Marketing Strategy for Android App

1.Executive Summary

According to researchers at BBDO and AOL, Smartphone users’ most common activity is “me time”

Introducing, InkIt a one of a kind integrated news, information and entertainment platform comprising of articles, blog-posts, poetry, news reports, essays and stories, covering a vast range of topics

Offering a unique value proposition to its users, it provides them with an opportunity to contribute to the content too

2.

Situational Analysis

2.1Company Overview

Core Competencies

Excellent Customer Relationship Management practices Adoption of latest data analytics techniques Implementation of SEO and ASO Tie up with reputed publishing houses and editors of leading journals Diverse content, reliable sources and an impressive number of sharing options

Strategic Assets

All the members of the Strategic Business Unit The expected large user-base In-app advertisements, that’ll generate revenue In-app purchases, in keeping with the Freemium model Communication partners

Current Product Line

Topics covered: Economics, business, finance, culture, politics, lifestyle, humour, environment and many more that’ll attract sufficient number of users Types of pieces featured: Articles, blog-posts, poetry, news reports, essays and stories

Market PositionInkIt will be positioned as the favoured destination for college students and young professionals in the age group of 18-40, who are looking for quality content and/or sources of light reading on their Smartphones. Aim is not to compete with existing content apps but to fill the market gap created by them. The app hopes to garner a respectable market share in the highly competitive online content industry.

2.2Market

Overview

Potential Customers

College Students; 50

Young pro-fessionals; 32

Middle-aged; 12

Others; 6

Competitor AnalysisMobile App Analysis

Parameter Scoopwhoop

Storypick Scroll.in

Rating 4.2 3.0 4.3Downloads 50 thousand 50 10 thousand

Website Analysis

Parameter Scoopwhoop

Storypick Scroll.in

Country rank 178 423 384Total visits 17.20

million7.70 million 4.20 million

Average visit duration

00:02:20 00:01:47 00:03:26

Pages per visit 1.96 1.45 6.20

Opportunities

Explosion of information

Changing Smartphone use dynamics

More and more youngsters pursuing writing as a hobby

Lesser reliance on print mediaEasy accessibility to

Internet and presence of expandable storage leading to a greater number of regularly used apps

ThreatsCut-throat competition in online content industry

Threat of new entrants since there are no barriers to entry in this industry

Global players like BuzzFeed and Flipboard cementing their market position and increasing their market share

Not being able to get enough publishers and editors on board

Perceived lack of originality and innovation by the users

2.3Target

Customers

Demographic Segmentation is employed -:

Age Income Occupation Education Generation

18-40 Middle Self-employed Graduate Gen X40-50 Upper Middle Businessmen Post-

graduateGen Y

50-60 High IndustrialistsCollege

Students

Thus target customers that emerge are college students and young professionals in the age group of 18-40

This market segment is :-

1. Measurable: Size, purchasing power and characteristics can be measured

2. Substantial: Large and profitable enough to serve3. Accessible: Can be effectively reached and served4. Differentiable: Responds differently to different

marketing mix elements 5. Actionable: Effective programs can be formulated

to attract it and serve it

3. Goal

(3 years)

Valuation of a minimum of $3 million USD according to visitor traffic

Estimated monthly revenue of $125,000

4. Strategy

4.1Target Market

Customer Needs Staying updated with current affairs A necessary dose of humour and cheer amidst the banality of day-to-day routine A platform for self- expression A channel for showcasing literary talents

Customer Wants A constant desire to gain knowledge, learn new things, explore different offerings and hunt for interesting stuff to refresh the mind An opportunity to develop a regular reading habit, improve vocabulary and broaden the mind An incentive for developing/reinvigorating writing skills

Distinguishing characteristics of customers

Use Smartphones regularly, and do a lot of extensive reading online Eager to absorb new knowledge Have strong opinions on a multitude of issues Are enterprising and information-hungry

Goals of Suppliers• Recognition and

credit for their sources

• Promotion of the agency/website /blog/newspaper/magazine

• Alternative revenue stream

Goals of Channel Members• Expected payment

for the services rendered

• Positive feedback and increased referrals

Goals of Communication Partners• To target as large

and diverse a consumer base as possible

• To attract new customers toward their product/service

• Build brand image, strengthen brand awareness and drive brand equity

Company’s Strategic Business Unit

1. App Development team: Coders, developers, software engineers

2. Content Creation team: Editors, writers, curators, compilers

3. Content Collection team: Surveyors, on-field reporters, sourcers

4. Business Development team: Growth hackers, strategists, negotiators, networkers, planners

5. Marketing team: Promotions, communications and distribution team

6. Data Analysis team: Analysts, statisticians, online trends trackers

7. Finance and Accountancy team8. Public Relations team: Employee relations

and Investor relations team9. Customer team: Customer care department,

CRM team

The App’s Points-of-Parity

1.Information-intensive; no area left untouched

2.Instant and in-depth information portal

3.Easy, seamless and unlimited access to articles, stories etc. No requirement of subscriptions or registrations

4.Option of sharing any piece that the reader liked on social media

The App’s Points-of-Difference

1.An introduction of a new category i.e. poetry

2.No filter or quality restriction on the contributions as these shall be clubbed into a different category

3.Instead of relying on a content creation team, content shall be sourced too from a vast array of reliable sources

4.The app will be based on a Freemium model

Economic Context Digital content industry growing at a fast pace; expected to reach INR 20 billion by 2020 with digital ad spend expected to grow at 23-28%

The Internet related contribution to GDP at present is an encouraging 3.2%

Technological Context There are 167 million Smartphone users and 352 million Internet subscribers as of 2015

By 2017, India will have more than 250 million Smartphones

Inexpensive Smartphones and rollout of 3G and 4G broadband infrastructure are rapidly coming together to democratise online access

Socio-cultural Context Content consumption patterns have changed-People are increasingly using their Smartphones during breakfast, lunch, commute, work and dinner as well, deepening digital content penetration

Rural consumers are gaining access to low-cost Smartphones and low rates of data-plans, broadening the industry’s target segment

Regulatory Context

No stringent or impinging regulations exist in the digital content industry

Adequate freedom of expression to guarantee generation and consumption of diverse and so-called controversial content

4.2PositioningStrategy

Employ emotional branding, cultural branding and brand journalism

Create buzz and a loyal app community

Develop POPs and PODs

Identify and analyse competitors

Conduct a low-cost market research

For Customers

Differentiate the app from millions of other similar apps through any one of: Employee ,

Channel or Image differentiation

Develop a list of take-aways for them

Analyse the needs and wants and goals of the collaborators

For Collaborators

Effectively communicate the same to the investors and win their trust

Build and maintain a clean financial and legal image

Effectively communicate to the employees the same and remove all ambiguities pertaining to their role in the

organisation

Clearly outline the basic structure and functions and develop a cogent brand mantra for the app

For Company

To Customers

• Read interesting articles and contribute yours too

• With an upgrade, stand a chance to get your work extensively promoted and published in leading publications

• The app will leave you more knowledgeable than before, at the same time refreshing your mind

To Collaborators

• A well-managed, rapidly growing app with new downloads everyday

• Successfully competing with other major players in the industry

• A large and diverse user-base

To Company

• To employees:-Positive work environment, good pay, growth potential, opportunity to pursue interests, job security

• To investors:- Regular filing of returns, future growth potential, financial stability, clean image, profitable and loyal user-base, high ROI

5. Tactics

Free Features of InkIt1. Access to engaging and intriguing articles, essays, stories,

blog posts, poetry and news reports, gathered from reliable sources

2. Option of sharing any piece that the reader liked on social media and through mail or saving it on the device

3. Bookmarking of pieces, customising them chronologically or topic-wise or letting them appear at random

4. A search option that lets the reader search for any specific piece or pieces related to a specific topic

5. An option of rating each piece and posting comments6. A "Contribute" section in which the reader can post his/her

own article, essay, story, poem or a blog/link to his/her blog post, as many as he/she desires

7. The pieces of the "Contribute" section will be clubbed under a different category titled "Open Section"

5.3Price

Selecting the pricing objective

Determining Demand

Estimating Costs

Analyzing Competitors’ Costs, Prices, and Offers

Selecting a pricing method and setting the final price

Following Steps are followed in Setting a Pricing Policy-:

Freemium pricing strategy will be adopted, in which the app itself will be free, but with in-app purchase opportunities/upgrades. The premium version of the app will be priced at $14.99 per month. Reason behind this being, the additional features will benefit the users immensely as they'll stand a chance to actually get their work published, which, genuinely requires a sufficient expenditure of resources. Also, even if some users become reluctant to upgrade due to the high price, it won't affect the app's popularity or its customer base as it'll still get the same number of visits. So, customer retention won't be affected.

6.Implementation

6.1Infrastructure

Organisational Structure(Departmentalization by Function)

CEO

Content Department

Technology Department

Marketing Department

Business Development Department

Finance Department

Public Relations

Department

Customer Department

Content Creation

Head

Content Collection

Head

App Development

Head

Analytics Head

Promotions Head

Distribution Head

BD Head

Finance Head

Employee Relations

Head

Investor Relations

Head

Customer Care Head

CRM Head

Relationship with Collaborators(a) Suppliers Small teams of 2-3 persons will be appointed

to cater to each supplier. Their functions will be explicitly defined and clearly demarcated to avoid overlap of duties. The Content Department will be responsible for this area.

(b) Channel Members Each channel member will have a dedicated

team, which will fully utilise its service. The Technology Department will be responsible for this area.

(c) Communication Partners This will be the area of expertise of the

Marketing Department. They will be required to formulate clever strategies and implement them effectively.

6.2Processes

Processes involved in implementing the strategy and tactics are:-

Managing a holistic Marketing Organisation for the long run

Designing and Managing Integrated Marketing Communications

Designing and Managing Integrated Marketing Channels

Developing Pricing Strategies and Programs

Setting Product Strategy

Setting up Strategic Business Unit

Identifying Market segments and targets and crafting the Market Positioning

Defining the Android App’s mission: Identifying core competencies and choosing value

Analysing Business Markets

Analysing Consumer Markets

Scanning the Marketing Environment, Forecasting Demand, and Conducting Marketing Research

6.3Schedule

Task Lead TimeMarket Research 2 months

Analysis of Consumer and Business Markets

1 .5 months

Crafting Market Positioning 3 weeksSetting up Strategic Business

Unit3 months

Setting Product Strategy 2.5 weeksDeveloping Pricing Strategies 2 weeks

Designing Integrated Marketing Channels

2 weeks

Designing Integrated Communication Channels

2 weeks

CREDITS1. http://readwrite.com/2010/11/17/10-distribution-channels-f

or-mobile-apps/2. https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/2390383. http://buildfire.com/free-app-promotion/4. http://www.ey.com/Publication/vwLUAssets/ey-future-of-dig

ital-january-2016/$FILE/ey-future-of-digital-january-2016.pdf

5. photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/91029339@N00/3156437303">In the beginning, 1 January 2009</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/">(license)</a>

6. photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/52766811@N06/27918824411">Ready</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(license)</a>

DISCLAIMER Created by Fazal Ahmad, VIT Vellore,

during a marketing internship by Prof. Sameer Mathur, IIM Lucknow