how to / create centres / business plan / the 4 Ps A Marketing Plan is usually discussed under four areas, all of which affect how you might do things for the best effect - Product, Place, Price and Promotion. It also includes: specific marketing goals - with a time scale how you will find out what is working and what isn't (evaluation) an outline of what you will do if your marketing isn't working (a contingency plan with some alternative ideas) What is the Product or Service? You will need to give details of the product or service and your proposed programme as a whole. Services are often packaged together and called a 'product' (eg 'financial product', 'learning product') even if a physical item is not being described. Sometimes it is called an 'offer'. Marketing is full of jargon, but some of it is useful to help you to talk about what people want and how you are meeting their needs. Your descriptions should be detailed and comprehensive and, for DfEE and NOF funding, should include dates, times, location and numbers of sessions and uses, and information about all proposed activities. You should think about the scope of the project, the activities you will offer, as well as when and how often. You will need to think about how you will measure your success. This will help you feed information into you Financial Projections and into the project summary or introduction (which you will probably write last of all). For an ICT centre, part of your Product or Service will depend on the technology you have. So describe what you will need and how you will offer support to learners and provide a high quality level of support. Section 2 of the application guide raises a number of issues to consider. You must make sure that you are able to meet the needs of people with special needs and that your 'product' fits what your market research showed people want. This might depend on the skills and attitude of your employees or volunteer helpers more than the computers you offer! This is the kind of thing that will make your 'product' special - it will give your project a Unique Selling Point (or USP - more marketing jargon!) The detailed information you provide may be in the form of a table (Section 7.5 of application form) and must tie in with your cashflow forecasts and with your human resources (staffing) section. Here is an example of what you might write: "The project will offer training courses in ICT, run by trainers who are patient with beginners and able to explain ICT in clear terms. The computers and equipment wil be easy to use for all sections of the community and will fit the funding guidelines. The 12 week courses will be run 3 times per year with trainees attending 2x 3hr sessions per week. There will be options to join courses running at different times of day (evenings, weekends) to fit the needs of different groups of people. The courses will be held at .................. and will be able to train a maximum of 10 trainees at a time." Price You must explain how you have decided on your pricing policy. This may include looking at what funding is available, what others are charging, affordability and what the needs of your client group are. You may ask questions about what people would be prepared to pay in your questionnaire or research. You will need to talk about using and promoting Individual Learning Accounts (Section 7.11b). You may also need to consider the long term sustainability of the project or business which may require the generation of a surplus. You will also need to have looked at the costs involved in operating the project. Here is an example of what you might write: "The pricing policy has been chosen to ensure long-term sustainability of the initiative, to meet the priorities decided by the community in offering affordable (possibly not-for profit) services to local people (probably members)." You will then need to provide details of your charges for specific products or services. This may become the basis of your price list. Place You will need to describe where the products or services are going to be provided. You might need to go into detail about the equipment available as well as the building and the environment. (For NOF funding you will need to ensure that your equipment meets the minimum technical standards and compatibility required under the National Grid for Learning (NGfL) (see the Equipment page) You should discuss accessibility, especially bearing in mind the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act, you will also need to talk about public transport, parking and opening hours. Promotion You will need to talk about how you will promote your project . You may be able to get coverage from the local press, using press releases, or hold open days for people who are interested in what you are offering. The best ways are often cheapest: don't forget about word or mouth and personal recommendation. You will need to consider all the options for advertising and promotion, find out the costs and bear in mind the benefit of using each type of promotion. There are many to choose from: Face to face promotion and events Community meetings, street events, visits to local centres Paper based information Posters, leaflets, mailshots, cards Broadcast media TV, Radio, Web Newspapers and newsletters Your own publications, or use of Press Releases or press adverts Directories Local directories, Yellow pages and Thompsons etc Instead of writing a lot in your Project Plan, it's a good idea to draw up a table or grid, with different forms of promotion you might use down the left hand side and the corresponding costs and pros and cons across the top (Will it reach the people you want it to? How many?). You will need to think about the image you want to promote: if you want to attract local people who have few skills, make sure that the information is easy to read and doesn't use language that will put people off. Here is some example text: "The project will be promoted by using leaflets which can be produced on the computers at the centre very cheaply. These will provide basic information about the courses and have an application form on the back. They will be distributed to local groups and placed in the local library and job centre and will be available to people making telephone enquiries or dropping in to the centre." You need to calculate what your marketing will cost and these figures should be shown on your cashflow forecast. Marketing Goals You will need to decide on your marketing goals and these should again be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timely). You will need to include key dates and milestones, state who will carry out your marketing activities and discuss how you will continue to attract new users for the life of the project ( NOF DfEE Section 7.10). Here is how you might describe your Marketing Goals "Design logo/ within 6 weeks Define a house style by month x Run a local launch event (press, VIP and local people present) in month x Distribute 500 leaflets to libraries and local organisations in months 3 - 4 Get 50 enquiries for training in the first six months" Evaluating your Marketing Consider how you will measure the effectiveness of your marketing activities. Will you have an enquiry form which asks where the customer found out about what you are offering? If you do this you will be able to see what works best and what is most cost effective for your project. how to / create centres / business plan / the 4 Ps