Village Surf Shoppe Case Study by Jodeci Richards

Village Surf Shoppe A Case Study Written by Jodeci Richards

Created for Dr. Brian Parker’s Media Planning class at The Florida State University, Spring 2013.

Village Surf Shoppe A Case Study Written by Jodeci Richards

Contents

Situation Analysis Media Objectives and Strategies Target Audience and Media Mix Reach & Frequency Scheduling & Timing Media Budget Geography Sales Promotion Appendix

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The Situation Analysis

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Situation Analysis

Marketing Objectives

Village Surf Shoppe, established in 1969, sells surfing accessories including surfboards, beachwear, and related products. Also offers surfing camps, rentals, and lessons. It’s located in Garden City, South Carolina (within the Myrtle Beach retail trade area). Because it’s been around for 44 years, it is an established name, however, Village Surf Shoppe is looking to increase sales by 20% using a budget of $200,000. To properly allot this budget, it’s necessary to understand that the shop’s peak selling period is April through September and that sales decline considerably during the winter months (as surfing is a seasonal sport). Some marketing techniques that have been used in the past include: • Word-‐of-‐mouth • Guerilla marketing • Personal selling • Village Surf Shoppe stickers and t-‐shits used for product awareness

Competition

There are competitors on both the local and national level for Village Surf Shoppe, which are all located in the South and North Carolina areas. Because the Village Surf Shoppe is similar to their competitors (it’s locally owned and offers lessons, rentals, clothing, and accessories), which is why they’re looking to expand into the inland market. They’re also using similar tactics, such as Internet and social media outlets (Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Foursquare). Its competitor’s are: • Waller Bear’s (local) • Surf City and Eternal Wave (local) • Ron Jon Surf Shop (national)

Creative History

Village Surf Shoppe rarely uses traditional adverting methods and their publicity is also limited to local news outlets and national surf magazines has used guerilla marketing as their primary marketing vehicle. To promote product awareness, they pass out stickers— which are often placed on car bumpers, skateboards, schoolbooks, etc.—and t-‐shirts. The shop also hosts events, like sponsoring surf competitions.

Target Audience

Village Surf Shoppe’s main target audience is men and women ages 18-‐24 who lead active, adventurous lifestyles. These men and women are also avid serious surfers and hardcore wave riders. They are heavy consumers of recorded music and they spend considerable amounts of time on the web. They have an income of less than $28,000. Those who frequent the shop like to hang out there, catch some waves, tell stories, and check out new surfboards. Tourists and a growing inland market also comprise Village’s target audience. The inland market is will to drive 1-‐3 hours to the ocean on a regular basis. Popular culture’s coverage of surfing has likely aided the growing market with TV programs like North Shore and

Situation Analysis Summerland and Surf Girls. These programs have also attracted more females to the sport and more awareness in general.

Geography

The shop is regional—it’s located in Garden City, which is within the Myrtle Beach retail trade area. Village Surf Shoppe is a leading player in the surfing business near South Carolina’s Grand Strand. While local new outlets and national surf magazines have occasionally generated publicity, guerilla marketing holds potential in spot markets around the South Carolina area. The inland market has much potential. Places included in this market are: • Columbia, South Carolina • Charleston, South Carolina • Charlotte, North Carolina

Timing

The Village Surf Shoppe is open from 10AM-‐6PM. This aligns with the fact that the average surfer surfs early in the morning for 2.5 hours.1 Its peak selling period is April through September; sales decline considerably during the winter months. The peak time for surfing occurs in mid-‐summer through the fall, which is also when there’s good “surf from hurricanes and from nor'easter weather systems.”2 Because of this, the campaign should launch before April to generate awareness for Village Surf Shoppe. Launching before April will potentially drive consumers to the store by peak selling time. Even though it’s not during peak selling time, a holiday like Christmas can potentially influence product consumption.

Media Mix

Village Surf Shoppe uses guerilla marketing as its chief vehicle, but also it also uses the Internet as a vehicle. This is a good tactic as the target audience “spend[s] considerable time on the Web” and because “many surfers get information about surfing product and weather conditions on the Internet and regularly network with other surfers via e-‐mail, blogs, and chat rooms.”3 The shop also has a Facebook page, which, in a way, serves as its central hub. Based on the existing tactics (and because the surf shop is local), marketing with local advantages will work best and the following are the best media methods to implement: • Internet • Local TV spots • Guerilla • Local Magazines • Event marketing • Billboards • Radio These methods will work for a high involvement product like surfboards with a simple message. Implementing more Internet strategies will help to increase Internet traffic and, in turn, increase store traffic and sales.