Buying & Selling Course Books Made Easy

Buying & Selling Course Books Made Easy

Executive Summary

This plan provides the strategy and tactics envisioned to launch and promote Gently Used’s corporate website. Gently Used is a marketplace service that provides a platform for students to purchase second hand books that are in good condition and serves as a forum for them to exchange tips and to share interests and activities that appeals to them.

Before devising an online marketing strategy, a study of the market was conducted, along with external and internal influencing factors as opportunities and threats. Segmentation of the target market was based on the geographic, demographic, psychographic, and behavioural elements that they had in common.

The e-marketing plan revolves around three digital objective: (1) create brand awareness among the target market, (2) build an online student database through the Gently Used website, and (3) develop online advertising campaign.

On the website design and information architecture end, considerations around corporate logo, color palette, and navigation were made to provide a pleasant and efficient user experience. Content strategy centers on blog posts around the needs of students in the academic journey and that is through staying true to the corporate culture and identity of Gently Used. In other words, through the content strategy, blog posts remain aligned with the purpose of helping students save money while succeeding academically.

Finally, online advertising consisted of three main efforts: (1) email marketing, (2) social media, and (3) search engine marketing. The email marketing tactic will be managed through, the quality of the subject line, the personalization of the content, and the appropriate frequency that appeals to the target market. Facebook and Instagram were deemed to be the most appropriate means of social media advertizing for the identified target market. Gently Used will use Google AdWords to drive its search engine tactic and generate a determined number of clicks.

Finally at the end of the report, resources, roles, responsibilities, and a budget have been drafted in order to execute the e-marketing plan. Moreover, KPIs have been selected for the purpose of measuring, sustaining, and further optimizing the service in the next fiscal calendar.

Table of Contents

Corporate Profile 3

Corporate Objectives, Mission & Vision 3

Business Model 3

Situation Analysis 4

Market Description 4

Target Market 5

Review of Competition 6

External Analysis (SWOT) 6

Digital Strategy 7

Digital Objectives, Tactics, KPIs & Targets 7

Website Design & Architecture 8

Content Strategy 10

Online Advertising 10

Email Marketing 10

Social Media 11

Search Engine Marketing 12

Required Resources, Roles & Responsibilities 12

Response Process & Escalation Protocol 13

Measurement & Optimization 13

Budget Allocation 14

References 16

Appendix A - Customer Experience Flowchart 17

Appendix B - Logo Variants 18

Appendix C - Home Page Above the Fold Screenshot 20

Appendix D - Information Architecture 21

Appendix E - Editorial Calendar Sample 22

Appendix F - Monthly Newsletter Sample 23

Appendix G - Facebook and Instagram Advertising 24

Appendix H - Google AdWords Strings and Ad Details 25

Appendix I - Escalation Protocol Flowchart 26

Appendix J - Hot Jar Heat Map 27

Corporate Profile

Corporate Objectives, Mission & Vision

Gently Used was founded by students for students with the mission of simplifying and speeding up the learning process by creating a platform for students who want to connect and share resources. In the long term, the student-first company hopes to be known for its ability to bring together students, provide affordable access to academic resources, and offer curated information related to cultural, educational, and professional activities for students. Furthermore, its corporate objectives are twofold: (1) Build a strong community in Montreal for students from different colleges and universities by promoting different activities of interest, and (2) To facilitate the exchange of used books and course material between students of higher education through an online platform.

Though Gently Used serves primarily as an online marketplace that allows college and university students in the Montreal area to buy and sell their used classroom textbooks and coursepacks, it also incorporates community aspects such as career fairs and networking workshops, provides study, productivity, and time management tips, and promotes student based activities including mental health and stress management services. Generally put, on the community-end, Gently Used aims to connect students with one another while exposing them to resources that can help them save money while succeeding academically.

Business Model

Gently Used applies a customer-to-customer (C2C) business model that invites students to play the role of a buyer, seller, or both. A marketplace by design, the success of Gently Used lies largely in its ability to build a notable community while fostering an inviting sense of belonging in order to entice members to visit frequently.

Student buyers and sellers have the ability to use the service free of costs. As a buyer, the only cost incurred