2. Contents
Executive Summary 3...............................................................................................
Introduction 3........................................................................................................
Research Methods 4.................................................................................................
Organizational Background 5.......................................................................................
Area of Strategic Opportunity 6...................................................................................
Current Strategic Positioning 8....................................................................................
Proposed Strategy 9.................................................................................................
Strategy Execution 11...............................................................................................
Conclusion 13.........................................................................................................
Appendix 13..........................................................................................................
References 16........................................................................................................
3. Executive Summary
The following paper will explain the background and current positioning of
Aardvark Event Logistics. Aardvark Event Logistics holds a niche market in the event
production world. Their business is doing exceptionally well, but with a few small
tweaks to their marketing efforts, growth could be exponential. In this paper, I will
uncover current marketing trends such as writing shareable content, becoming a great
story teller, dominating the mobile market, using buyer’s personas, and humanizing
the brand. I will also analyze the current position of Aardvark’s marketing efforts.
After analysis of their current position, I will propose possible improvements to
marketing efforts. Finally, I will clearly demonstrate the outcome of these changes.
All changes made will result in a stronger virtual presence and will boost profitability
for Aardvark Event Logistics.
Introduction
In the 21st century, the majority of information regarding businesses is found
online. The majority of consumers search immediately online for the desired
information. Having an excellent virtual presence is crucial to success of modern
businesses. Virtual presence includes multiple social media platforms as well as
personal websites. After working in the marketing department at Aardvark Event
Logistic, I have determined that Aardvark desperately need to reevaluate its virtual
4. presence. This article will attempt to provide Aardvark with solutions to boost its
marketing efforts. Major focus should be placed on:
•Aardvarkel.com- is dated and does not load correctly on mobile devices.
•Aardvarkel.com and Aadvarkone.com are not connected to one another.
•There is no content posted for search engine optimization.
•The press room only features articles from past years and old awards.
•Social media pages are sporadic and appear detached.
Research Methods
The depth of understanding about Aardvark Event Logistics comes from direct
interaction and evaluation of the company. The understanding of practical ways to
boost their virtual presence comes from extensively reading about experiential
marketing and B2B marketing trends. Some of the best ways to capture a target
audience include posting shareable content, telling of inspirational stories,
dominating the mobile market, writing with a buyer’s persona in mind, and
humanizing the brand. These techniques were acquired through various sources such
as the eventmarketer magazine, ADWEEK magazine, The New Rules of PR by D.M.
Scott, Corporate Communications, 6th Edition, by P.A. Argenti, The Tipping Point:
How Little Thing Make A Big Difference by M. Gladwell, and many other white papers
or academic journals.
5. Organizational Background
Aardvark event logistics is a mobile marketing tour agency. They provide their
clients with a fleet of promotional vehicles for tours, provide drivers, logistical
support, DOT and all required permits and insurance, fabrication of graphics, a
warehouse for storage of both the trucks and promotional items, and regular
operational maintenance. They also the invented the first all-electric mobile tour
vehicle called The Aardy. They consolidate the steps to producing events, mobile
tours and road shows. Aardvark’s goal is to drive down the price of Mobile Marketing,
while raising the bar in innovation, customer support, and logistical support.
Aardvark has produced over 100 mobile tours and event marketing programs. The
founder of Aardvark is Larry Borden. Prior to Aardvark, Borden worked for a company
called Spevco, Inc. He created an agency within a custom truck building company.
He was responsible for designing dozens of custom vehicles. Borden also was a tour
manager for GMR Marketing. The idea for Aardvark came from all of his past
experience. Borden realized there was a need in the market for one company to
produce everything that dealt with mobile touring. Aardvark Event Logistics was born
in 2007. The Aardvark team consists of 215 people. They have produced events in
four different countries, but are available to produce any event globally.
6. Area of Strategic Opportunity
Some of the best ways Aardvark can increase its marketing efforts are through
shareable content, becoming a great story teller, dominating the mobile market,
producing content the reader is looking for, writing with a buyers persona in mind,
and humanizing the brand.
Shareable content is essential because the more people who share a piece of
content, the more people who see it, and the more people who see it- then the more
visitors you’re going to have. Google notices every time something is shared. The
algorithms of Google will rank your site higher if a post is share ( or with luck goes
viral). The closer to page 1 on Google a site becomes, the higher the chances for
more business. Shareable content usually has a captivating title, a unique value,
audience specificity, concise material, and accompanying images and media.
In a highly competitive commercial market, there are simply too many products
(and too many merchants selling the same products) that without influence, failure is
pre-determined. An emotional connection between the potential customer and the
product/company must be created. Inspirational stories are one of the easiest ways
to accomplish an emotional connection. If the reader can connect with the brand on
an emotional level, then brand loyalty is more likely to be created. Stories are
naturally sticky. Inspirational stories are remembered and shared. They take on a life
of their own especially when social media multiplies their effectiveness. The product
should be an element in the story that helps move the character to the end goal.
7. With more and more people gaining access to smartphones, the mobile web is
rapidly expanding. In America it is almost socially unacceptable to not have a
smartphone on you at all times. Having technology at the tips of your fingertips
allows for quick impulsive searches. However, the majority of websites are designed
to be seen on desktop or laptop browsers. These websites will not look their best on
a small smartphone screen or browse easily. Google defines a mobile friendly sight as
avoiding software not common to mobile devices, having readable text without
zooming, sizing of content to fit screen, and having links that are spaced easily so
that the correct one may be selected. Mobile friendly sites are important because
users will become frustrated and will move on to a site that is easier to read/access
via their smartphone.
According to The Buyer Persona Manifesto, a buyer persona is “an archetype,
composite picture of the real people who buy, or might buy, products like the ones
you sell.” Buyer’s personas help you create more relevant content. I have already
stressed the need to create shareable content and inspirational stories but, how will
you create that without understanding what is important to your target market? The
market today is looking for personalization. Writing with your buyers personas in
mind can help users engage with the brand.
Humanizing a company’s social media presence to reflect the company’s
mission and inner workings not only helps with brand recognition, but also helps users
feel more connected. When people love or hate something they want to talk about it.
Keep in mind though, social media users want to talk with a real person. They want
8. their opinion to count for something, otherwise the whole point of posting was
irrelevant.
Current Strategic Positioning
Currently Aardvark is sporadically posting to its social media accounts. The
posts do not have any time line. Three days in a row (June 27, June 29, June 30)
Aardvark posted on Facebook. Then there were a few every other day posts, then
from Aug 1 till Aug 10 there is zero activity. Aardvark is using some #hashtags. The
content on their webpage and social media could be unique enough to want to share,
if restructured slightly. Some pictures are so straight forward they are boring. Not
many people have that much interest in straight forward truck shots, unless you love
the brand in which case #husky #bareminerals is necessary. The press room on
Aardvarkel.com is actually working against the brand. The last update to the news
room was in Dec. 31, 2012. This makes the company look as if it cannot even stay on
top of its’ own affairs.
No storytelling is occurring on Aardvarkel.com. Profiles about people working
here, or stories about how the company was created, do not exist. There was a
recent post about Aardvark’s core values on Facebook, all of which are inspirational.
1- “What’s right for our clients above all else.” 2- “Creators, not duplicators” 3-
“Obsessive attention to detail and planning.” 4- “Proactive NOT reactive.” This is
that most that I can find that addresses the story behind Aardvark. Aardvarkone.com
incorporates some storytelling and humanization by showing individual drivers and
9. explaining their stories. The two websites are not connected to each other. Aardvark
One is a much better website; but it is the concept that is looking to be dissolved.
Aardvark Black is the push that Aardvark is looking to move forward with and there is
no mention of the idea anywhere.
Aardvarkone.com is easy to operate on a mobile device. Aardvarkel.com is
hard to navigate and hard to read, pictures do not scale to size, links are too close
together, spacing on the home page seems awkward, and font size is too small.
There have not been many original white papers written or published. The
newsroom is out of date. Not many users are posting about Aardvark so the option to
humanize the brand though individual conversations is not happening. However
Aardvark is not posting about their team either which is a lost opportunity.
Proposed Strategy
The main things that Aardvark should concentrated on are usage of Sendiable,
web page content, press releases on current tours, and creating stories that humanize
Aardvark.
Aardvark should really be posting interesting content every day or every other
day. They should not be so close together that users feel like they are spam, nor so
far apart that people are left wondering what Aardvark is doing. The posts should be
related to current tours and events. Also these should include brand #hashtags and
check-in points. This would greatly increase the chances of virality. I would also
begin to manipulate the micro-tagging system that is available within Sendiable.
10. Sendiable will track for you who Aardvark’s posts are actually reaching, so that
content can be written accordingly. By posting at many different times during the day
and then determining engagement, Aardvark can better craft its message and develop
a deeper understanding of their potential clients.
Aardvarkel.com needs a makeover immediately. The new web site should
address organization of past projects, sharability, press releases, and content.
Rather than sorting past projects by vehicle type, the consumer should have the
option to sort via function or vehicle type. Every page should have a footer with
share buttons that easily share Aardvarks content on Facebook, Twitter, and
Instagram. The newsroom should be up to date on all current tours. Where can the
tour busses be found and what are they doing. Also appearing in the newsroom should
being information our consumers would directly utilize. “Top things to think about
while producing a mobile tour. Reasons mobile tours fail. Most successful mobile
tours do this…” , these could be some engaging titles for future articles. Then when
potential clients are searching for information, Aardvark will become the #1 hub for
all mobile tour information. The new web content should be accessible via mobile
phone.
To reach a larger audience it would be extremely helpful if press releases were
given to local papers where the tours will be arriving. The messages should not even
be directly about Aardvark. It could just mention Aardvark produced the tour. The
rest of the content could be entirely directed at the client. That way Aardvark is
being exposed to anyone who is interested in our client’s tours. Writing these press
releases would tie back into the newsroom and give Aardvark ever occurring fresh
11. information. Aardvark could probably market these press releases as another feature
it offers. Anyone looking to do experiential marketing, probably encountered an
awesome event. They probably say to the intern, “Hey there was a jaw dropping bus
for Joe Fresh that I saw the other day. Can you look into doing something like that”.
The next step for the intern would be to look up who/what Joe Fresh is doing. Why
would Aardvark not be the company to present that information? That is content
marketing at its finest.
Finally Aardvark needs to show who’s behind it. Perhaps there is an employee
of the month or driver of the month that goes up on Facebook. Users can get to know
Aardvark and what it stands for a little better through the people it hires. Showing
that Aardvark is proud of its employees accomplishes three different tasks. The first
is that it humanizes the brand. The second added benefit is an employee of the
month would improve employee satisfaction. The last benefit is that people love
posting/sharing good parts of themselves. Employees will want to share that with
their friends and family. Then Aardvark is exposed to a new group of potential
clients/hires. The likes and shares just open another outlet for Aardvark.
Strategy Execution
To ensure that social media platforms are kept up to date, preprogramed posts
should be entered up to a month ahead of time. Posts should be submitted a month
in advance to be approved. They must remain consistent with Aardvark’s core values
and strategic goals. Sendiable should be tracked and posts should be tweaked based
12. on the engagement of users. Reevaluate content once every two months for the first
year. It is imperative that the system has enough information to give accurate
readings. After conclusive findings exist continue to reevaluate but on a month to
month basis. Another way to keep the social media platforms up to date would be to
require truck drivers to upload one picture, with a #brandname, on Aardvarks
Facebook and Instagram pages every week.
Aardvark should personally post and interesting article about one tour currently
on the road and one “how to” type article every week. These articles should also be
uploaded to company’s newsroom, keeping content constantly fresh. The how to
articles should be rich in key words to increase search engine optimization. The
articles should be written with buyer’s personas and micro-tagged data in mind.
Regarding press releases, every tour should have a schedule that it follows with
dates times and locations. A personalized press release should be written to the local
and regional areas for where the tours are taking place. If there is a niche market
that a relationship can be created with, those publications should be informed of the
press releases as well. Those releases should be uploaded immediately into
Aardvark’s news room, along with any publicity that comes from them. Prior to
sending the releases it would be beneficial to read and know a little about the
journalist you are writing to, add their name in the subject line. This gives the
journalist a reason to read your article over the thousands of other emails they
undoubtedly receive every day.
13. For employee of the month, the team should highlight an individual on the
team that has done an exceptional job or exceeded expectations. There should be a
background story on the individual, some general data (ie-time with company,
favorite tour they ever worked, weird fact), and a picture of them hard at work.
Their work should also be memorialized/awarded. A pin or an engraved plaque, to
keep in the home office, can make all the difference in employee satisfaction.
Conclusion
If Aardvark can meet all of the proposed strategies, they will surely reap the
benefits. These proposed improvements will increase brand recognition as experts of
event logistics. Search engine rankings will steadily increase from consistent posts.
Aardvark will be exposed to a larger fan base and potential customer base through the
virality of social media. Search engine ratings, brand recognition, and increasing
potential clientele will result in profit.
Appendix
An example of a potential employee of the month post:
14.
15.
16. References
Argenti, P. A. (2012). Corporate Communication, 6th Edition. Boston: McGraw
Hill Irwin.
------This book helped me understand the importance of having great media
relations. It demonstrated the need for companies to develop a system and a bond
with a reporter to effectively communicate its message. This book also helped me
grasp the importance of translucency in our global market.
Chapman, Lee. "2015 Marketing Trends to Prioritize For Now." Smart
Marketing Blog Top 3 B2B Marketing Trends to Prioritize for 2015 Comments. 4 Sept.
2014. Web. 29 May 2015. <http://www.trewmarketing.com/smartmarketingblog/
marketing-trends/2015-marketing-trends-to-prioritize/#sthash.HdYql1ck.dpuf>.
------This article walked me though the current stratigies and differences with
B2B marketing. Prior to this article I would not have thought about things like mobile
domination. Having a working mobile site seems so obvious, that it is forgettable.
DeMers, Jayson. "What Makes Content Shareable & Why It Matters for SEO."
Search Engine Watch. N.p., Aug. 2014. Web. 10 Aug. 2015. <http://
searchenginewatch.com/sew/how-to/2358558/what-makes-content-shareable-why-it-
matters-for-seo>.
------ This article helped me find the building blocks that creating readable
information. It also provided me with background information necessary to
understand how Google ranks its web pages. Without understanding how Google
determines that one cannot optimize its web content.
Gladwell, M. (2002). The Tipping Point: How Little Things Make a Big
Difference. New York: Little, Brown and Company.
------ This book helped me understand virality and what makes a story stick. This is
the inspiration for my point of storytelling. Gladwell clearly explains why story telling
is of such importance.
Madoxx, Kate. "Seven B-to-B Marketing Trends That Will Shape 2015."
Advertising Age BtoB RSS. 13 Jan. 2015. Web. 29 May 2015. <http://adage.com/
article/btob/b-b-marketing-trends-shape-2015/296518/>.
------- This article reinforced concepts that I had previously read about marketing trends. How
B2B marketing should be treated differently then B2C marketing. It was another rephrasing of
other articles, but when things are worded differently by people it produces deeper
understanding.
Scott, D.M. (2013). The New Rules of PR: How to Use Social Media, Online
Video, Mobile Applications, Blogs, News Releases, and Viral Marketing to Reach
Buyers Directly. Hoboken, NJ. John Wiley & Sons.
17. ------- This book gave me a reference for keeping up newsrooms. It breaks down how
to develop a connection with a journalist/get them to write about your company.
Finally it gives you the basics on writing a truly great press release.
Thibeault, Jason. "Why Storytelling Is So Important to Marketing." REThink.
N.p., 05 May 2015. Web. 10 Aug. 2015. <http://www.rethinkeverythingblog.com/
2015/05/05/why-storytelling-is-so-important-to-marketing/>.
------ This article talks about storytelling and gives great examples. It talks about the
need for stories to communicate company values. Basically the product should be
presented as a second element that helps main characters move along. Stories help
people remember the product, because we can relate to the story.
Wells, Monica. "Top 10 B2B Marketing Trends for 2015." Top 10 B2B Marketing
Trends for 2015. 19 Jan. 2015. Web. 29 May 2015. <http://www.b2bmarketing.net/
blog/posts/2015/01/19/top-10-b2b-marketing-trends-201>.
------- This article reinforced concepts that I had previously read about marketing trends. How
B2B marketing should be treated differently than B2C marketing. It was another rephrasing of
other articles, but when things are worded differently by people it produces deeper
understanding.
