Cheyenne Eye Clinic Marketing Transition Plan

Cheyenne Eye Clinic

Marketing Transition Strategy

Transitioning from in-house marketing management to an agency partnership is best done in phases since current contracts and advertising placements already exist with previously-generated creative work in an established brand. In order to determine which campaigns to continue running or where to reduce spending, it’s necessary to begin by capturing the “big picture” of marketing activities, analyze overall performance, assess the brand status, and retarget advertisements to be more inline with practice goals.

I. Organization Phase (1st 90 days)

After discovery is complete, begin compiling a media database with samples of creative work and placement schedules. Indicate whether the item is in the old brand or has been updated recently. If there is opportunity to update creative during a placement run, be sure to include a tracking mechanism.

The goal for this phase is not only to identify all the media but to begin assessing audience reach and response. This step is important when preparing to launch rebranded creative in the retargeting phase.

II. Branding Phase (2nd 90 days)

1. Brand Audit: Measure current perception of the Cheyenne Eye Clinic brand and its competitors

As possible, conduct surveys, in-depth interviews, and local market studies to systematically assess CEC’s brand from these varying perspectives:

• Patients (customers)

• Community stakeholders (associations, business contacts, etc.)

• Clinic leadership (executive team and physicians)

• Employees (technicians, administrative staff, etc.)
  

Next, audit all communications. Determine how authentically the organization appears in:

• Advertising campaigns

• Promotional materials and sales collateral

• Web content and social media

• Patient communications

• Internal communications

As an additional measure, assessing the competitions’ communications will provide insight to guide decisions in step two.

2. Brand Differentiation: Create a sustainable value proposition

Based on current perceptions revealed in the brand audit, identify three key attributes that describe how CEC differs from its competitors. Resolve the following questions:

• Is there a proven process to accurately identify what makes the brand stand out from the competition?

• Objectively, are the differentiating factors realistic and authentically different from the competition?

• What actions does CEC currently do that align with the brand differentiators identified?

• Is there opportunity to dive deeper and uncover new opportunities for differentiation based on current gaps among consumer brands in the local marketplace?

3. Brand Strategy: Develop a one-page synthesis of the brand position

This internal-use document should clearly and succinctly convey the following:

• Brand differentiators

• Brand promise

• How CEC will keep that brand promise through actions and interactions
  

Brand strategy will be deployed as the filter for future business decisions (e.g. capital purchases, new service development) and included in the brand standards document for organization-wide understanding and use.

4. Leadership Adoption: Roll out a process for ensuring that mission, vision, and values align with brand differentiators

This is a critical step where leaders outwardly refresh how they live the brand and where they inspire others to follow suit.

• Prep the executive team with key talking points and a 30-second elevator speech that stays on point with the brand strategy from start to finish.

• Seize all opportunities to integrate that message into weekly employee communications.

• Embed the differentiators in materials the executive team routinely uses.

5. Touch Point Mapping: Devise a plan to ensure employees live the brand

Create a matrix of current and planned behaviors for each department. Internal brand adoption takes time – and adequate guidance is essential. Build the matrix based on:

• How each department can live the brand throughout relevant daily activities (day-to-day interactions, patient conversations, etc.)

• Changes that need to be made to ensure alignment

• A measurement system and/or incentives in place to ensure departments keep their commitments to living the brand

• Visual aids throughout the departments as reminders of the brand promise

6. Internal Communication Strategy: Make a plan for internal roll-out

Establish a strategic and tactical plan for unveiling your new brand to key stakeholders and employees, and continuously reinforcing the brand across the organization. Roll-out approach:

• Plan a top-down communication delivery and gain internal adoption before taking the new brand public

• Develop any necessary tools to support the brand and integrate the new brand into existing employee materials

• Revisit the communication audit to adapt internal versus external communication aids with ease

7. Creative Strategy and Execution: Bring the new brand to life with integrated creative materials

Launch the new brand externally; Create new content, complete with new design elements and visuals that align with the core purpose of the CEC brand.

• Translate the new brand in ways that communicate effectively with various demographic groups.

• Give the color palette, fonts, and images a brand boost.

• Consider a common element or thread necessary to connect the old brand to the new one, ensuring consumers understand the brand evolution.

8. Market Studies: Continuously measure ongoing efforts and document competitive gains

To maintain a healthy brand, it’s essential to monitor:

• Internal brand adoption

• Improvements in external awareness and perception of the brand

• Progress achieved in improving your brand’s competitive positioning

III. Retargeting Phase (6 months)

Revisit the media database from Phase 1. Rank the items in order of most successful to least based on results per budget allocated. Low performing media can be indicative that one or more factors are not correct: the creative message and/or design is off, the placement is not aligned with the correct audience, or the call to action is not compelling enough for consumers to respond. Continue with similar placement strategies for high performing campaigns and adjust placements and/or budgets for low performers.

Monitor campaigns and make minor updates as needed through the end of Marketing Year 2 (May 31, 2017). Ensure that by the end of YR 2 all advertisements and collateral are in the new brand. Complete metrics tables and begin planning YR 3 goals and budgets in June 2017.

When evaluating whether or not to continue a placement, purchase a new placement, or increase or reduce budgets on a placement, consider the following criteria:

• Conversion Probability: is this a product or service that consumers are interested in and will be likely to purchase?

• Product / Service Ambiguity: are there products or services that are relevant to consumers, though they are unfamiliar with the product or service and need additional education and descriptions?

• Interest-only Affinity: which products or services garner conversational / browsing interest but do not result in purchase?

• Behavioral Preference: when do products or services have higher / lower appeal to specific demographics?

When campaigns are in need of adjustment, apply a new strategy.

Random Selection Strategy

This strategy is used primarily for A/B testing purposes where the effectiveness of another strategy is being compared against a generic, random product selection. This is the best strategy when faced with Conversion Probability.

Best-Seller Strategies

Focusing on those products that a business would like to be most consistently, frequently, or recently explored by the consumer, this technique is useful in Product / Service Ambiguity and seeks to frame an item as a “best-seller” to give it credibility by supplementing it with additional content, testimonials, or case studies.

Promotional Strategies

These strategies may be combined with others to emphasize products with limited timeframes (special offers, discounts, and deals) or approaching stock-out (for optical products specifically). This approach is especially powerful when combined with ‘countdown’ creative and works well to convert Interest-only Affinity consumers to actually purchase.

Dynamic Classification Strategies

These strategies enable products to be selected across a range of attributes which may vary with behavior. For example, “Back to school or pre-athletics season eye exams” in the late summer / early fall or “New Year’s Resolution, new look” (for occuloplastics) in winter are appeals to specific demographics during limited timeframes.

Each of these marketing strategies may be blended or combined for maximum effect.

Performance Metrics

YR 1 (Year 1) = June 1, 2015 – May 31, 2016

YR 2 (Year 2) = June 1, 2016 – May 31, 2017

GENERAL PRACTICE METRICS

NEW PATIENT GROWTH

DR. COLE