Managing E-business

Learning Diary Week 7

Abhilasha Singh 302

Q) What are the critical elements of an e-marketing plan intended to

implement the e-marketing strategy?
Marketing is the management process responsible for identifying, anticipating
and satisfying customer requirements efficiently. Therefore, e-marketing
focuses on how the web technologies, especially internet, can be used to
achieve these marketing objectives, which can be further explained as follows:
- Identifying: how can internet be used for marketing research and
following trends
- Anticipating: leveraging the internet to find out the “Next Big Thing”,
what is important to the customer, what are they willing to pay, creating
new products
- Satisfying: achieve customer satisfaction through the electronic channel
- Profitably: use the least expensive tools to reach the most number of
people
Operational processes of e-marketing
Customer acquisition: Attracting visitors to a web site or promoting a brand
through reaching them via search engines or advertising on other sites.
Customer conversion: Engaging site visitors to achieve the outcomes the site
owner seeks such as leads, sales or browsing of other content. Developing a
satisfactory customer experience is vital to this.
Customer retention and growth: Encouraging repeat usage of digital channels
and for transactional sites, repeat sales.
Principles of e-marketing include the 5S model:
1. Sell using the internet as a selling tool
2. Serve using the internet as a customer service tool
3. Speak using the internet as a communication tool
4. Save using the internet for cost reduction
 5. Sizzle using the internet as a brand building tool

E-marketing planning
E-marketing plan is a plan needed to achieve the marketing objectives of the e-
business strategy. An e-marketing plan is needed in addition to a broader e-
business strategy to detail how the sell-side specific objectives of the e-
business strategy will be achieved through marketing activities such as
marketing research and marketing communications. Since the e-marketing
plan is based on the objectives of the e-business or business strategy there is
overlap between the elements of each approach, particularly for environment
analysis, objective setting and strategic analysis.
Measurement of the effectiveness of e-marketing is an integral part of the
strategy process in order to assess whether objectives have been achieved.
The loop is closed by using the analysis of web analytics data metrics collected
as part of the control stage to continuously improve e-marketing through
making enhancements to the web site and associated marketing
communications.
E-marketing Planning Framework
Situation analysis
1. Internal audits
a. Current Internet marketing audit (business, marketing and
Internet marketing effectiveness)
b. Audience composition and characteristics
c. Reach of web site, contribution to sales and profitability
d. Suitability of resources to deliver online services in face of
competition
2. External audits
a. Macro-economic environment
b. Micro-environment – new marketplace structures, predicted
customer activity
c. Competition – threats from existing rivals, new services, new
companies and intermediaries.
3. Assess opportunities and threats (SWOT analysis)
a. Market and product positioning
 b. Methods of creation of digital value and detailed statement of
customer value proposition
c. Marketplace positioning (buyer, seller and neutral marketplaces)
d. Scope of marketing functions
Objectives statement
1. Corporate objectives of online marketing (mission statement)
2. Detailed objectives: tangible and intangible benefits, specific critical
success factors
3. Contribution of online marketing to promotional and sales activities
4. Online value proposition
Strategy definition
1. Investment and commitment to online channels (mixture of bricks and
clicks)
2. Market and product positioning – aims for increasing reach, new digital
products and new business and revenue models
3. Target market strategies – statement of prioritized segments, new
segments, online value proposition and differential advantage.
Significance of non-customer audiences?
4. Change management strategy
Tactics
1. Product: Creating new core and extended value for customers, options
for migrating brand online
2. Promotion: Specify balance of online and offline promotion methods.
Role of CRM (incentivization to acquire new customer registrations and
opt-in e-mail to retain customers)
3. Price: Discounting online sales, options for setting pricing, new pricing
options, e.g. auctions
4. Place: Disintermediation and re-intermediation, seller, buyer or neutral
sales
5. People, process and physical evidence: Online service delivery through
support and characteristics of web site.
Actions
Specify:
 1. Tasks
2. Resources
3. Partnering and outsourcing
4. Budget including costs for development, promotion and maintenance
5. Timescale
Actions
Implementation:
1. Key development tasks: analysis of business and audience needs,
scenario-based design, development of content, integration of
databases, migration of data, testing and changeover
2. Project and change management
3. Team organization and responsibilities
4. Risk assessment (identify risks, measures to counter risks)
5. Legal issues
6. Development and maintenance process
Control
1. Identify a measurement process and metrics covering:
a. Business contribution (channel profitability – revenue, costs,
return on investment)
b. Marketing effectiveness (channel outcomes – leads, sales,
conversion rate, channel satisfaction)
c. Online marketing effectiveness (channel behaviour – page
impressions, visitors, repeat visits, conversion rates).

An e-marketing plan includes the following major steps:

Step 1: Mission
1. Mission Statement
2. Corporate Objectives

Step 2: Situation Analysis

3. Identify opportunities
4. 5C analysis
5. SWOT analysis
6. PESTEL analysis
Step 3: Marketing Strategy:
7. Define your target audience
8. Set measurable goals
9. Develop budget

Step 4: Marketing Mix – 4Ps

10.Product Development
11.Pricing
12.Promotion
13.Place and Distribution
Step 5: Implementation and control:
14.Execution
15.Monitoring results