Social media-strategy-3-main-principals-web bizideas
JOBCARE_strategy_friel_3_6
1. Digital Strategy Illustration by Fintan Friel (2015)
DIGITAL STRATEGY FOR JOBCARE
www.jobcare.ie
Student: Fintan Friel (x14117291)
Tutor: Eva Perez
Date: 05/06/2015
Contents
1. Business Issue/Opportunity...............................................................................
2. Audience - Personas...........................................................................................
3. Digital Channels.................................................................................................
4. How Will This Strategy Achieve Objectives .......................................................
5. Who Will Manage The Implementation of The Strategy? .................................
6. Bibliography ……………………………………………………………………………………………..……
In the fields of strategic management, marketing strategy and business strategy, digital strategy is the process of specifying
an organization's vision, goals, opportunities and related activities in order to maximize the business benefits of digital
initiatives to the organization. These can range from an enterprise focus, which considers the broader opportunities and
risks that digital potentially creates (e.g., changes in the publishing industry) and often includes customer intelligence,
collaboration, new product/market exploration, sales and service optimization, enterprise technology architectures and
processes, innovation and governance; to more marketing and customer-focused efforts such as web sites, mobile,
eCommerce, social, site and search engine optimization, and advertising..
(Source: Wikipedia)
PAGE 1
2. Paul Mooney (CEO) www.jobcare.ie
1. Introduction / Executive Summary
This Digital Strategy is an assignment on the Digital Media Marketing course at NCI (Dublin)
and has been carried out by Fintan Friel who is the of the author and is currently the Social
Media Intern at Jobcare.
The purpose of this report is to identify online procedures and digital work practices which
may have potential for improvement and to suggest how the resulting strategy can be
implemented.
TAG CLOUD
Niche Marketing Digital Strategy Social Triggers
Growth Hacking The Thank You Economy Demographics
Viral Loops MindShare Generation X & Y
Scalable Growth Content Marketing User Persona
Creativity Ryan Holiday Distribution Mechanism
Analytical Thinking Sean Ellis Strategy
Social Metrics AirBnB Tactics
SEO Craigslist Hoot Suite
PAGE 2
3. Peter Johnson, Jobcare. (Photo courtesy of Irish Independent Newspaper)
‘… To bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes …’
Isaiah 61, Holy Bible
‘Let it be thy earnest and incessant care to perform whatsoever it is that thou art
about, with true gravity, affection, freedom and justice.’
Marcus Aurelius (121 - 180 AD)
1. Business Issue/opportunity
‘What is the problem we need to address? What are the opportunities?’
___________________________________________________________
There are five distinct areas of endeavor which concern Jobcare, listed below:
BUSINESS PROBLEMS
1. Fundraising
2. Placing jobseekers / finding jobs
3. Recruiting new clients (users)
4. Attracting business partners, volunteers
5. Developing Alumni (Staying connected to previous clients)
4. Perhaps also part of the problem is the myth that:
‘Good things don’t need to be marketed’
Because Jobcare is an inherently helpful organization there may be a gap in developing the
marketing approach to ‘mindshare’ which:
‘Relates generally to the development of consumer awareness or popularity, and is one of
the main objectives of advertising and promotion. When people think of examples of a
product type or category, they usually think of a limited number of brand names. The aim of
mindshare is to establish a brand as being one of the best kinds of a given product or
service, and to even have the brand name become a synonym for the product or service
offered’ (Wikipedia)
The depth of what happens in the Jobnet professional development course, which is part of
Jobcare’s services, is challenging to convey and the standards and ethos of the Jobcare
organization means taking time with clients is a key responsibility.
The consideration here is that because Jobcare has a range of helpful services on offer to
clients there is a certain amount of sensitivity involved in communicating through the
multiple channels available and this subtlety of message could be named as ‘brand aura’.
BRAND AURA
What makes up the brand aura of Jobcare?
Personalities are very important to the Jobcare brand aura, and there is a constant process
of people being encouraged to tell their story through participation with Jobcare. This can
only be encouraged as it provides entertaining, positive content for the website and social
media channels.
Fundraising is a key business issue for Jobcare and this high level business activity is
generally a key responsibility of management. Paul Mooney is the CEO (co-founder) and is a
key personality in Jobcare, this is reflected in his message on the Jobcare website which
outlines the brand vision and Christian ethics. There is more than a passing resemblance
5. here to start-up culture which strongly identifies with the founder personality and the
suggestion is to develop further content (photos, stories, etc) involving this theme.
Personalities also volunteer and make presentations on the Jobnet programme. The success
stories and profiles is a method of telling stories about Jobnet and people involved with
Jobcare
Although Jobcare has strong usage of digital media it is not a digital entity and as such the
brand aura consideration is of particular importance, in conclusion here’s a quote from
blogger, Adrian Chan:
‘Few brands reach the peak of their potential, that kind of sublime is achieved only rarely. It
represents a kind of collective desire and faith, a consensual and widely distributed, and
much reflected and echoed belief that this thing, this brand, is indeed akin to an original. In
the age of mass mediation, we seek re-enchantment. Aura is that — the illusion of magic,
the quality that defies analysis and continually slides out of reach.’
(Ref: 1)
_____________________________________________________________________
_
‘What are we trying to achieve as a result of this strategy?’
________________________________________________________________
1. Grow audience
2. Communicate to clients
3. Encourage participation
4. Create good ‘digital habits’
5. Optimize future digital strategy developments
6. 6. Identify influencers/Volunteers/Corporate Funding
7. Identify funding opportunities
8. Encourage volunteer Engagement
9. Find local Champions (Jobnet)
‘What exactly are the objectives?’
_______________________________________
Jobcare exists to empower individuals from a place of long-term unemployment to
employability
Although growth is not necessarily the main objective of this digital strategy it’s
worth considering how Jobcare can grow its audience as much as possible.
Currently Jobcare has:
Facebook: 758 Likes (added approx. 100 since Jan.15)
Twitter: 371 Followers (added approx. 50 since Jan.15)
LinkedIn: 1093 Followers (added approx. 100 since Jan.15)
Google+: 3 Followers
YouTube: 13 Subscribers
How does 'Growth Hacking' apply to Jobcare?
Although Jobcare does seek to expand its services, as a charity, faith based organization it
seeks to do so in a mindful and caring manner.
7. Growth Hacking applies generally to online services which benefit from exponential
expansion e.g. Facebook, Twitter. Probably the best example of the growth hacking
technique is when AirBnB plugged in to the already established network of Craig's List
Airbnb famously allowed hosts to post their listings to Craigslist and directed travelers back
to Airbnb for the transaction. Additionally, Airbnb also lured sellers on Craigslist to list on
Airbnb, offering a better transaction experience. (1)
Worth mentioning here is a comparison between the above example and Jobcare's
relationship with the Department of Social Protection (DSP).
Newly signed on Jobseekers are automatically referred to Jobcare to help them start the
process of finding work so there is a natural connection to the ‘distribution channel’ of the
DSP.
This connection has the potential to be utilized as a means of connecting directly with
jobseekers via text, e-mail and social media. Giving jobseekers the option to receive updates
about opportunities that could help them in their search for work.
However the question remains whether this course of action is relevant to the Jobcare
overall strategy.
There is matrix of capacity which actually means that the sensitive work which Jobcare
undertakes does not readily translate to the usual expansionist (growth hacking) internet
model. For example the ‘Trasna’ programme aids ex-offenders to find a difficult pathway
back into work, which involves individual, time-consuming care.
VIRAL LOOPS
Virality can be described as people organically participating in conversations, how to
actually make this happen is the ‘secret sauce’ of social media and there can be very few
marketing departments which are not interested in the attempt to unlock the benefits
which can flow from virality.
8. Because Jobcare has such a large potential audience (jobseekers, professionals, corporates,
volunteers, etc) there is actually a good chance of introducing the potential in some kind of
viral campaign.
As with anything, virality takes a lot of endeavor before actually generating some positive
feedback and results. Perhaps the most useful approach initially is to bear virality in mind
when considering Jobcare’s approach to creating/curating content.
Moving steadily towards the objective of a viral campaign would involve further discussion
within the organization and particularly in the Communications Department.
Finally the loop refers to the process of virality repeating itself e.g. Facebook users inviting
their family and friends to join.
Some Suggestions about Virality:
Helena Goss is the personal assistant to Jobcare’s CEO (Paul Mooney) and the manager of
the communications department of Jobcare. She has recently completed the VHI women’s
marathon and regularly featured in The Evening Herald raising significant publicity and
brand awareness, not to mention raising over E700 in funding!
Helena Goss at the VHI Marathon (June 2015)
Considerable momentum has been generated as a result of her campaign and the
suggestion is that this has been achieved by ‘plugging in’ to the already established event of
the VHI Women’s Marathon.
So the question would be how to capitalize on this momentum and launch another
campaign which can build on the goodwill and publicity which Helena has generated.
9. POTENTIAL T-SHIRT CAMPAIGN
T-shirts have a universal appeal and the Jobcare brand readily applies to this format, above
is a photo taken by visitors to Jobcare in an impromptu photo opportunity. Perhaps there
may be an opportunity to develop this theme and ask others to pose holding a Jobcare
T-shirt, thereby building up a series which repeats the Jobcare brand and associates this
with multiple individuals.
There are approximately fifty people who are on the staff of Jobcare between full-time,
part-time, community employment, etc. The initial concept would be to photograph the
staff holding Jobcare t-shirts as a method to produce content and then to expend the
concept, asking others to pose holding the t-shirt.
Actually holding the t-shirt is immediate and easy and facilitates audience participation as
opposed to actually wearing the garment.
President Higgins holding a t-shirt is my personal aim for this campaign which may be
somewhat ambitious but is not outside the realms of possibility!
The real outcome of this campaign would be a strong repetition of the Jobcare brand,
involving a series of people (personalities) in an easy to execute, continuous campaign.
JOBCARE’S USE OF HASHTAGS
10. Gonzalo Aragon/Shutterstock.com
Hashtags are useful as they can reduce the concept to just one word e.g. #NetworkJobcare.
As the hashtag gains more and more usage over time it becomes a continuous reference to
the ongoing campaign.
So using hashtags is always a good method for encouraging virality.
Hashtag Campaigns
Since 2009 hashtags have become searchable, meaning browsers can search any topic
which has a hashtag. This is a powerful trend because it's very useful and easily
implemented. For example, if Jobcare were to start a hashtag campaign which was called:
#VisitJobcare
This would mean Jobcare could continuously use this hashtag throughout the content
calendar making the outcome a series of calls to action, directions, opportunities, etc.
Although hashtags started on Twitter it also works on Facebook and YouTube, people are
increasingly aware and participate using their own hashtags, so it's a trend with gathering
momentum.
The best part is that running hashtag campaigns involves almost no extra work, it's just
about deciding what words/phrases to hashtag and then just adding them to postings on
social media.
11. I have searched Jobcare’s two current hashtags which are #WorkingMatters and
#JobnetOnTour and there is some relevant content but it's a mixed message as there are
other people posting under the same hashtag word which is off the Jobnet message.
The following two examples give some pointers about how hashtags can be used to build
content and have viral potential.
HASHTAG CAMPAIGN EXAMPLE 1: #GivingTuesdays
‘With so many profit-driven marketing messages over the festive season, it’s refreshing
to see a hashtag campaign this year that wasn’t selling anything at all. New York charity
92nd Street Y spearheaded the #GivingTuesday initiative, which encouraged people to give
to their favorite charity on December 3. There were no gimmicks, just a genuine
message encouraging selflessness.
Now in its second year, this campaign seems to be gaining traction: online donations reached
$19.2 million in 2013, a 90% increase over 2012.’
(Source: http://www.postano.com/blog/5-creative-holiday-hashtag-campaigns)
HASHTAG CAMPAIGN EXAMPLE 2: #BelongAnyWhere
AirBnB uses the #BelongAnyWhere hashtag in graphics/advertising (Facebook profile, etc)
and is a good example of a continuous hashtag campaign. People use this hashtag when
they are posting about their holidays, notice that the hashtag does not refer directly to the
AirBnb brand but is very strongly identified with it through usage by others.
12. SOCIAL LISTENING
Social media listening, also known as social media monitoring, is the process of identifying
and assessing what is being said about a company, individual, product or brand.
1. Recruiters
2. Business Corporate Responsibility Forums
3. Philanthropists (Philanthropy Ireland)
4. Job clubs
5. Dept. of Social Protection (DSP)
6. Churches
Above is the list of relevant organizations which Jobcare consistently refers to as part a
social listening strategy.
Hootsuite
Using Hootsuite for social listening is recommended as it’s one of the best free social media
management tools available, and covers multiple social networks, including Twitter,
Facebook, LinkedIn, WordPress, Foursquare and Google+.
The weekly analytics reports and the excellent team management facility (delegating tasks,
sending private messages) can be very useful when there’s more than one person handling
the social media accounts
What are Jobcare’s Competitors Doing?
Defining competitors in the non-profit industry is tricky as there is the question of are they
competing against each other? Essentially they have competitors. They want word to spread
about how they are helping society so that they can continue to function as an organization
and receive funding to help those in need. Some examples of Irish charities that have a
13. strong digital presence that Jobcare could aspire to would include Headway, Irish Heart
Foundation and Focus Ireland. These charities have adopted social networking sites and
utilize Google AdWords allowing them to spread awareness.
STAKEHOLDERS
1. Existing clients (courses, jobseekers, drop-ins, graduates) (maintain connectivity,
share successes, give back, do a course)
2. Potential clients (attracting, converting)
3. Government and state agencies (Jobcare status/standing – brand aura)
4. Business Community (support)
5. Volunteers
6. Current & past staff
7. General Media (RTE article example, link)
8. Recruiter Agencies
Jobcare about page
14. 2. Audience – Personas
Who are they?
What traits do they have which should be borne in mind?
What trends are impacting the most?
What are their needs/motivations?
What value can your [brand/product/service] offer them and what value can they
bring in return?
Jobcare The umbrella brand of the charity helping with unemployment on every
level of society
Jobnet A sub brand of Jobcare specifically designed to work with professionally
skilled people who find themselves unemployed. It focuses on personal
branding, networking, goal setting and job seeking
Trasna This is a programme run by Jobcare assisting ex-offenders to break the
cycle of re-offending through employment, training, education, personal
support and development
Community
Employment
This is a programme of work and training for people who have been out
of work for a while
Clients of Jobcare can vary but I have used two personas here to suggest two stereotypical
types of users which are useful as a guide.
PERSONA 1:
Richard O’Brien sis a 41 year old computer science graduate who has been unemployed for
16 months. He lives in rented accommodation in suburban Dublin and has limited income,
mostly benefits.
SCENARIO:
He is visiting Jobcare.ie because he has been referred there by the DSP (Dept. of Social
Protection). He is asking two questions:
1. What services are available to help me find work?
2. Who are Jobcare?
The outcome Richard is looking for is a successful browsing session on the Jobcare site,
learning what services are available to him as a jobseeker and finally checking on the
location and opening hours.
15. Value: Richard is a mature man with a large personal network of family and friends, a
positive interaction with Jobcare will benefit from considerable word of mouth and make a
lasting benefit in his local community
PERSONA 2:
Jenny Tims is a 22 year old leaving Certificate graduate who has been looking for work for 3
months. She lives at home with her parents in inner city Dublin and has income from a part
time job. Although not unemployed she is underemployed and could benefit from some
training available from Jobcare.
SCENARIO:
She is visiting www.jobcare.ie to enquire specifically about computer courses available and
what kind of commitment is required, in terms of time and expense. Also she is interested in
the Jobcare site and spends fifteen minutes browsing other services which are also
available.
Value: Jenny is a valuable client as she is very active on social media (Facebook, Twitter).
Her positive experience with Jobcare will be shared with her friends online, making a digital
pathway back to the Jobcare website.
16. 3. Digital Channels
Jobcare’s owned, paid and earned channels
1. www.jobcare.ie (owned)
2. Jobcare blog (owned)
3. Newsletter mailing list (owned)
4. Facebook (758 likes)
5. Twitter (371 followers)
6. LinkedIn (1093 followers)
7. YouTube (13 subscribers)
8. Google+ (3 followers)
Channel Buyer Persona Business Activities
Jobcare website All All
Google+ All All
You Tube All All
LinkedIn
Business-to-business,
young professionals
Facebook All All
Twitter
Business-to-business,
single 30s & 40s
All
Pinterest Female, single 30s Not appropriate
Instagram Teens and young people Worth considering
Snapchat Teens Not appropriate
Channels, 2015 Table 1: Selected
17. Mobile Strategy Development
Smart Phones are always with us, always on and always connected. Having a mobile strategy
is essential as this usage trend grows exponentially.
So why are smart phones so popular? Text is cheap and instant and that’s obviously a key
reason combined with the ability to be online. There is perhaps an opportunity here to
consider the possibility of directly texting clients with job news, opportunities, etc.
This facility would have to be developed within the Jobcare IT department and would
involve an initial feasibility study but the increased connectivity with clients would be a
worthwhile outcome.
The suggestion here is that as smart phone usage continues to grow there is a greater
necessity to adopt specific guidelines to optimize content for this specific use. Currently the
Jobcare.ie channel is delivered via WordPress and so is optimized for mobile as a result.
18. What is the role of each channel?
How will you use each channel?
What will you do in each?
4. How will this strategy achieve your objectives?
‘What does success look like?
(Strategy needs to be hand in hand with the objectives)’
__________________________________________________________________
Measure and Evaluate
The ultimate goal of engagement is to create a feedback loop that allows you to
meet the goals you set forth in the strategy development phase. In order to be successful,
you must continually evaluate and alter your digital strategy based on the information that
you gain from your campaigns and digital initiatives. As marketers, it’s important that we
measure everything. Throughout every campaign, you must also utilize social listening tools
to get insights into campaign performance, variances in brand health, and language cues
that are indicative of purchase intent and overall brand performance.
(Mashable.com)
Facebook Insights for Jobcare (May 2015)
19. CONSIDERING THE NICHE MARKETING ASPECT OF JOBCARE
‘There is a new rule in business: forget about the general audience and instead stake
out an identifiable niche’
James Harkin (Niche)
Niche marketing is a term which readily applies to Jobcare because of the separate
strands of client types which the organization caters to. Although all clients of jobcare are
necessarily looking for work, there are four general types of particular audiences:
1. Jobclub (for jobseekers)
2. Jobnet (Professionals seeking work)
3. Trasna (Ex-offenders who need opportunities to work)
4. Computer Training Students
The comment here is to consider the niche aspect of Jobcare’s business as part of its
overall strategy. Jobseekers are a niche demographic and as such Jobcare could be
considered as catering to this particular market segment.
This means that general marketing approaches would not be appropriate for
Jobcare, and in a world where content becomes more and more specialized Jobcare is
actually quite well positioned.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What are the proposed KPIs for each channel? How will we measure this?
Channel KPI MEASUREMENT
Jobcare Website BOUNCE RATE LOGS, ANALYTICS
Google+ FOLLOWERS RATE OF INCREASE
You Tube SUBSCRIBERS RATE OF INCREASE
LinkedIn FOLLOWERS RATE OF INCREASE
Facebook LIKES, SHARES FACEBOOK INSIGHTS
Twitter FOLLOWERS, RETWEETS RATE OF INCREASE
Table 2: KPI Measurement for Jobcare Channels
20. 5. Who will manage the implementation of the strategy?
‘Identify roles and responsibilities of each identified team member required to
implement the strategy.’
------------------------------------------------------
As The Social Media Marketing Intern in Jobcare (Fintan Friel) my role is to assist in
the daily work of content development and blogging articles necessary to
communicate Jobcare’s message effectively.
Strategic decisions are management responsibility and implementation of this
strategy would involve a consultation with line and general managers in order to
ascertain which aspects of this strategy are most appropriate/actionable.
What is the proposed timeline for implementing the strategy?
Again this would be determined by management, but a proposed schedule would be
to have actioned the majority of the strategy by Sept.2015.
What are the major high level phases/stages within this timeline?
1. Initiation of the t-shirt campaign
2. Approaching potential participants
What are the key milestones within this timeline?
1. All Jobcare staff photographed
2. 1st
external (non-Jobcare)
personality photographed holding the Jobcare t-shirt.
22. Harkin, J (2012) Niche: The missing middle and why business needs to specialize to
survive
Abacus
Holiday, R (2013) Growth Hacker Marketing: A Primer on the Future of PR, Marketing and
Advertising
Meerman Scott, David (2013). The New Rules of Marketing and PR. Fourth Edition. New
Jersey: Wiley Press.
Vaynerchuk, G (2011) The Thank You Economy New York, Harper Business
________________________________________________________
WEBSITES
AirBnB/Craigslist
http://platformed.info/how-to-disrupt-craigslist/
Ryan Holiday (Author of Growth Hacking)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GK0MgCvlr1U [Accessed 25/05/15]
Demographics: Generation Y (Age 18-29)
http://www.cio.com/article/2400696/careers-staffing/gen-y-traits-in-the-workplace-
unveiled.htm [Accessed 2/05/15]
Social Listening:
http://blogs.sap.com/innovation/sales-marketing/why-social-listening-will-drive-social-
business-01385626 [Accessed 28/04/15]
Usability Body of Knowledge
http://www.usabilitybok.org/heuristic-evaluation [Accessed 2/04/15]
DIGITAL STRATEGY
http://mashable.com/2012/09/05/how-to-digital-strategy/ [Accessed 7/04/15]
DESIGN A VIRAL LOOP
http://andrewchen.co/5-crucial-stages-in-designing-your-viral-loop/ [Accessed 10/05/15]
(Ref: 1) BRAND AURA (APPLE EXAMPLE)
http://www.gravity7.com/blog/media/2013/01/apple-the-rise-and-fall-of-aura-and-the-social-
brand-image.html [Accessed 1/06/15]
----------------------
About The Author: https://ie.linkedin.com/in/fintanfriel
Fintan Friel has been involved in digital projects since 1997 and has previously worked on the staff
of Getty Images in New York (USA) and Paypal (Dublin). This report was the final assignment on the
Digital Marketing Certificate course at The National College of Ireland (NCI).
23. Appendix One
Buyer Persona Plan Template (Meerman Scott, 2013)
WHO
Buyer Persona
- Who is this person?
- What problems does this buyer have?
WHAT
Problems to be solved for this customer
- Why are they buying from us?
Actions we'd like them to take
- Download, connect, share, etc.
WHY
24. How are we remarkable?
- What value do we bring?
Proof
- Credibility indicators, media, testimonials, etc.
WHERE
Where are they?
- Google, blogs, FB, Twitter, etc.
HOW
The company personality
- What kind of company are we?
Creative/Design
- Look and feel
Tone of voice
Language to use
Keyword phrases
What buyers type into search engines?
Marketing tactics & content strategy
Blog, You Tube, Twitter, email, newsletter, e-books, etc.
Things to do today
2.
3.
4.
Things to do next week
6.
7.
8.
