This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
marketing strategy


Nespresso is Nestlé’s fastest-growing brand, in part thanks to The Nespresso Club, with around 6.5 million members


Successful companies create and


own space within the marketplace and use social media to enhance customer experience. Organisations such as Ford in the US are great examples of this – companies that have changed their thinking and gone beyond just selling cars. Ford has used social media to create the successful ‘Ford story site’ that has developed into Ford Social (http://social.ford.com/) – an interactive community where Ford owners can share stories, ideas, pictures and videos. In doing this, companies such as Ford are becoming the definitive source for information, products and services. Indeed, today’s cluttered markets


and the growing importance of social media have made content king. Or more pointedly, having something interesting and meaningful to say is becoming the real currency of success. Unique, high quality content is essential to break through the noise. Content is being filtered through


social media networks, based on personal preferences and peer group friends. The focus is now on creating useful content that adds value to member conversations. An example of this is Monocle, which started life as a luxury lifestyle magazine but which has developed, through a content-driven approach, into a premium media brand with web, broadcast and retail divisions. Monocle concentrates on global affairs,


business, culture and design. It positions itself as a brand that’s focused on keeping an eye on the world. The third question you therefore need to ask yourself is: How good is your content?


getting the message across Communicating to customers and the market is rapidly moving away from the


‘Big Bang Concept’. Life used to be easy. Annually, you would develop your marketing plan with key dates, produce your professional material, and then target your market and members accordingly (obviously that’s a simplified model, but you get the general idea).


WAKE UP & SMELL THE COFFEE A


n excellent example of ‘owning their own space’ is the coffee brand Nespresso, which allows people to make the perfect espresso at home. However, it has not all been plain sailing.


The technology was invented in 1976 and was introduced by Nestlé in 1980 to


the business market in Switzerland, but without much success. It was not until the appointment of a new CEO, Henk Kwakman, in 1997 that fortunes changed. Nespresso was repositioned around ‘Three Pillars of Excellence’. Firstly, the company focused on creating the perfect coffee – Grand Cru Coffees. Secondly, it set about delivering a perfect coffee every time through easy to use, distinctive and stylish coffee machines. Finally, it concentrated on building a community of coffee connoisseurs – The


Nespresso Club – based on creating the notion of exclusivity and providing personalised customer services, ie making people feel cared for. To help build the community, it used Facebook to connect members with actor George Clooney, who featured in the advertising campaign. Nespresso has now become Nestlé’s fastest-growing brand and has


approximately 6.5 million members in its club. Not only that, but the company claims that “50 per cent of all new Nespresso customers’ first experience of the brand comes through existing club members”. That’s powerful proof of the value of word-of-mouth, which is of course at the heart of social media.


50 Read Health Club Management online at healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital


Numerous organisations produced very professional, polished and attractive marketing material. However, many companies are


rapidly realising that their existing content is insufficient and/or lacking legitimacy or substance for social media channels. We are now moving towards an ‘organic persuasion’ approach, based on continuous and meaningful communication within your members’ social spheres. Clubs are now in a dialogue era with members that requires you to go far beyond sales and e-brochures. Going to the gym is for many people an important part of their lifestyle; as communication becomes increasingly democratised, it will become even more important to connect with members in a meaningful way. I would like to give you something


to think about concerning my own gym membership experiences. My feedback is based on two distinct types of experience, but both with a unifying communication occurrence. The first relates to a high-end gym. Initially, in the pre-contract signing phase, there was regular contact and information. This continued for about a month and then abruptly ended. For approximately 10 months there was no communication until the membership was due to be renewed, or more bluntly when I said I was not going to renew. Funnily enough, communication from then was continuous until I unsubscribed. Let’s contrast this with my other


recent experience. This was at a low- end gym (but very nice I must say). The pre-contract signing communication


march 2012 © cybertrek 2012


ALL PICS: SHUTTERSTOCK.COM


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100