and customization. Currently members do not have an outlet for creative design and marketing of products. Hosting member websites would allow Mannatech to monitor content while providing a store front viewable to the general public. Blogs and member created experiences with the products would be a strong advertisement for Mannatech products. The members could leverage their philosophy or interests to gain members. Prospective members do not currently have a way of evaluating groups to join. Finding original content regarding Mannatech products is very difficult. Web users expect to research products, look for reviews and find unique information. Let the members sell products and share their passion. Path Forward Mannatech should investigate creating a store on eBay to create an official outlet for Mannatech products and put pressure on unauthorized sellers. A department or person in charge of the internet community could help involve new members in discussions and site creation. Group advocates could help place members with communities that share their interests and background. Associate Profile: Facebook Research There are over 500 Mannatech Associates who have facebook accounts. There are 75 groups and 19 fan pages formed by Mannatech Associates on Facebook.com. The Mannatech groups consist of 3670 members and 1318 fans. Nationality/Ethnicity The majority of Mannatech AsssociatesAssociates on facebook.com are from North America. ,[object Object]

South Africa: 17 Gender Most Mannatech users on facebook.com are female. The age profile is very similar with the Mannatech score card. ,[object Object]

40% Male Age The users are mostly adult. We can easily see from most of their facebook profiles that, most of the female associates are middle-aged, married and have children. Analysis Facebook seems to be as popular among Mannatech Associates just like it is with non-Mannatech associates. Facebook users, connected to Mannatech, share feedback and information about Mannatech products. Users discuss health, weight loss, well being, and nutrition on group walls. Associates advertise Mannatech products on group pages and provide information about job opportunities for prospective Mannatech members. Recommendation There many individual Facebook pages dedicated to Mannatech. It would be advantageous for Mannatech to create one main primary Mannatech Facebook page that all associates could access and link to. This process should at least be done at a regional level. Such a page would help Mannatech associates keep in touch with happenings and information from multiple sources in a single place. This easy access to information would reduce the time and effort associates would spend to interact with other members. Also, the feeling of kinship may be enhanced if Mannatech Associates perceived and felt that they are a part of a large and wide, yet close-knit network. Since the associate’s revenue is directly proportional to their downline, it may encourage to users to work harder. Path Forward Mannatech should link to its Facebook page on the main Mannatech website and link back to the Mannatech homepage on Facebook to create a closed loop. A Facebook link on the Mannatech homepage would encourage Associates to join or interact on the social network and use it to their benefit. Facebook features a more laid-back, enjoyable atmosphere,atmosphere; it is also a friend-oriented network (as opposed to LinkedIn’s professional perception). This association may help with the Associates’ perception of Mannatech. Mannatech may now be perceived as a workplace which also provides for some enjoyment and this might help attract more Associates in the future. Associate Profile: Twitter4 The official Mannatech Twitter page twitter.com/mannatech boasts 697 followers. A small sample size of MannaTweeps was examined. Research Gender The majority of Mannatech followers are female. The figures are similar to the Mannatech demographic figures listed in the scorecard1. 58%Female 42%Male Nationality/Ethnicity Followers are located across the world. Geographic locations include the United States, Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand, Sweden and Switzerland. United States61% Canada 15% Australia 9% Switzerland 6% England 3% New Zealand 3% Sweden 3% Occupation Mannatech followers and its following are diverse in their occupations. Many followers are network marketers, home business owners (many are stay-at-home moms) or training coaches assisting those with a multilevel marketing business. Many MannaTweeps list Mannatech in their profile. Some followers hold full time jobs and utilize their Mannatech business as supplemental income. Listed professions for the Mannatech following include physicians, chiropractors, life coaches, teachers, performers, motivational speakers, athletes and personal trainers. Behavioral MannaTweeps are advocates of home businesses, making extra money, fitness, wellness, natural health, weight management, nutrition and skincare. Mannatweeps are users of Mannatech health and skincare products and are firm believers in their positive effects. Many MannaTweeps are spiritual and religious. Individual Mannatech followers have a handful of followers to thousands of followers of their profiles and pages. Primary Motivators MannaTweeps use Twitter to socially connect with others, find out more about upcoming Mannatech advances and events. Many Mannatech followers post their own techniques and strategies for being successful in the business on their personal Twitter page. Mannatech corporate posts are news-oriented with links to articles. Analysis Twitter is a logical place to connect associates with their immediate downline and Mannatech corporate to connect with their registered users. However, the site is not very Mannatech oriented, with only a small logo appearing on the upper left side of the page. The Mannatech website is listed in the right panel but is lost otherwise. Twitter and other social networking sites offer Mannatech a plethora of connections and networks to tap into. Each individual follower on the Mannatech Twitter page adds value to the overall Mannatech network by allowing for an additional connection. With some followers having tens of thousands of followers themselves, the possibility to expand the network is endless. Path Forward The Twitter page should be transformed aesthetically to feature Mannatech more prominently. Mannatech registered users are internet users. The internet is their life-line and many are Twitter users. They should further be directed back to the Mannatech homepage or at least one of the satellite sites, depending on their interest. Whether their interest is in weight loss, the science behind Mannatech products, skincare, etc. the official Mannatech sites should remain in the network loop. Associate Profile: MySpace The number of Mannatech members within Myspace.com is 20 samples. Those people list Mannatech as occupation and most of them work as independent associate of Mannatech. Research Gender The figures demonstrate that the number of Mannatech members between men and women are the same: ,[object Object]

50% FemaleAge The majority of Mannatech members are between twenty to thirty years old (approximately 50%). The next highest age group is 31-40 year olds. This information is very different from the Mannatech demographic figures listed on the scorecard. However, this error may be the effect of a small sample size and the younger demographics of MySpace.com. ,[object Object]

51-60 year: 12.5%Education Levels Most Mannatech members have college degrees or higher. This information is compatible with the demographic data in the scorecard. Location Based on geographical data, it was found that Mannatech followers generally reside in the US. The rest of members are located in other parts of the world such as Canada and England. ,[object Object]

Others 12.5 Analysis Mannatech members on MySpace have used this social network to network and send information about Mannatech products to friends or other members. However, there are only a few Mannatech followers on this site. Due to the low numbers of MySpace followers, this social networking site is not an effective place for Mannatech advertising. Other social networks, such as Facebook with larger fan bases would be more effective location for Mannatech advertising. Path Forward If Mannatech is interested in further using this site, it should motivate Mannatech associates to visit this site more. Associates could use this site to create networking and transfer information and experiences about Mannatech products effectively. Furthermore, it would help Mannatech associates to interact with their downlines. Associate Profile: LinkedIn Research Gender 56% of the employees are female and 44% are male. This data is very similar to the data on the Mannatech scorecard. Age The median age of the employees is 37 years old. Location Most of Mannatech associates are located in the DFW area, with a few located in either Denver or Los Angeles. As a company, Mannatech is listed as a mid-sized public company (2006 revenues of $410 million) in the Health, Wellness and Fitness industry (Company Size 501-1000 employees). Occupation Common job titles found on LinkedIn are Associate, Independent Associate, Director, Regional Director and Consultant. Through research, the career paths for Mannatech employees are clear. ,[object Object]

After - Mary Kay Inc., SYSTIME...Judging by the career path, it seems like the associates join Mannatech after having worked at small companies with about 100 employees and then move on to bigger companies with a greater number of employees. Some associates even move to other big MLMs such as Mary Kay Inc. Analysis One would expect LinkedIn to be a natural networking ground for associates, because it is of prime importance in multi-level marketing firms. However, the profiles show different. Network connections are few. Though associates are very internet savvy and use the internet for selling products to customers, the associates don’t seem to be very active on LinkedIn. Perhaps the Mannatech network is so close knit and personal that associates can manage to maintain that network using personal email alone. It seems like the vast networking potential that LinkedIn offers is not being properly utilized by Mannatech employees. Recommendation Mannatech should encourage more of its employees to create profiles on LinkedIn and to use it more actively. This is because the first person a customer would go to verify a salesperson’s credibility is LinkedIn, and it would help the Mannatech associates to come across as more trustworthy to their customers this way. Path Forward The LinkedIn page should be used more creatively by the associates to help build their network of customers. The description of Mannatech given there is insufficient, and customers need to be told of the company’s vision and mission statements in that space for company description. This could also help convert potential Mannatech customers to associates, helping Mannatech associates increase their downline, and hence their revenues. Associate Profile: Orkut Research The following information was based on doing a search in Orkut for Mannatech in the Occupation field of profiles. There are a total of ten users who listed their occupation as Mannatech. Age and Gender In the North American region, users are all middle aged to older women. In Europe, the users were younger and mostly male. These figures may show that the presentation and selling of products is managed differently overseas. Location ,[object Object]

Canada 10%Other Pertinent Information The website www.buyambrotose.com is listed 6 times on discussion boards across Orkut. Analysis The users of Orkut, although small in number, are representative of the North American demographic trends- middle aged women who market to their friends in their homes. It also shows that this small slice of users also follows the generalized international trends that have already been observed in Mannatech users. Recommendation Orkut is a small but growing group of users who have found an alternative to other social networking sites, and Mannatech would have an edge if they get into the market at the beginning stages such as this, in order to maximize the potential of all new entrants into the website seeing their advertising and becoming potential Mannatech associates and members. Path Forward Mannatech must consider the gains which they would experience if they decided to expand their presence onto Orkut and weigh this against the time and resources it would take to implement a presence on the site. Also, further studies should be done to see if the growth rate of Orkut will overtake other social websites in the future. Finally, Mannatech must look into the privacy and other policies that Orkut implements in order to see if this would inhibit their use of the site to promote their products. Website Information Research Frequency 48% of repeat visitors come to the site daily or at least weakly. First time visitors comprise only 7% of all visitors. How do users find the site? Users learn about business opportunities through friends, relatives or a network of acquaintances. Only 9% of users learned about the Mannatech site thorough Internet search engines Which pages are visited most? Approximately one quarter of the top 50 pages on the Mannatech website are public to users who have not logged in. The remaining three quarters of the sites require users to be logged in. The top page views are related to shopping and the completion of orders. PagePublic/PrivateHits1. Home PagePublic402,3632. MyMannatech:DashboardPrivate249,6883. Select CountryPublic241,3284. Checkout:Order DetailPublic195,9315. My Mannatech:Order:My OrdersPrivate173,1196.Checkout:Order CompletePrivate124,7787. Checkout:Order ConfirmationPrivate105,5238. My Mannatech: Success TrackerPublic105,4279. Checkout: ProcessingPrivate94,00710. Checkout: Payment InfoPrivate89,144 Analysis From these figures, it is apparent that any advertising on the Mannatech site should be on private pages. Third-party advertising should be more prominently placed on private pages, where most of the target market visits. Recommendations Although, the Mannatech homepage is the most commonly visited page, no advertising should be placed on the homepage as it is the point of first impression. Advertising on the homepage would clutter the page, portray a negative connotation and may distract the target market from effectively achieving their goal in accessing the site. Path Forward Mannatech should further investigate their website in detail. Some pertinent further that should be answered in determining which pages to advertise include: how long do users stay on the web-site? Which page do users spend the most time? More public content should be available from the home page. Many people visit the home page and then leave without a purchase or login. The informational sub pages could host offers designed to benefit prospective members and entice them to join Mannatech. Community Profile Each individual Mannatech associate and member is a part of an extensive Mannatech community. The common thread that weaves the group together is Mannatech. Loyal and committed, this group of believers connects with each other in multiple ways both online and on a more personal basis. Through research and analysis of the individual Mannatech members and associates, we have conceived a community profile of Mannatech members, specifically those in North America. The North American user tends to be an older educated population. 67% of the North American users are female. Over 70% of the total users are married. Several indicators on different social networking websites indicate that the majority of the users are associates with religious beliefs. The trends illustrate that the group most responsible for Mannatech's success are middle class American families who use Mannatech as a secondary source of income. With the current economic times, many individuals in North America have found alternative ways to earn money, in order to sustain their current standard of living into retirement and older age. Many people in this demographic require a second source of income, which they have control over. This leads many in this demographic to start small with a home business or to start selling products such as those offered by Mannatech. Needs As a community, Mannatech associates and members need: Good Health Primary or supplemental income Close family ties Spirituality Connections Desires As a community, Mannatech associates and members have a multitude of wants and desires on a personal note and with respect to a work environment: Business Desires ,[object Object]

Products that enhance wellness

A company that helps generate income

Rewards based on individual and downline performance

Investment which requires little capital and is low risk

Control over working hours, time spent and amount of effort exerted

Business administration tools including accounting, shipping, phones and office supplies

Training on how to develop and run a business

An user-friendly business that is easy to start businessPersonal Desires ,[object Object]

Financial security and independence

Sharing a product that they use and believe in

A community with similar values

A feeling of helping neighbors and loved ones be healthy

A feeling of doing good in the worldMotivations Whether Mannatech community members are mothers or male entrepreneurs, their primary goal is to help other people. Altruistic and faithful, the community believes that Mannatech products will improve the lives of others. They have a great desire to spread this prophecy and the tools to conceive it. They are true believers in the products’ ability to improve wellness and improve monetary independence through sales. Mannatech members want control of their own health and financial welfare. Selling Mannatech products fulfills a need to build a successful business and downline. The successful downline will be composed of people that share common interests and continue to recruit like mindedlikeminded members. As the page reports illustrate, Mannatech registered users are constantly working to expose the world to Mannatech products by purchasing and reselling. In addition, users are accessing their personal Success Tracker pages to gain a feeling of accomplishment and move forward with their goals. The Mannatech community as a whole is family-oriented and in some cases, religious. The majority of registered users are middle-aged, married females with children. Attendance at Mannatech events is a good illustration of the strong family and religious associations. The events incorporate sponsored Sabbath Keepers events and sponsored child care. In general, people do not bring children to conferences. However, Mannatech functions have a demand for child care. This speaks to a strong family dynamic. Communication On the go, driving the kids around between school, extracurricularalicular activities and errands or working another full time job, these individuals are extremely busy with their daily lives. Yet, they find the time to stay connected. Quick and easy communication is most efficient for conducting their business and interacting with their downline and potential customers. PDA type phones and the internet are probably most commonly used. Utilizing multiple social and business networking sites as well as mannapages, there are multiple points of contact for these individuals to connect and interact online. Recommendations Understanding the Mannatech community is essential to building loyalty and commitment among members as well as communicating with Mannatech Associates. According to the research on individual registered users and the Mannatech community as a whole, advertisements should offer discounts as well as be correlated with a Mannatech loyalty program. In order to properly target ads towards the North American Mannatech community, Mannatech and third-parties must offer these individuals opportunities to realize their goals of earning a secondary income, or offer them savings on products which they may already currently use in their daily lives. Mannatech must ensure that ads are relevant to the users. Otherwise, Mannatech will not earn any benefits from the companies which are advertising on the website. In addition to relevance, Mannatech must ensure that certain intrusive advertising is not used, as this demographic will have a negative reaction and hold Mannatech responsible. Path Forward Answering these questions will help define the sub communities within Mannatech community and allow better targeting of products and services. ,[object Object]

We believe that the distribution of down line size could reveal the amount of true entrepreneurial members versus followers.

Do different down-lines concentrate on purchases of specific product lines such as Optimal Health, Optimal Skin, Optimal Weight and Fitness? Or do most down-lines order equally from all groups.Mannatech should study the purchasing history of the Mannatech communities and target them appropriately. ,[object Object],We are looking for traits that could identify a potential high producer early and target retention promotions to them. ,[object Object]

Sabbath Keepers appears to be an active sub community. Investigating the positioning of Sabbath Keepers in the Mannatech structure could reveal opportunities for targeted products.

Are the athletes in Team Mannatech active Mannatech salespeople? Do they typically lead down-lines? What is their role as a group? This is another opportunity to target an internal community.

There are someare some differences between the demographics of the overall direct selling industry and Mannatech demographics. The differences should be investigated. Opportunities may be found in untapped communities.On the international front, although other parts of the globe only account for 20% of Mannatech total sales, the group is increasing in size. This international group conducts business in many different languages and utilizes different selling techniques. If Mannatech decides to advertise to its international market, different versions of an advertisement must be created and marketed toward the myriad of groups depending on the group’s geographic location, language, religious and cultural beliefs. Communication Methods Social Network communication Research People posting blogs as well as comments regarding Mannatech were found on numerous websites such as Face Book and Twitter, personal blog, as well as video clips on YouTube. Also while doing our research we found this online regarding a Mannatech lawsuit. -- “Mannatech Company Settle False Marketing Claims for $1 Million penalty. And this wasn’t the first time.-- The lawsuit, filed in 2007, alleged numerous instances in which freelance sales associates falsely claimed that the products helped cure or prevented diseases such as cancer, autism and Down syndrome.” ,[object Object]

Among the pages found one official page was found “Mannatech, Inc. - Official Page” which was created in late Sep. The information provided regarding, Press release, Product, Training Information, Dialogue with associates on these pages are various and much more attractive than Mannatech’s website.

The other 21 pages are confusing. Some are obvious personal groups; some look very similar to the official one. (ex. Mannatech Europe page… Is it official?? )

Positive feedback from fans on the official website. One of the posts was “glad that Mannatech was finally supporting the network”

FB chats with some fans from Mannatech official page.Limited chatting is used on Mannatech FB site

Some are not associates, they’ve just used Mannatech products.

Some are associates. They Associates have joined FB group to share information about what is going on in the market, and to suggest that Mannatech add this function to its website. They also mentioned is that they wish that Mannatech provided “Contact information on all their members.”

Some associates mentioned, compared with website, they prefer E-mail because it is the best and easier to transfer information.

They tend to visit the website mainly for Product information and updates

Official twitter page HYPERLINK "http://twitter.com/mannatech"http://twitter.com/mannatech, with many individual comments in this official page.

Hundreds of twitter threads related to Mannatech’s products can also be found.

Mannatech post official CEO talks on YouTube (1:16 mins)

Many associates run their own blog, and usually post their videos to it

Internet marketing tools target website targeting target Mannatech associates less more than product introduction

2 result under sponsored links, the one is office page and the other is associate’s private link.

112 results found for Mannatech.

4 major sellers sell various Mannatech products.Analysis ,[object Object]

It is effective to set up the OFFICALOFFICIAL Page against other Mannatech pages on FB. The fans of the official page are outnumbered the other pages in a fairly short period. (6xx fans vs. less than 200 fans)

Although the official twitter page is set up, it is less effective than the one in FB.

First, it is difficult to distinguish the official page from some of the unofficial pages; the reason we recognize it as being official is because of the Mannatech link posted on FB official page.

Secondly, we don’t know which posts are official, and which are comments from associates or users.

Associates are more focused on attracting down lines than selling products. They like the network effect more than anything else.

YouTube click cdount is low; either the awareness is low, or the CEO talk might not be an effective / attractive way to communicate with the associates. Recommendations ,[object Object]

Leverage other social networking official pages in the same way that Mannatech is doing with FaceBook page.

Make use of YouTube, which is an effective and free communication tool. Create official YouTube channel, post links to it on all social networking sites. Distribute the Mannatech advertisements or discussions in an attractive format.

Set up official shop on EBay / Amazon to avoid sales associates selling Mannatech products in private online.

Include an adaptive Search Engine application on the Mannatech website (ex. Google AD)

With the advent of high speed internet hotspots, 3G mobile networks, and WiMAX, consumers are increasingly integrating mobile communication and information inquiries in their busy lives. This additional communication channel is vital to the future of any advertising campaign, corporate communications department, or customer relationship management program.

Over 65 million, roughly 22% of active Facebook users access their facebook accounts using mobile devices. ( HYPERLINK "http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics" http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics)

Facebook users that access their account via a mobile device are 50% more active than users without mobile access. ( HYPERLINK "http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics" http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics)

Approximately 76% of Twitter users access the internet wirelessly via wireless laptop or PDA connection or a cellphone/smartphone. HYPERLINK "http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1117/twitter-tweet-users-demographics" http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1117/twitter-tweet-users-demographics

Approximately 82% of Twitter users use their cellphones to send text messages and access online content. HYPERLINK "http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1117/twitter-tweet-users-demographics" http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1117/twitter-tweet-users-demographics

Text message users are active people. For example, texters are 37% more likely than other cellular users to have played recreational basketball and 23% more likely to have practiced yoga. HYPERLINK "http://www.marketingcharts.com/uncategorized/texters-young-culturally-diverse-online-spenders-6944/scarborough-top-online-markets-texters-dma-2008jpg/" http://www.marketingcharts.com/uncategorized/texters-young-culturally-diverse-online-spenders-6944/scarborough-top-online-markets-texters-dma-2008jpg/

Approximately 63% and 31% of mobile users 18-27 and 28-39 respectively use text messaging as a way to communicate. These percentages are growing. HYPERLINK "http://www.usatoday.com/tech/wireless/2005-07-27-text-messaging_x.htm" http://www.usatoday.com/tech/wireless/2005-07-27-text-messaging_x.htm

Several types of text message ads exist – Initial Appended Ads, Complete Full Message Ads, Reply by text, Click to Call, and Link to mobile websites. HYPERLINK "http://mmaglobal.com/mobileadvertising.pdf" http://mmaglobal.com/mobileadvertising.pdf

Mannatech Final - Internet Business Models

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