MKT PLan Open Warehouse by maripazriojas

Open Warehouse’s marketing department with the guidance of Marketing Positivo has created the following Marketing Plan.

As Philip Kotler said, “Marketing is a race without a finishing line” and even thought current and future scenarios have been analyzed, the following has to be in constant update and revision.

Introduction Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. Philip Kotler Pinpoints that it is â&#x20AC;&#x153;meeting the needs of your customer at a profit.â&#x20AC;? Being this said, the following Marketing Plan is an assemblage of analysis, goals, resources, strategies and tactics seeking to set a new department for Open Warehouse aligned with the corporate goals and objectives, keeping efforts proactive, measurable and feasible.

Table of Contents Market Delimitation ...................................................................... 9 Strategic Business Unit Profile ....................................................... 9 M ission ............................................................................................ 10 Vision ............................................................................................... 10 Values .............................................................................................. 10

Service Portfolio ......................................................................... 11 Storage ............................................................................................ 11 Distribution ...................................................................................... 11 Packaging ......................................................................................... 12 M anufacturer Supply ......................................................................... 12

Serviceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Life Cycle Analysis ........................................................ 12 Industry Life Cycle Analysis ......................................................... 13 Chain Value Analysis ................................................................... 14 Prim ary Activities .............................................................................. 15 Support Activities ............................................................................. 17

Positioning Statement ................................................................. 18 External Analysis ........................................................................ 18 Industry Life Cycle Analysis ......................................................... 19 PESTEL Analysis ......................................................................... 20 PESTEL Analysis M atrix ...................................................................... 24

Competitive Analysis .................................................................. 26 Global Logistics (International Supply Chain Solutions) ........................ 27 TRAJUCA Logistics / Forklift W arehouse ............................................. 28 CCA Group ....................................................................................... 29

Iron Logistics Group .......................................................................... 30 M istery Shopper ................................................................................ 31 Porterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 5 Forces Analysis .................................................................. 33

SWOT Analysis ........................................................................... 36 Strategic SW OT ................................................................................ 37 Events analysis .................................................................................. 39 Situation analysis .............................................................................. 41 Com panyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Diagnose ......................................................................... 42

Ansoff Matrix .............................................................................. 42 Profile of Target Market .............................................................. 45 Feature based segm entation .............................................................. 46 Behavioral, needs and attitudinal segm entation .................................. 46

Perception ................................................................................. 49 Marketing Mix ............................................................................ 49 Custom ers Survey ............................................................................. 51 Potential Clients Probe ...................................................................... 59

............................................................................................... 65 Sales ......................................................................................... 67 Strategies .................................................................................. 67 Dem ographic Strategy ....................................................................... 67 M ixed Strategy ................................................................................. 68 Strengthen the Sales Departm ent Activities ......................................... 69 Objectives and Goals ........................................................................ 69 Sales Process .................................................................................... 71

Sales Tools ................................................................................. 77

Telem arketing Speech ....................................................................... 77 Gifts ................................................................................................ 80 First Contact M ail ............................................................................. 81 First Visit Presentation ....................................................................... 82 Brochures ......................................................................................... 83 Presentation Card ............................................................................. 83 Virtual Tour ...................................................................................... 84 Sales M obile App .............................................................................. 84 CRM System ..................................................................................... 85 Sales M anual .................................................................................... 85 Prom otional Video ............................................................................ 86 Quotation Tool ................................................................................. 87

Sales Plan Execution and Control ................................................. 88 Reports ............................................................................................ 88

Market Potential ......................................................................... 90 Sales Potential ........................................................................... 92 Sales Forecast ............................................................................ 92 Sales Quota ............................................................................... 93 Sales Plan Management ............................................................... 93 Break-Even Analysis .................................................................... 95 Communications ......................................................................... 96 Creative Strategy ........................................................................ 96 Open W arehouseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Statem ent ............................................................ 96 Integrated M arketing Com m unication O bjectives ................................ 97 Integrated M arketing Com m unications Strategies ................................ 98

Unique Selling Proposition ................................................................. 99 4 Câ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s .............................................................................................. 100

Media Mix ................................................................................. 101 Em ail M arketing .............................................................................. 101 Telem arketing ................................................................................. 102 Blogging ........................................................................................ 103 Social M edia ................................................................................... 103 W ebsite .......................................................................................... 105 Pay-per-Click Advertising ................................................................. 105 Tradeshows / Expos ........................................................................ 106 Public Relations .............................................................................. 109 Brochures ....................................................................................... 110 Presentation Card ........................................................................... 111

AIDA Model .............................................................................. 111 Communication Plan Execution and Control ................................. 112 Metrics ..................................................................................... 113 Timetable .................................................................................. 115 Budget ..................................................................................... 118 Objectives and Goals ................................................................. 119 Control and Execution ................................................................ 119 Metrics ..................................................................................... 121 Conclusion ................................................................................ 122 References ................................................................................ 123 Appendix .................................................................................. 125

1. Audit Abstract ............................................................................. 125 2. Trajuca Logistics / Forklift W arehouse ........................................... 126 3. CCA Quotation ........................................................................... 127 4. Iron Logistics .............................................................................. 128 5. M istery Shopper .......................................................................... 129 6. Corporative Identity M anual ......................................................... 130 7. Telem arketing Speech ................................................................. 131 8. W alls Design ............................................................................... 133

Market Delimitation As Open Warehouse services are sold to businesses, it is good to start by defining the business-to-business market. The B2B market has been defined to include organizations that buy goods or services for variety of purposes. It also includes retailing and wholesaling firms that acquire goods for reselling or renting (Kotler and Armstrong 2001)1. Open Warehouse's market is located in Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico, where up to twenty-seven Industrial parks are found23 but it can also offer its services to companies located in the United States of America seeking to make business in Mexicali. According to the National Institute of Statistic and Geography (INEGI, in Mexico) there are 2,302 business units under the category of industry in the region, from them, 2,130 are considered as small size companies leaving 172 under the classification of Medium size and high profile companies.

Strategic Business Unit Profile Name: Open Warehouse Business name: Open Warehouse S. de R.L. de C.V. Location: Calzada Gustavo Vildósola Castro 2001, Mexicali, Baja California, México. NAICS-2012 Code:

Kotler, P. & Armstrong, G. (2012), Principles of Marketing, 14th ed, Pearson, Appendix 1 3 25 According to SDE (Secretaría de Desarrollo Económico) 1 2

48-49 Transportation and Warehousing 4931 Warehousing and Storage 493110 General Warehousing and Storage This

industry

comprises

establishments

primarily

engaged

operating

merchandise warehousing and storage facilities. These establishments generally handle goods in containers, such as boxes, barrels, and/or drums, using equipment, such as forklifts, pallets, and racks. They are not specialized in handling bulk products of any particular type, size, or quantity of goods or products.

Mission To make our clients increase their company’s competitiveness by: •

Appropriate Storage Service

•

Efficient Systems

•

Professional Material Handling

Vision Revolutionize logistics and storage services through technology and our understanding of the business environment of our clients.

Values

• • • •

Excellence in Service Team Success Customer oriented Personalized Service Pro-Active Approach

• • • •

Flexibility Responsibility Loyalty Respect

Service Portfolio In order of getting a better sales approach, is important to develop and understand Open Warehouseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s services portfolio, which is the explanation of the enterprise commercial activities.

Storage The business unit offers a value added warehousing service where the customer pays the use per night. Depending on the clientâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s commodity it can be value on number of pallets or FT2 with the competitive advantage of providing an automated on-line report in real time of the ware location.

Distribution As part of the warehousing services, Open Warehouse can provide the transportation services in Mexicali, Baja California when the client requires it.

Packaging Through Lumberworks Pallets Co. 4 the enterprise is able to offer the service of design, manufacture and sale of packaging and packing and repacking service.

Manufacturer Supply As an IMMEX 5 -certified company, Open Warehouse can temporarily import goods and transfers to their customers.

Service’s Life Cycle Analysis This is the idea that products, like people, have a birth, a life and a death, and that they should be financed and marketed with this in mind. Philip Kotler breaks the product life cycle into five distinct phases6:

•

Development:

Company

looks for a new product or service.

•

Introduction: The product's costs rise sharply as the heavy

pallets.lumberworks.mx IMMEX- Decreto Para El Fomento De La Industria Manufacturera, Maquiladora Y De Servicios De Exportación. 6 Kotler, P., “Marketing Management: Analysis, Planning, Implementation and Control”, Prentice Hall, 1967; 12th edition, 2006 4 5

expense of advertising and marketing any new product begins to take its toll. •

Growth: As the product begins to be accepted by the market, the company starts to recoup the costs of the first two phases.

•

Maturity: The service is widely accepted and growth slows down.

•

Decline: End the service or reinvent.

Life cycle management particularly in B2B sales and marketing allows gaining valuable insight into customers' state of mind, not to mention the purchase decisions that might be on their radar. Life cycle management is a practice that can help the ability to upsell, cross-sell, and otherwise grow an existing customer relationship; it helps companies cultivate brand loyalty by identifying opportunities for adding value to the customer equation at key points in time. As registers have shown, Open Warehouse’s warehousing service has an average length of three months per customer’s material.

Industry Life Cycle Analysis A useful tool for analyzing the effects of industry evolution on competitive forces is the "industry life cycle" model, which identifies four sequential stages in the evolution of an industry:7

•

Introduction: In the introduction stage of the life cycle, an industry is in its infancy. Perhaps a new, unique product offering has been developed and patented, thus beginning a new industry.

This analysis is in the light of Porter’s 5-forces model which is explained forward in this document.

•

Growth: Demand is expanding rapidly and the industry's products take off.

•

Maturity: As the industry approaches maturity, the industry life cycle curve becomes noticeably flatter, indicating slowing growth.

•

Decline: Eventually, most industries enter a decline stage where growth becomes negative.

Open Warehouse’s industry can be detected at a mature stage where there are plenty of competitors, demand is limited to replacement demand and growth is low. For these cases, it is suggested that the marketing effort remains strong and must stress the unique features of the product or the firm to continue to differentiate a firm's offerings from industry competitors.

Chain Value Analysis A value chain is the whole series of activities that create and build value at every step; Michael Porter8 defines it as made of primary activities and support activities separating useful (which allow the company as a whole to gain competitive advantage) from the wasteful ones (which hinder the company from getting a lead in the market).

Porter, M.E. (1980), Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and

Competitors. New York: Free Press. 14

Summarizing, this is a declaration of Open Warehouseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s value chain that outlines core competencies and explain why customers appreciate its services and brings value to the market.

Primary Activities Inbound Logistics The inbound logistics for Open Warehouse refers to warehouse materials from its customers and manage them inventory with the help of a unique technological system which provides accurate information of the commodities allocated, offering VMI (Vendor Managed Inventory) service.

Operations Open Warehouse operates in Mexicali, Baja California either as only storage, or also with the other services, offers transportation across Baja Californiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Capital. According to its reports, 92%9 of the total revenue comes from warehousing.

Outbound Logistics

About intermediaries, the enterprise works with Soluciones de LogĂstica for transport services, Lumberworks Pallets Co. for packaging and also has the possibility of collaborating with Villanueva Lorenzo when the customer needs it.

Marketing and Sales The competitive advantage of the company is the fact of clientâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s paying only for the exact time and space they need. A Marketing department and sales force team are on a developing process.

Service Using professionalism and technology to deliver its services.

Data provided by ES Consulting 16

Support Activities

Infrastructure These are a company's support systems and the functions that allow it to maintain daily operations, in this case: accounting, legal, administrative, supply, customer service and general management.

Human Resources The companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s committed workforce is considered a key attribute in the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s success and growth. Open Warehouse employees see the company as a synonym of teamwork, service and availability.10

Technological Development Open Warehouse has its own on-line system minimizing information technology costs, staying current with technological advances,

and

maintaining

technical

excellence as sources of value creation.

Appendix 1 17

Procurement (Purchasing) Its vendors are part of the same business group, which allows negotiating best costs.

Positioning Statement A positioning statement is a one- or two-sentence statement that articulates the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s product or service's unique value to its customers in relation to its chief competition. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Open Warehouse provides small, medium and big size companies with the most flexible warehousing services in the logistics industry. We do this by being always available, forming strategic partnerships and charging our customers only for the exact space and time they need.â&#x20AC;?

External Analysis Market research is about understanding the market in which Open Warehouse plans to compete and positioning its services to meet an unmet need. It is about finding an opportunity in the market, determining whom are the potential clients and understanding who are the existing players already competing for the business.11

Godin, S. (2009), 8 Questions and Why, Seth Godin. 18

•

Introduction: In the introduction stage of the life cycle, an industry is in its infancy. Perhaps a new, unique product offering has been developed and patented, thus beginning a new industry.

•

Growth: Demand is expanding rapidly and the industry's products take off.

•

Maturity: As the industry approaches maturity, the industry life cycle curve becomes noticeably flatter, indicating slowing growth.

•

Decline: Eventually, most industries enter a decline stage where growth becomes negative.

This analysis is in the light of Porter’s 5-forces model which is explained forward in this document.

PESTEL Analysis The PEST13 analysis has been used for studying the Political, Economic, Social and Technological matters which describe a framework of macro-environmental factors used in the environmental scanning component of strategic management. It is a part of the external analysis when conducting a strategic analysis or doing market research, and gives an overview of the different macro-environmental factors that the company has to take into consideration. It is a useful strategic tool for understanding market growth or decline, business position, potential and direction for operations. As the industrial marketing perspective, it is suggested to adopt a PESTEL approach, which adds Environmental and Legal factors to the mix.

Political

Refers to government regulations and legal factors are assessed in terms of their ability to affect the business environment and trade markets.

13 14

•

Operation Permit (City Hall)

•

Fire Department Permit

•

Land usage permit

•

NEEC Certification14

•

IVA Certification

•

IMMEX permit or license maintenance

•

Trade regulations

J. Aguilar, Francis. (1967), Scanning the Business Environment. http://certificacionneec.com/ 20

•

Industrial safety regulations

•

Federal Tax (Secretaría de Hacienda y Crédito Público)

Economic

Through this factor, businesses examine the economic issues that are bound to have an impact on the company. This would include factors like inflation, interest rates, economic growth, the unemployment rate and policies, and the business cycle followed in the country. For Open Warehouse, the economic factors that have been identified are:

•

Exchange rate

•

Decreasing of acquisitive power

•

Change in export volumes in the Mexicali Border

•

New arrival of commercial or Industrial business to the area

•

Depreciation of Mexican Peso

•

Instability of Mexican currency

•

Industry cycle stage

•

Seasonality Issues

•

Some enterprises are opting for creating their own storage

Socio-Cultural

The third aspect of PESTLE analysis focuses on forces within society. Social and cultural forces affect customers' attitudes, interests and opinions. Companies must 21

be able to offer products and services that aim to complement and benefit customers' needs and wants. If they do not quickly respond to changes in society they will lose market share and demand for their product or service will decrease.

As Open Warehouse being a Business-to-Business enterprise, social factors aren’t as ponderous as they are for other industries, however a radical change in consumer’s needs and evoke set could affect the business as a result of derived demand. Other points to consider are:

•

Lack of trained or experimented personnel for recruitment increases labor costs.

•

Green culture Society is seeking to deliberate choices and decisions regarding the resources used for daily living for the purpose of minimizing resources used or to use resources that are renewable.

•

Mexican hierarchical culture 15 This means that people accept a hierarchical order in which everybody has a place and which needs no further justification. In this case, it is translated into an extensive length of negotiation and people to go through in order to close a deal.

According to the 6-D Model for Hofstede’s dimensions: Power Distance 22

Technological

How technology cans either positively or negatively impact the introduction of a product or service into a marketplace is assessed here. Technology directly affects how Open Warehouse services are offered:

•

Inventory management system

•

Electronic identification system billing-linked to the electronic billing system

•

Bar code system

•

GPS tracking system

•

Competitors offer real-time tracking

•

Web enabled communications

•

Fire sprinkler systems are a safety measurement clients are seeking

Environmental

•

Mexicali, Baja California is considered as an Industrial City

•

Open Warehouse is located in a border city

•

The levels of air pollution in Mexicali have been located in the orange or harmful to health parameter. The registers of PM10 and PM 2.5 particles can damage facilities in the long term.

Legal

Legislative changes can and affect the business environment:

•

NMX-R-046-SCFI-2011 Industrial Parks Specifications by Secretaría de Economía.

•

Civil Protection regulations.

PESTEL Analysis Matrix

Factor

Opportunity

Threat

Indifferent

Political Land Usage permit NEEC Certification

X X

IVA Certification IMMEX Permit or License Maintenance

X X

Fire Department Permit

Trade Regulations

Industrial Safety Regulations

Federal Tax

Economic Exchange Rate

Decreasing of Acquisitive Power

Change in import volumes in the

Mexicali Border New arrival of commercial or Industrial

Business to the area Depreciation of Mexican Peso

Instability of Mexican currency

Industry Cycle Stage

Seasonality Issues

Some

enterprises

are

opting

for

experimented

creating their own storage Socio-Cultural Lack

trained

personnel Green Culture

Mexican Hierarchical Culture

Technological Inventory Management systems

Electronic identification system billinglinked to the electronic billing system Bar Code System

GPS Tracking System

Competitors offer real-time tracking Web enabled communications

X X

Fire sprinkler systems are a safety

measurement clients are seeking Environmental Mexicali, Baja California is considered

X 25

as an industrial system Open Warehouse is located in a

border city The levels of air pollution

Legal NMX-R-046-SCFI-2011 Industrial Parks Specifications

SecretarĂa

EconomĂa. Civil Protection Regulations Regulation Of Urban Image For The

X X

Municipality Of Mexicali. (Reglamento de Imagen Urbana para el Municipio de Mexicali)

Competitive Analysis As Mexicali being an Industrial city, Open Warehouse faces a plethora of competition, and with little brand recognition against its core competitors, it is even more important that assess the strengths and weaknesses of its competition. The enterprise is located in a market of economies of scale, where production costs decrease with increasing quantities, which could represent an entry barrier and suggest a red ocean strategy. According to the National Institute of Statistic and Geography (INEGI, in Mexico) there are twenty-nine registered Strategic Business Units in Mexicali under the same category as Open Warehouse. Four main competitors were identified:

Global Logistics (International Supply Chain Solutions)

Business name: International Supply Chain Solutions and Outsourcing S. de R.L. de C.V. NAICS-2012 Code: 493190 Location: El Dorado Industrial Park.

International Supply Chain solutions provides to its customers: •

Virtual Storage Operation

•

VMI

and

Inventory

Management •

Logistics and Transportation Programs

•

Import Export

•

Manufacturing Services

The enterprise searches customers in the United States and look for suppliers in Mexicali companies. They have a good following customer base and sales strategy. Since it relocated recently, it can be hard to find and can represent a weakness for them. Also, their web page16 isn’t updated and doesn’t count with any social media profile, which represent a weakness for them and a good opportunity to Open Warehouse.

http://www.glsjit.com/espanol/about.html There is a second on in process, http://www.isupply3pl.com/

TRAJUCA Logistics / Forklift Warehouse

Business name: Trajuca Logistics S. de R.L. de C.V. Location: Cucapah Industrial Park The enterprise uses both names and is located just a few minutes from Open Warehouse and offers the following services at a low cost: • Storage of raw materials or WIP type • Storage

and

distribution

the

Finished Product • Local transportation truckload (FTL) or partial (LTL) • Warehousing

and

distribution

goods on consignment • Inventory management of its suppliers (VMI or Supplier Mall) • Assembling sets of materials and choice of materials to production lines • Trans-shipment trailer

It still uses the name of TRAJUCA Logistics officially and its location sign hasn’t change. However, they give information to its potential customers under the name of Forklift Warehouse17, giving space for positioning confusion and representing an opportunity for us. The have their own website18 and Google Plus profile 19.

Appendix 2 www.trajuca.com 19 https://plus.google.com/100157100503917825273/posts 17 18

CCA Group

Business name: CCA Grupo Aduanal , S.C. Transportes Norte De Bc, S. De R.L. De C.V. / BC Logistics, S De R.L De C.V. NAICS-2012 Code: 484119 Location: Pimsa II Industrial Park CCA Group works side by side with the government of the United States of America and the private sector, having broad experience and a strong alliance, which translates in a big customer base. Their services include:

•

Customs Brokerage

•

Sub- Maquila Services

•

Warehousing

•

Transportation

With their customs services as core offer, they are part of a consolidated binational group. They are well known for their great customer services and their quick follow-ups with potential clients and quotation20. In communications, they count with a non-updated Facebook 21 , and bilingual website22, also billboards among the Industrial sector of Mexicali, Baja California.

Appendix 3 https://www.facebook.com/CCAGROUP/ 22 http://www.groupcca.com/ 20 21

Iron Logistics Group

Business name: Transportes Nogueira, S. De R.L. De C.V. NAICS-2012 Code: 488990 Location: Pimsa II Industrial Park Known by its great customer service, Iron Logistics is located at Parque Industrial EX-XXI and is in alliance with IVEMSA Nearshore Manufacturing Operations and Nogueira Customs Borders. It also has a web inventory system, similar to Open Warehouse’s and its core services are: •

Warehousing

•

Delivery

•

Maquila Services

When visiting the enterprise, they offer to their potential costumer an informational brochure 23 , even thought they have an updated website24 they have a poor social media positioning25

Appendix 4 http://ironlogisticsvmi.com/ 25 https://www.facebook.com/Iron-Logistics-293939690777060/?fref=ts 23 24

Mistery Shopper

Mystery shopping is a tool used externally by market research companies, watchdog organizations, or internally by companies themselves to measure quality of service, or compliance with regulation, or to gather specific information about products and services. The establishment being evaluated does generally not know the mystery consumerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s specific identity and purpose. Mystery shoppers perform specific tasks such as purchasing a product, asking questions, registering complaints or behaving in a certain way, and then provide detailed reports or feedback about their experiences. For Open Warehouse competitorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s analysis, a Mistery Shopper was held on February26, visiting the four enterprises mentioned above, the following are the results obtained:

Appendix 5 31

Is there any sign of the company that can be recognized from the outside of the Industrial Park?

Iron Logistics: No Trajuca Logistics: Yes, but it is not clear to see CCA Group: Yes

Cleanness

Iron Logistics: Yes Trajuca Logistics: Yes CCA Group: Really neat

Were security measurements taken?

Iron Logistics: No Trajuca Logistics: No CCA Group: Data taken before entering, special I.D and vest

Customer Service

Iron Logistics: They offer a customized service Trajuca Logistics: Just what kind of material CCA Group: Truly interested

Is there a special reception area?

Iron Logistics: No Trajuca Logistics: No CCA Group: Yes, meeting room.

Any brochures?

Iron Logistics: Yes, brochure Trajuca Logistics: Yes, folder and printed presentation CCA Group: No

In the case of Global Logistics / International Supply Chain Solutions, the access was denied.

Porterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 5 Forces Analysis Porter five forces analysis is a framework that attempts to analyze the level of competition within an industry and business strategy development. It draws upon industrial organization economics to derive five forces that determine the competitive intensity and therefore attractiveness of an Industry.

Threat of New Entrants - Low •

High economies of scale

•

Low Brand Identification

•

Product Differentiation

•

Capital Requirements

•

Low entry barriers

Threat of Substitutes of Services -High •

Profitability of industry producing substitute is high. 34

•

Rate of improvement in price-performance relationship of substitute product is low.

Bargaining Power of Customers Since Open Warehouse clients are categorized on three different profiles, the bargaining power fluctuates: Since small profile companies see the service as a commodity, the company’s power is low, but as the level of flexibility needs arises, the more bargaining power Open Warehouse gains.

Bargaining Power of Suppliers –Low •

Industrial park owner is a strategic partner. Rent is a partnership.

•

High power of negotiation with SDL.

Rivalry Among Current Competitors – High •

Weak brand identity

•

Numerous or equally balanced competitors

•

Storage cost

•

Fast Industry Growth

For the already explained reasons at the Bargaining Power of Costumers, it is important to understand that there is a high rivalry between competitors in the warehousing system, but a low level of direct competitors.

SWOT Analysis The S.W.O.T. Analysis evaluates Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, is well known in the business planning process. Many companies use this method during strategic planning exercises as a way to form strategies and make decisions on new business ventures or initiatives. It is powerful because it looks at both internal (strengths, weaknesses) and external (opportunities, threats) forces. As powerful as the S.W.O.T. Analysis is for business planning, it is equally powerful

sales

and

marketing

decision-making. By employing this traditional tool Open Warehouse can take advantage of its strengths, uncover new opportunities, minimize weaknesses and eliminate threats. Strengths •

Own technology

•

Economies of Scale

•

Experience in the market

•

High quality service

•

Good distribution channels

•

Strong alliances with suppliers

Weaknesses •

Scarce financial resources

•

Poor corporate image/ brand recognition

•

Limited market distribution 36

Opportunities •

Alliance openness

•

Market potential

•

Openness to new markets

•

Competence adversity

•

Effective distribution technique

Threats •

Substitute products

•

Competitor’s strategies

Strategic SWOT

Strategic planning is an integral part of a sales plan. In order to select the best sales strategies for Open Warehouse, it is necessary to address the previous analysis from a numerical perspective 27considering the following values: External events: Everything that happens outside Open Warehouse is considered an external event, and it is calculated:

Event

Trend

Force

Movement

Opportunities +

Threats -

-1

-2

-3

Thompson, Strickland, Gamble. Crafting and Executing Strategy. (14 Edition) 37

•

Trend stands for macroeconomic factors, which are categorized under: Economic, demographic, political, legal, socio-cultural, technological and global.

•

It is a Force when it is beneath the Porter’s five forces model (New entrants, power of suppliers, power of buyers, substitute services and competitors.

•

Movement refers strictly to Open Warehouse competitor’s price, range, quality and depth.

Internal Situations: What happens inside Open Warehouse, regarding its resources, decisions and processes are considered as a situation and have the following values:

Situation

Value

Strengths+

Weaknesses -

-1

They get qualified as: •

Processes and Functions

•

Advantages or disadvantages of the goods / services

•

Service portfolio

Events analysis

Event

O / T

Value

Trends Slowdown of economy leads to reduced revenues

-1

Small companies are starting to look for storage services

Exchange Rate

-1

Increase of import volumes in the Mexicali Border

Arrival of new businesses to Mexicali

Enterprises are opting for creating their own storage

-1

Lack of experimented personnel

-1

Mexican Hierarchical Culture

-1

Civil Protection Regulations

-1

Open Warehouse alliances with suppliers

Some of Open Warehouseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s main competitors started to

-2

Intense competition in the Industry

-2

Open Warehouse participation on industry events

Enterprises are seeking for lowering costs

-2

Scarce direct competitors

Open Warehouse openness to new alliances

Substitute products

-2

Seasonality Issues

-2

Tendency of seeing Open Warehouse as a commodity

-2

Fire sprinkler systems are a safety measurement clients are

-2

Competitorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; online presence weakness

Lack of positioning of some competitors

Forces

offer Pay per night service

looking for Movements

Some competitors count with strong alliances with custom

-3

brokers Competitors offering real-time tracking

Total value of external analysis: -7 There are 15 threats and 9 opportunities.

Situation analysis

Situation

S / W

Value

Processes and Functions Scarce employee training

-1

Scarce financial resources

-1

Efficient Supply Chain

Lack of a stable quotation system

-1

Open Warehouse has to pay a monthly rent

-1

Cosmo Industrial park doesn’t have water

-1

Strategic alliance with Cosmo Industrial Park

-1

Open Warehouse’s location

The enterprise has its own inventory management system

SBU represents economies of scale

Poor brand recognition

-1

Limited market distribution (Only Mexicali area)

-1

Since this is a competitive segment, the market share

-1

Open Warehouse has the ability of work as a manufacturer

Experience in material management

Cosmo Industrial park doesn’t have water

-1

Advantages or Disadvantages of Services

growth is limited Open Warehouse lacks of a fire sprinklers system, which has translated on loss of potential customers.

Total value of internal analysis: -5 6 strengths and 11 weaknesses were detected.

Company’s Diagnose

For Open Warehouse, there have been detected more Threats than Opportunities and more weaknesses than strengths, therefore, it is suggested to focus on the company’s strengths in order to protect from threats and strengthen weaknesses. For the approach, it is suggested to center in a functional strategy28, which aims to increase the business competitive capacity and add value to its offer.

Ansoff Matrix Thomson, Strickland and Gamble, suggest after making a strategic SWOT analysis, to create an Ansoff Matrix

before

establishing

the

course line. Sometimes called the Product/Market Expansion Grid, the Matrix shows four strategies Open Warehouse could use to grow, depending on the company’s stage. It also helps analyzing the risks associated with each one; it is a straightforward method to weigh up the risks associated with strategies.

However, there’s a new approach to the same matrix, extending its vision to a corporate look, it is important to notice this is a framework to explore growth opportunities: 28 29

Thompson, Strickland, Gamble. Crafting and Executing Strategy. (14 Edition) Ansoff, H. Igor. (1957). Strategies for Diversification. Harvard Business Review. 42

1. Market Development Open Warehouse branch office in Tijuana, offering the same business model but in a new market.

2. Market Expansion The enterprise could offer individual warehouses within the industrial ship, where the clients are the only one available to access and they control the inventory, being a self-storage scheme. 3. Market Penetration This is the approach selected for the main plan. Explanation will follow. 4. Partial Diversification Continuing with the idea of a branch office in Tijuana, but offering the transportation service not only in the City, but also to Mexicali and Tecate. 5. Limited Diversification Continuing with the idea of a branch office in Tijuana, but offering the transportation service not only in the City, but also to Mexicali and Tecate. 6. Product Extension Slightly modifying Open Warehouseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s transportation service, making its rates per kilometer and unloading. 7. Diversification Open Warehouse is a logistics company in a border city, a great opportunity to offer custom brokerage. 8. Partial Diversification Considering the available space at Cosmo Industrial Park, a partial diversification could be offer space for trailer storage. 9. Product Development GPS tracking system for Open Warehouseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s customers where they can access in real time to a system and track the exact location of the ware per pallet.

Previously mentioned, the Strategic Business Unit already has a good service, which wants to offer to an already existing market, which suggests a Market Penetration strategy that proposes:

•

Develop a new marketing strategy.

•

Introduce a loyalty scheme.

•

Launch price or special offers.

•

Increase sale force's activities.

The market penetration strategy is recognized to be a low-risk method to grow business; it aims to achieve development in the current market segments with existing products gaining market share.

Profile of Target Market Any market can be segmented on any basis meeting certain criteria30 they need to be: •

Meaningful Grouped on dimensions that influence how to approach them

•

Distinct Each segment has to be clearly different to others

•

Sizeable Large enough to justify existence

•

Identifiable Placed into “real life”

In B2B markets there are usually fewer segments and these buyers tend to have similar requirements

Willan, D. B2B Market Segmentation. Circle Research. 45

Feature based segmentation The most common approach to segmentation in B2B markets is feature based. Here, the groups are divided by size, location, or activity. This is a helpful strategy since it reflects differing customer needs, it’s easy to implement and it is actionable. Since Open Warehouse opened its doors, has been working by this formulation with three different target markets: High Profile Company, Med Size Company and Small Size Company. Profile

Number of Employees

High Profile

Minimum of 500 employees

Medium Size

From 50 to 499 employees

Small Size

A Maximum of 49 employees

Behavioral, needs and attitudinal segmentation

A feature-based approach is useful, but it’s far more powerful to complement

that

segmentation

according to customer behaviors, needs and attitudes. This deeper level of understanding allows the company to tailor its offer and messaging so that it is a perfect fit. The following diagram breaks each point for Open

Warehouse’s

market:

For the High Profile Companies, decisions usually go through a long process since they are part from national or international conglomerates. The decision takers might be foreign. They need at least 5000 SQF and usually acquire longterm commitments. Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s no much difference between the first segment and the Medium Size, they have a local decision-making and its expected requirement fluctuates from 1,500 SQF to 5000 SQF. The Small Size Companies sometimes work as a sales satellite for bigger enterprise, but decisions are mostly local and few persons participate on the decision-making process. The expected requirement is less than 1,500 SQF. Open Warehouse knows well its market segments, mixing the featured based segmentation with its behaviors, attitudes and needs:

Risk

Profile

Service

Long Term

To stay

To Pay

Cost

Commitment

High

Low

High

Low

High

Low

High

Low

High

High Profile Company 500< employees, international corporates with the potential of 5000< SQF. Med Size Company 50-499 employees, local decision making. The expected requirement goes 1500-5000 SQF. Small Size Company <49 employees, locally made decisions or with foreign as satellite. They usually look for <1500 SQF.

Perception Perception in marketing is described as a process by which a consumer identifies, organizes, and interprets information to create meaning by experience with products, service and people, through what other people say about the company (even competitors) and through marketing. Perception is a key factor for an enterprise since no one buys from a company they distrust or pays a premium for a solution they see as a low cost provider.

Marketing Mix Marketing mix helps to determine the unique selling points (USPs) of a brand. Marketing mix goes a long way

determining

how

organizationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s products and services are different from the competitors.

It is well known under a 4 pâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s scheme: Product, Price, Place and Promotion.

Product This is about offering something of value to the client, which in Open Warehouse is: Flexibility 49

Price The company has different pricing methods, according to sales per square feet or pallet position.

Place Since the enterprise offers a service, the place is its main facilities.

Promotion Promotion refers to methods of communication; promote the brand among its clients. Before opening the marketing department, the promotional mix in the enterprise consisted of some events, brochures and Facebook; ahead on this document, a new promotional mix is proposed, mixing traditional with no traditional channels.

Customers Survey

A customers survey was held on February 2016 including current and past clients in order to understand better how they perceive Open Warehouseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s services and brand. The sample consisted of 18 customers, 12 active and 6 inactive. Obtaining the following results:

3 Words Associated with Open Warehouse: 31 1. Service 2. Good Service 3. Commitment 4. Security 5. Efficiency 6. Responsibility 7. Kindness 8. Availability

Shown in order of most to less mentioned 53

Customers’ reviews:

"Pleased with the service, very satisfied. Others do not provide what Open Warehouse. " -Diana Castillo (Suga)

"We had problems with the online tracking system." -Gerardo Gomez (Cervecería de Baja California)

"Very helpful staff and provided the information requested" -Alva James (Sistemas Logísticos de Mexico)

"Good response from the warehouse team." -Jose Antonio Ramirez (Membranas Plásticas)

Observations:

•

Sistemas Logísticos de México said “Good service at the warehouse.”

•

Comercial Encanto complained about the transportation service: “Fleet vehicle was old and couldn’t carry the merchandise. It was time consuming. The Warehouse was fine.”

•

Provem wasn’t aware Open Warehouse is open on Saturdays at noon.

•

Fernan Dueñas (Cleanesis) has recommended us and would do it again.

•

Eurochem doesn’t know another company who offers the exact same services.

•

Orthodental had problems with the delivery of some boxes, since they were damaged when stacked.32

•

Grupo Quimisor said everything was really fine.

The issue was already reported to the Warehouse Manager. 55

Observations from different clients: •

The facilities are dark and the office small. Data register interferes with the system.

•

Some occasions need more staff.

•

As a personal opinion and not thinking of Open Warehouse as an expensive service, prices can always improve.

•

Boxes were dusty.

•

3 customers said they have only used the warehousing service, so they believed they needed to try other services before answering the previous question.

Customers’ comments on Services’ improvement: •

More containers availability.

•

Option of downloading an excel file from the online system.

•

Logistics.

•

Problems presented on the lighting of a corridor.

•

Great customer service from Warehouse Manager & HR.

•

Availability on space.

•

Dusty boxes.

After appraising the previous results, the following pops up: •

Open Warehouse highlights for its customers service.

•

Flexibility is a value consumers perceive.

•

The enterprise has a USP its clients notice.

•

“Dusty boxes” is an issue some purchasers mentioned.

•

Not everyone has visited the facilities.

Potential Clients Probe On the other hand, potential clients probe was held on February 2016 with a list provided by the company’s salesperson in order to understand better what are they giving value to. The sample consisted of 18 enterprises, obtaining the following results:

*An important part of the sample mentioned “Other” and focused on:

“Daily delivery, pay per use, inventory information access and daily reports.”Furukawa

“Types of services.”-Massimo 60

“Flexibility.”-Asotech

“Daily delivery, pay per use, inventory information access and daily reports.”Furukawa

“Space reduction.”-Premiere Pack

“Demand.”-Fram Autolite

“Safety.”-SL Power, Pak 2 Go, Coppel

“Facilities and system.”-Technicolor

It was ask to rate on a scale from 1 to 6 33 the following:

Being 6 the highest and 1 the lowest 62

Potential customers’ comments: •

Ricardo Beltrán from Asotech said he had received information about Open Warehouse’s services; however, he doesn’t know the enterprise name. He said that eventually they would be seeking external warehousing.

•

Manuel Guerrero from Furukawa said they don’t use external warehousing services, but in case of need they would be looking for paying per use instead of conventional contract.

•

From Premier Pack, Rosalina Amaya said they sometimes need external warehousing services.

•

Fram Autolite asks for 3PL, giving value to the fact that tha contract stipulates the period, inventory and fees. Also verifications and specialized system.

•

For Coppel, Lorena Padilla said it is important that the enterprise has the capacity of attending big units.

•

According to Alejandro Ledón, Merchand Merchandile uses internal warehousing but eventually they will need an external party.

•

Technicolor is closing a deal with International Supply Chain/ Global Logistics in behalf of its flexible contract and delimitated area. They recognized Open Warehouse, but see it as a small warehouse, according to Alejandro Díaz.

After analyzing the previous results, the following pops up: •

Flexibility is a value consumers perceive.

•

The enterprise has a USP its clients notice. 66

•

Open Warehouse is seen as a small warehouse.

•

The enterprise needs to focus on its branding.

•

Price, location and flexibility are the top valued attributes.

Sales Strategies After the previous analyses, it is clear to see where Open Warehouse is standing and for the sales department it is proposed to follow: •

Demographic Strategy

•

Mixed Strategy (Impulse and attract)

•

Strengthen sales department activities

Demographic Strategy It is not possible to sell products or services if they have an “all-to-all” approach; B2B markets are characterized in a number of ways that makes them very different to their consumer cousins. For business-to-business markets implications and segmentation34 is important to understand the following:

•

B2B markets have a more complex decision-making unit

•

B2B buyers are more rational

•

B2B products are often more complex

•

B2B target audiences are smaller than consumer target audiences

•

Personal relationships are more important in b2b markets

According to Paul Hague and Matthew Harrison, B2B International. 67

•

B2B buyers are longer-term buyers

•

B2B markets drive innovation less than consumer markets

•

B2B markets have fewer behavioral and needs-based segments

Having that established, the offerings will be divided for three different segments: •

Small Size Companies 49 or less employees, where decisions are made locally or with foreign as satellites. They usually look for less than 1500 SQF.

•

Medium Size Companies From 50 to 499 employees, local decision making. The expected requirement goes between 1500 to 5000 SQF.

•

High Profile Companies With a minimum of 500 employees, are international corporates with the potential of renting more than 5000 SQF.

For the small size companies, is suggested to give the written information in Spanish and to offer warehousing services. In the case of Medium Size and High Profile companies, it is necessary to provide information not only in Spanish, but also in English, since usually the people involved in the decision making process are Anglophones. This kind of enterprises not only need storage, they also seek for services as real-time tracking and logistics management.

Mixed Strategy A mixed strategy consists of two different strategies combined to maximize its effects; first, there is the impulse one, which occurs when the seller offers incentives to promote the product or buy additional amounts. The second one, is to attract, with this kind of method, the goal is the customer, not the seller. An example of a strategy to attract is when a company develops an advertising campaign to launch a new product. 68

Strengthen the Sales Department Activities

The sales force is the division responsible of selling Open Warehouse’s services; to make it an effective one it is necessary not to only have trained people on the matter of sales or exclusively experts on the industry field. What the company needs is the combination of both accompanied by the adequate tools, activities and metrics. The tools given to the sales force will be: •

CRM

•

Sales Mobile App

•

Telemarketing Speech

•

First contact mail

•

Virtual Tour

•

Brochures

•

Presentation Card

•

Questionnaires

•

Enterprise Presentation

•

Surveys

•

Quotation Checklist

•

Sales Manual

Objectives and Goals The purpose of implementing a sales plan is to potentiate Open Warehouse’s sales force efficiency and effectiveness, streamlining the process of training and decision-making. The objectives and targets proposed here are for a period of three months, with the intention of analyzing the accomplished goals, those left behind and those that are still in process. Eliminating those that are not considered relevant and focusing on those providing greater results to the organization.

The objectives for the first trimester are: •

Train the sales force with the use of CRM and metrics.

•

Have a weekly analysis of phone calls, visits and sales.

•

Start a post-sale register where customer’s satisfaction is measured.

•

Set weekly schedules for measuring results.

•

Set monthly closures.

Sales Process Small Profile Company

1. Prospecting Potential Customers This could be by phone, visits to Industrial Parks, trade-shows or word-ofmouth. 2. Log information into CRM This contributes the follow-up process for any member of the sale force and makes the revision easier for the manager. 3. Call the potential customer To invite them to know Open Warehouse, understand if they are a viable option and send them a presentation email. 4. First Visit to customer’s office For understanding the customer’s desires and needs. An enterprise presentation should be done and the sales agent will fill up a preliminary questionnaire. 5. Second Visit to Customer’s Workplace This visit is to understand the client’s operation and a questionnaire for quotation will be applied. 6. Visit to Open Warehouse Now is customer’s turn to meet the facilities and how the company works. 7. Quotation By the sales team with the guidance and authorization of the warehouse manager. 8. Negotiation In case the quotation is not accepted at first. On this step is important the participation of the management.

*Certificate Negotiations can be complicated at times, however, when getting to this point of the process, the potential customer is close to become a real one. The certificate applies in those cases where the negotiation might be not going well and it needs to be a joint decision by the sales executive and warehouse manager. 9. Sign Contract And fill up the requirements. 10.

Start of Operations

11.

Follow Up

During the first weeks, talk with the customers and check expectations are being reached. 12.

Post-Sale

Even if it is already a client, is important to maintain the contact and relationship.

Following this section, the tools mentioned in the previous flow chart can be find.

Medium & High Profile Company

10.

Start of Operations

11.

Follow Up

During the first weeks, talk with the customers and check expectations are being reached. 12.

Post-Sale

Even if it is already a client, is important to maintain the contact and relationship.

Following this section, the tools mentioned in the previous flow chart can be find.

Sales Tools After understanding the base sales process, the tactics used by each sales force person need to be reinforced by the adequate tools.

Telemarketing Speech The first contact with the potential customer is usually by telephone. The forthcoming speech was designed with the intention of not only measuring the business interests and needs, but also, as a small survey seeking to understand what is our market giving value to:

Guión para llamadas telefónicas

Importante

• • •

Antes de iniciar con llamadas, se debe tener una base de datos de clientes potenciales. La secretaria o recepcionista no es quién toma decisiones, pero SÍ es el primer contacto, y por la tanto, es clave nuestra relación con ella. Habla a velocidad tranquila y con buena dicción, deja que el otro también participe en la conversación y escúchalo, se trata de ellos.

1. Introducción (1-5 segundos) “Hola, buen@s ______________, mi nombre es ____________________ y hablo de Open Warehouse, ¿Con quién tengo el gusto?”

Si responde con: ¿A quién busca?

Si conoces el dato, lo das. De no ser así…

“¿Me comunica con el área de_______?”

En caso de no obtener respuesta favorable:

“De acuerdo, muchas gracias. ¿Cuál es el nombre del encargado de dicha área?”

¡Listo! Ya contamos con el dato para la próxima ocasión.

Si dice su nombre ¡Apréndelo!

“¿Cómo estás, ________________? ¿No te agarro muy ocupada?” “No te preocupes, ya casi termina el día/es hora de descanso”

Háblale por su nombre, sin quitarle tiempo entabla una relación. Pregunta quién es el encargado del área que buscas…

•

La secretaría es sólo un filtro, si pregunta quién eres, sólo contesta eso, no es necesario entrar en detalles de servicios, ofertas y demás.

Cuando ya se está hablando con el encargado:

2. Breve Historia “Muy buenos días, Sr. _______________ ¿Está Usted satisfecho con su actual servicio de almacenamiento?”

Espera su respuesta, es clave para la conversación. Esta pregunta sirve como encuesta y ayuda a guiar la conversación.

“¿Estaría Usted interesado en una propuesta que le ayude a ahorrar considerablemente?

Espera la respuesta, de ser negativa, concreta una nueva hora. De ser positiva, YA TENEMOS UN PROSPECTO.

3. Presentación

“Además de ser un almacén, nosotros ofrecemos servicio de transporte, logística y embalaje, todo de acuerdo a sus necesidades siendo un servicio sin límite de espacio y sin límite de tiempo.”

No mencionar todas las características de la marca, ya que éstas se pueden utilizar al momento de manejar objeciones.

4. Cierre

“Muy bien, Sr. _________, en Open Warehouse es muy importante contar con clientes como su compañía y agradecemos el tiempo que nos ha ofrecido. ¿Nos podría proporcionar un correo al cual hacerle llegar nuestra información?”

En caso de que el cliente muestre apertura a una reunión, concretarla.

Gifts

Gifts can be a powerful tool on B2B sales and Mexican culture, Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) has conducted surveys of corporate gift givers and recipients. They have shown that vendors who gave were twice as likely to increase their chances of being contacted by recipients as those that didn’t have a gift program. That’s why, and only for Mid-Size and HighProfile Companies is suggested to count with promotional gifts that capture the client’s attention and are hard to ignore.

First Contact Mail As a companion for the first call, mailing helps to open a communication channel with the other company and could help strengthen the brand image. Platforms like Mailchimp35 help companies to send and track mails, and for the first approach it makes possible to add videos or links in a visually appealing way.

http://mailchimp.com/ 81

First Visit Presentation

The first time a sales person visits a business unit, will be for introducing Open Warehouse and understand the clientâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s needs. The first presentation is a summary of who the company is and what it has to offer in order of satisfying needs.

Brochures •

Small Size Companies: A brief brochure in Spanish

focusing in warehousing services Open Warehouse offers and the advantages of its flexibility.

•

Medium

Size

and

High

Profile Companies: A more complete overview of Open services,

Warehouse

and

all

its

designed not only in

Spanish, but also English, since usually the decision

makers in

this kind of business units are foreign.

Presentation Card In a market where everyone in the business has a presentation card and the exchange of these are as common as ignored, it is suggested to print a presentation card that shows the enterprise’s ability of innovation and makes a memorable impression. That’s why the sales force should have a card not for person, but for the sales force in general, which also helps as a pocketsize advertisement.

Virtual Tour Open Warehouse is a certified company by Google, as part of it, is possible to access to the online virtual tour by any computer or mobile device. In this particular case, the sales force is provided with special lenses where it is possible to put a cellphone with Google Street View App and give the potential customer a valuable insight of how is the experience of walking inside the warehouse.

Sales Mobile App A sales mobile app can help measuring activities and increasing productivity by making it easier to get out of the office and into the field. There exist several good choices of this

kind

tools,

but

considering

language

and

development, it is proposed to use Handy App36. It registers the invested time in visits, capture orders and give daily reports, it also allows the manager to track the process of vendors being a powerful tool for the control process.

https://www.handy-app.net/ 84

CRM System Customer relationship management (CRM) is a term that refers to practices, strategies and technologies that companies use to manage and analyze customer interactions and data throughout the customer lifecycle, with the goal of improving business relationships with customers, assisting in customer retention and driving sales growth. The systems are designed to compile information on customers across different channels, or points of contact between the customer and the company, they can also give customer-facing staff detailed information on customers' personal information, purchase history, buying preferences and concerns. Several suitable alternatives for Open Warehouse can be found, like Sales Force37, which has a monthly payment method, or ZOHO38, which doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have any charge and has simple YouTube tutorials that allow easy access and understanding. The second option has been chosen for the enterprise, it offers CRM, Motivator, Sales IQ, Survey, Campaigns, Sites, Contact Manager and others. CRM has the benefit of automating routines, increasing the quality of customer relations and tracks leads.

Sales Manual As

summary

the

main

points

established on this plan, explanation of its tools, Open Warehouseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s market, and every other point or effort that could improve the sales force productivity and incorporation of new members, there is the creation 37 38

the

sales

manual.

This

http://www.salesforce.com/mx/ https://www.zoho.com/ 85

document will be online for the sales staff and will be created in Spanish. The main contents are: 1. Introduction

9. Distribution / Logistics

2. History

10. Segments

3. Mission

11. Process

4. Vision

12. Promotion Tools

5. Values

13. Sales Tools

6. Organizational Map

14. Handling Objections

7. Sales Force Profile

15. Sales Tips

8. Services Portfolio

Promotional Video In todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s world, people are seeking for information, but want it fast. So they prefer spend 2-3 minutes watching a video than spending

15-20

Moreover,

videos

businesses

reading. also

help

communicating

their important points to their target audience in a very short time. With the advantage of living in a digital era, the video can be uploaded to platforms like YouTube or Vimeo, but also be sent via email or posted on social networks.

Quotation Tool An special excel form has been designed for Open Warehouse intended to suit the quotation procedure 39 however, it is suggested that by the end of 2016 a special quotation system gets developed for the enterprise, since it will make it easier, faster, and will show the technological nature the company is trying to show.

Provided by ES Consulting 87

Sales Plan Execution and Control For the optimal development of this plan is necessary to work as a team and everyone fulfilling their role, in this case: •

General Manager The general Manager is the one receiving the sales force development reports. Is the person in charge of monitoring the activities and the results gained.

•

Sales Force Leader As the team leader, has to reunite with the team in a daily basis, keeping proactive communication and making sure everyone has the same goals in common and look for better ways to achieve them. The sales force leader has to collect everyone’s reports and gather them into the one who will be given to the general manager.

•

Sales Person In constant contact with the market, but also with the team and leader, has to work towards achieving the quota and report any change or situation to the leader.

Reports With the tools already proposed, there is no reason not to deliver accurate reports on time. While the sales person delivers them to the sales force leader to handle them to the general manager, everything will be uploading to the cloud, in order to be real-time tracked.

Coupled with the previous efforts, there is an excel document 40 in Open Warehouse’s Dropbox account where the team can be uploading the current information. This document registers: •

Telemarketing - Calls ratio - Time invested - Results

•

Mails - Mails ratio - Responses - Closures

•

Visits to potential customers - Scheduled / Non-Scheduled - Results - Closures

•

Visits to Open Warehouse - Results - Closure - Dates

Provided by ES Consulting 89

Market Potential Before analyzing this point, it is important to break down the differences between market potential, sales potential, sales forecast and sales quota.

Market Potential: Maximum amount that could reach the service under certain conditions and in a certain period of time. Here is the SBU maximum capacity against competitors. Sales Potential: Refers to the volume the enterprise can attend and be profitable. (85%) Sales Forecast: How much is expected the sales force to sale according to previous reports and the new proposed efforts. Sales Quota: Quantity and temporality for the sales force to achieve the forecast. 90

For the Market Potential calculation, Open Warehouse has 132,000 SQF in total41 while the entire capacity in the market, including its competitors’ is 2,000,000 SQF42. Being this established, Open Warehouse’s market share is 6.6%

Competitors Open Warehouse

94%

For this edition of the sales plan, there’s still the need of some valuable and updated information for the calculation 43 of the Market Potential, however, moved by George Patton’s idea: “A good plan implemented today is better than a perfect plan implemented tomorrow” the sales force can start working on its improvements, since the information related to the market potential is critical for expansion plans, not for the current purposes of this sales plan.

Data provided by Open Warehouse’s CEO Data provided by Open Warehouse’s CEO based on a past study, a new one is being conducted. 43 Q=npq. Where n is the number of competitor’s, p the average price and q the number of sales. 41 42

Sales Potential The sales potential refers to the volume the enterprise can attend. Open Warehouse has 110, 897 SQF, but in order of being profitable it has to sale from 50% to 85%, being 90% of its capacity too risky. This said, it is mandatory to sale from 55,448.50 to 94,262.45 SQF.

Sales Forecast According to last yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s reports, the enterprise sold an average of 57% of its occupation capacity.

Considering this number, but also how sales have been

developing on the first trimester of 2016, by the end of year sales are expected to close with an average of 69% of the enterprise capacity, that is to say, 76,519.84 SQF. For 2016 forecast an analysis of 2015 and the first trimester of 2016 was held by Open Warehouseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s management, sales force and marketing department and decided to project evaluating the current situation, delivering the following as a result: APR

MAY

JUN

JUL

AUG

SEP

OCT

NOV

DEC

62,860

67,260

71,969

77,007

82,397

84,045

*Values refer to SQF From April to August, an increasing percentage of 7 is considered, for September 2% and the last trimester is static. Expansion plans are being held for Open Warehouse starting from July 2016 considering growing from to 200,000 SQF. Since it is still on the planning face, the 92

previous forecast is exclusively for the actual situation and modifications should be done in case the capacity of the business increases.

Sales Quota After the forecast, it is important to break down how is it going to be handled. The sales quota defines how the sales force divides and achieves the previous numbers. With Open Warehouse’s management, it was agreed that it is going to be considered as a team and no divisions will be done. As sales executive, Ana Cristina Olivarría Salgado will be in charge of managing the sales force efforts and productivity in order to get the results.

Sales Plan Management

The company's general manager is in charge of supervising that each month's goals are achieved according not only to this plan but also the settings the sales leader defines with the team. Each week, the sales force will gather to analyze the week’s activities. The activities proposed are: •

Plan Meeting Every Friday, the sales force should present to Open Warehouse’s manager and marketing executive the plan for the following week.

•

Report meeting Every Monday, the sales force should present to the Warehouse Manager a sales and activities weekly report.

•

Marketing meeting

On Tuesdays, the sales force will reunite with the marketing executive in order to give a follow up to the plan and do the necessary adjustments •

Monthly report On the first week of each month, the sales leader will deliver a report including activities, sales closings and everything related to their endeavors. These meetings will take place on the following days: - May the 4th - June the 3rd - July the 5th - August the 5th - September the 5th - October the 7th - November the 4th - December the 5th

To increase the reports effectiveness and ensure they are delivered on time, it is proposed to implement:

•

CRM

•

Excel Report 44

•

Sales force Mobile App

Break-Even Analysis Without investment: $490.9945 USD46 For investment: $472.19 USD With investment: $963.14 USD With an average of $1.22 USD per SQF47, the equivalent would be: Without investment: 403 SQF For investment: 387 SQF With investment: 789 SQF

Information provided by ES Consulting Dollar taken as $18.00 MXN 47 Data provided by ES Consulting 45 46

Communications Creative Strategy The following section is presented for three different segments already explained: Small size, Medium size and high profile companies.

Open Warehouse’s Statement Every company knows what they are offering to the market, every business understands how they do it, but just a few explain why. “Why?” is an important question and answer, why is the backbone of the enterprise, and the whole point of storytelling. When you have a service and a meaning, you have a brand. Open Warehouse is a logistics company with an interesting reason of being, and it is suggested to exploit that in a short, clear statement presented below: “Creemos en la capacidad del ser humano de innovar, crear y crecer. Creemos que cada compañía tiene la oportunidad de crear un mejor planeta. Estamos convencidos de ser parte de la solución y crear un mejor escenario para las generaciones futuras a través de la optimización de recursos, tiempo y energía, vemos la logística como la solución hacia un mejor mañana y todos los días trabajamos por ello. Nosotros almacenamos valor, empacamos objetivos, transportamos al futuro y proveemos soluciones.”

* English version:

“We believe in human capacity to innovate, create and grow and that each company has the opportunity of creating better scenarios for the environment. We believe in being part of the solution and creating a better planet for the next generations by optimizing resources, time and energy, we see logistics as the solution for a better tomorrow and everyday we work for that. We warehouse value, we package goals, we transport the future and we provide solutions.”

Integrated Marketing Communication Objectives

Open Warehouse is seeking to increase its sells, for that matter, it needs to get into its potential customers’ evoked set. Evoked set is a group of relevant brands that a prospective consumer is favorably familiar with when they are thinking about making a purchase, simply put, it’s defined as the group of products or companies that come to mind when considering a purchase and there’s where the strategic business unit has to be. Therefore, the objectives are: •

To be in the top 3 companies in the evoked set

•

To have a client base that understands the full service portfolio

•

To have the word “Flexibility” as one of the top words for Open Warehouse

Using the SMART48 criteria for summarizing and clarifying the objectives: SMART criteria are commonly attributed to Peter Drucker's management by objectives concept. The first-known use of the term occurs in the November 1981 issue of Management Review by George T. Doran.

Objective 1 Specific: To be in the top 3 companies in the evoked set Measurable: 70.5% of the potential and active clients Attainable: Through probes and surveys Relevant: It is straight related with the IMC plan objective Timed: By the end of 2016

Objective 2 Specific: All clients fully understanding Open Warehouse’s services Measurable: 100% of active clients Attainable: Through probes and surveys Relevant: It is straight related with the IMC plan objective Timed: By the end of 2016

Objective 3 Specific: To have the word “Flexibility” as one of the top words for Open Warehouse Measurable: 75% of the total of active clients and potential customers Attainable: Through probes and surveys Relevant: It is straight related with the IMC plan objective Timed: By the beginning of 2017

Integrated Marketing Communications Strategies

Informative communication strategy 98

The concept suggested for Open Warehouse is an informative one. In Businessto-Business industries, 2 approaches are basic in order to success: Informative and Relational. An informative strategy seeks to teach customers about the product, enterprise and services, as warehousing sometimes seen as a commodity, it is incumbent to show how the enterprise offers a unique logistics service, highlighting the benefits of having a value added warehouse facility. In a long-term phase, it is intended to integrate a relational approach as part of the IMC plan.

Unique Selling Proposition Differentiation is one of the most important strategic and tactical activities in which companies must constantly engage49 empowered by the premise of being a â&#x20AC;&#x153;Value Added Warehouseâ&#x20AC;? the enterprise has the unique selling proposition of being totally flexible in time and space.

Levitt, Theodore (1986). The marketing imagination (New, expanded ed.). New York: Free Press.

4 C’s Instead of seeing the enterprise with the typical 4 P’s framework, here’s an analysis of the company’s 4 C’s50, which suggest focus on customer instead of products or services:

Lauterborn 4 C's model, 1990. 100

Media Mix The media mix, are the different channels Open Warehouse uses to communicate and reach the market, it is important to notice that everything respecting to the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s image, message, advertising and others, have to follow what the Corporative Identity Manual 51 establishes.

Email Marketing Email marketing is directly marketing a commercial message to a group of people using email. In its broadest sense, every email sent to a potential or current customer could be considered email marketing. It usually involves using email to send ads, request business, or solicit sales or donations, and is meant to build loyalty, trust, or brand awareness. In B2B marketing, is highly recommended to implement the use of newsletters. A newsletter is a regularly distributed publication that is generally about one main topic of interest to its subscribers and goes great wen trying not to sell but positioning a brand.

For Open Warehouse newsletter, the following is proposed: 1. Use Mailchimp Service

as the Email

Provider

(ESP)

for

newsletters. It allows automation and

personalization,

featuring

also advanced analytics.

51 52

Appendix 6 www.mailchimp.com 101

2. There should be a designated person to monitor the ESP, in this case is suggested that the community manager does it. 3. The objectives of the newsletter are education and generation of leads. In order to catch the proper audience, it is necessary to create 2 different lists: A small size companies and a Mid-size and High profile one. The first will be in Spanish, talking about industry news and Open Warehouse storage and transportation services. The second one will be in English with news and the whole set of the company’s services. The database can be created based on the list of active and inactive clients, the information recollected during tradeshows and social media. Regular mailing is still a powerful branding tool, so it is important that everyone sending information on behalf of the enterprise use the same corporative signature with the proper contact information and logo.

Telemarketing Telemarketing is a great and non-expensive way to gain relevant data from the hand of the market, it is important to understand it is totally different from telesales and it is a must when an enterprise is located in a highly competitive market. Some of its benefits are: •

Helps to find and filter out desired customers

•

Enables to raise awareness about the brand

•

Allows building credibility and image among existing and future clients

•

Directs to new opportunities that realize growth

•

Helps creating relevant dialogues with current partners.

102

Telemarketing will be use as a tool for prospecting and giving follow-ups. The telemarketing script53 should be revised every two months to confirm it is working or make the proper adjustments.

Blogging B2B companies who blog are able to increase awareness, credibility, search engine rankings and leads while linking marketing efforts back to business goals. Blogging is powerful, and Open Warehouse’s website 54 already has a space designated for it. The information published on it will help as logistics content for social media and the newsletter as well.

Social Media

Facebook Facebook represents a low cost strategy that can be used to share information relating to the business, Open Warehouse can be interactive with existing and prospective clients, increase user traffic to the Web Site and raise company's awareness. Some suggested topics to publish on the platform are:

53 54

•

Logistic History

•