spin cycle marketing plan

Marketing Plan Prepared By

EOTO Solutions

Prepared For Spin Cycle Café Laundromat

www.spincyclecafe.com

Table of Contents

Spin Cycle Café Laundromat | TOC

I. Executive Summary 1

II. Situation Analysis Overview 2

Individual Service Breakdown 3

Target Market Analysis 5

Target Market Segmentation 6

— Permanent Resident Demographics 7

— College Student Demographics 8

Consumer Analysis: Julie Hall 9

Consumer Analysis: Bob & Sue White 10

Consumer Analysis: Clyde & Lydia Czu 11

Consumer Analysis: Lisa Dez 12

Distribution Network Analysis 13

Competitive Analysis 14

Current Financial Situation 15

Historical Marketing Results 16

Macroenvironment 17

SWOT Analysis & Action Plan 18

III. IMC Objectives & Issues 19

IV. Marketing Strategy 20

V. Creative Strategy 21

Creative Brief 21

Big Idea 22

VI. MarComm Strategies & Tactics 23

Promotional 23

Events 24

Public Relations 25

Web & Other 26

VII. Campaign Timeline 27

VIII. Campaign Budget & ROI 28

IX. Evaluation 29

X. Conclusion 30

XI. Appendices 31

I. Executive Summary

Without a doubt, Spin Cycle Café Laundromat offers its community exactly what it needs: A fun place to hang out while completing a nec-essary task — laundry. However, if few people are aware of this business and its complete tray of offerings, the business, and the com-munity miss an opportunity. After three years of business, Spin Cycle realized its current marketing efforts weren’t enough. New competition had entered the market and the economy affected the world, including Spin Cycle. Luckily, with a little creativity and a touch of marketing advice, Spin Cycle Café Laundromat can boom with success. More than increasing profits and improving its brand image, Spin Cycle can become a trailblazer in a unique industry that’s sure to grow as cities become more populated and demand for both cafés and Laundromats increases. By understanding the needs and wants of the company’s most important consumers, Spin Cycle Café Laundromat will become a well-known name in the Hartford area and in the laundry services industry nationwide. It won’t be easy and it will cost money. However, with social media and other non-traditional marketing initiatives that engage the customer, Spin Cycle will continue to grow its business for years to come. After all, no matter what trends go in and out of style, people will always seek Good. Clean. Fun. And they’ll find just that, and more, at Spin Cycle Café Laundromat.

Spin Cycle Café Laundromat | Page 1

II. Situation Analysis


Spin Cycle Café Laundromat opened in June 2007 and began its life as a pioneer in the U.S. Café Laundromat industry. Located in New-ington, Connecticut, Spin Cycle is the only Laundromat in the Hartford area that combines laundry and café services. Spin Cycle custom-ers wash clothes while enjoying live entertainment, finishing homework, drinking a cup of coffee or tea and eating snacks, breakfast, lunch or a light café-style dinner.

The following pages explain the current situation of the market in which Spin Cycle Café Laundromat operates. From Spin Cycle’s service offerings to its financial information to trends affecting businesses worldwide — it all plays a role in Spin Cycle’s future success. There-fore, if Spin Cycle is to remain successful, all involved with the business must understand the world’s and the business’s current situation on all fronts.

In this document, we will analyze Spin Cycle Café Laundromat’s:

Service offerings Target market and segmented target market Targeted consumers Distribution network Competitors Financial situation Historical marketing results Macroenvironment Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats How to use the SWOT to build Spin Cycle’s business

Overview



Individual Service Breakdown

Spin Cycle Café Laundromat offers an array of services, all of which help make the business exciting for customers.

Self-Service Laundry Facility: Spin Cycle Café Laundromat has 25 Dexter washers and 24 dryers for customers’ use.

Single Load $2.00

Double Load $3.00

Triple Load $4.00

Maxi (4) Load $6.00

Mega (5) Load $7.00

Dryer $1.00/24 minutes (0.25 for additional 6 minutes)

The laundry/café combination is vital to our product mix because it is the combination of these two services that differentiates us from Laundromat and café competi-tors. This combination gives us a competitive edge over both local Laundromats and local cafés.

Full-Service Laundry Wash and Fold

Option 0-10lbs Additional weight

Drop laundry off $13.50 $0.75 per additional pound

We pick up/drop off $13.50 $0.99 per additional pound

CCSU Student Special

$13.50, all you can fit in blue spin cycle bag

-

FREE delivery for pick up/drop off. Each order may include wash & fold only, dry cleaner only or both. Tax not included in prices.

Product Strategy Hartford area residents can go anywhere to do laundry – they can only come to Spin Cycle Café Laundromat to do laundry, relax and have fun in a clean, pleasant environment.


Individual Service Breakdown


Dry Cleaning

Other important business features include:

Ample parking space

Outdoor patio for eating and events (seasonal) Entertainment, including alternative night, game nights, live music, open mic nights

Special events, like BBQ showdown, Laundromat dating, sports all day, Halloween party

Satellite TV with professional sports and cable viewing

Local talent showcase, including artists, musicians and poets

Full-service dine in or take out for breakfast, lunch and light café-style dinner Organic fair-trade coffee

Happy hour Area for studying, meeting or eating/drinking while waiting for laundry

A small meeting area that can fit about 50 people for parties and get-togethers

Laundered Shirts $2.40

Blouses/Shirts $6.75

Slacks/Pants $6.75

Sweaters $6.75

Dresses $12.50-85.00

Lab Coats $7.00

Blazers & Jackets $9.25

Two-Piece Suits $13.60

Outer Jackets* $13.50-15.00

Coats $20.00-35.00

*$5 extra charge applied for removing excess lint or extra-soiled items. Environmental disposal charge may apply to certain dry-cleaned items. Leather coat cleaning isn’t available.*


Target Market Analysis


1. Central Connecticut State University (CCSU), New Britain 2. University of Hartford, West Hartford 3. Trinity College, Hartford 4. Saint Joseph College, West Hartford 5. Wesleyan University, Middletown 6. Briarwood College, Southington

7. Holy Apostles College and Seminary, Cromwell 8. Rensselaer at Hartford, Hartford 9. Capital Community College, Hartford 10.Middlesex Community College, Middletown 11.Tunxis Community College, Farmington

1. Berlin 2. Bristol 3. Cromwell 4. Farmington

5. Hartford 6. Kensington 7. New Britain 8. Newington

9. Middletown 10. Meriden 11. Plainville 12. Rocky Hill

13. Southington 14. West Hartford 15. Wethersfield

Our target market must live near Newington, Connecticut, where Spin Cycle Café Laundromat is located. Broadly, we will target towns within Hartford, Middlesex and New Haven counties. Within these counties, we will focus on residents in the following towns:

Quick Facts about these towns: Combined population: more than 600,000 people Average household size: between two and three people Estimated percent of residents who are high school graduates: 85% Estimated percent of residents who have a bachelor’s degree or higher: 30% Average household income in 1999: between $40,000 and $55,000 per year

Within these towns, we must look at permanent residents and college students. Universities and colleges within our target location are:



Target Market Segmentation

Broad Target Market All adult residents aged 21-55 in the 15 towns, including college students.

Secondary Target Market

Primary Target Market

College Students

Permanent Residents

CCSU Trinity College University of Hartford

Local Business Owners

To properly reach the entire targeted market, we must segment it into three different pieces as the diagram illustrates. For our primary target, while we will not ignore the other colleges on our list, we will pay special attention to the three colleges in our dia-gram because they are most likely to use our services. For our secondary market, we must all permanent residents who live in the area, emphasizing local business owners who have items that need washing.



Target Market Analysis: Permanent Resident Demographics

As previously mentioned, Spin Cycle Café Laundromat’s target customers live in Newington, Conn., and the other 14 towns previously mentioned. The combined population of this geographic market is more than 600,000 people.

Demographic Characteristics of Targeted Permanent Residents

Male and Female

Single, Married, Divorced, Widowed, etc.

Age range: 18 to 55; Median age range: 25-30.

No children or grown, adult children

Have high school and associate/bachelor degrees

$40,000-$55,000 annual income

Homeowner, renter or living in an apartment/dormitory

Middle class, blue and white collar-type jobs We will also need to target small and medium-sized businesses that have a large volume of clothing/cloth items to be cleaned. This might include hospitals, doctor’s offices, restaurants, cafes and athletic/recreation centers.

Getting into the minds of our market In general, members of our secondary market have no children to care for. So, they spend time improving and enjoying themselves, their surroundings and the people around them. They enjoy exercising, including jogging and purchasing or renting exercise videos. They also enjoy playing trivia games and sports like tennis and golf. They rent movies to watch at home, attend op-era performances and belong to veterans clubs. They tend to shop at department stores like Lord and Taylor and Bloomingdales, while some shop at online department stores like sears.com. Also, many spend time at Ace Hardware creating ways to improve their living surroundings and at CompUSA learning about and purchasing new technology. They enjoy watching shows like ―24,‖ ―60 Minutes‖ and ―Masterpiece Theater.‖ Their favorite channels are the Style Channel, HGTV, Dis-covery Channel, Travel Channel, PBS and the Food Network. Their preferred magazines include Men’s Journal, Consumer Reports, Tennis, Cigar Aficionado, Audubon, Oprah, Woman’s Day and Bet-ter Homes and Gardens.


Target Market Analysis: College Student Demographics


CCSU Public liberal arts/sciences and professional

university 12,000 students: 7,000 full time; 5,000 part

time; 9,600 undergraduates; 2,730 graduates 53% female, 47% male, 15% minority Faculty: 400 full time, 400 part time On average 85% of CCSU graduates remain

in Connecticut after graduation More than 65,000 living alumni Majors include teacher education, nursing,

engineering and business Offers 18 Division I athletic programs 165 acres and 40 buildings About 20% of students live in on-campus

housing

Trinity College Independent, nonsectarian liberal arts college About 2,000 students 42 states represented 100-acre campus in Hartford 50% female, 50% male, 23.2% minorities Faculty:183 full time, 88 part time Majors include economics, history, political

science, psychology and English More than 100 on-campus student groups A large percentage of students complete in-

ternships and participate in community service projects.

The university recently renovated its library and information technology center.

University of Hartford More than 7,000 students 48 states represented 90 undergraduate majors and 33

graduate programs 51% female, 49% male 27% minorities in undergrad, 20%

minorities in graduate Faculty: 337 full time, 576 part time 35% from Connecticut Majors include business, education,

nursing, engineering, art 2% older than 25 70% live on campus

Obviously, like in most regions around the nation, young college students (approximately age 18-24) have fairly different hobbies and media habits compared to their older counterparts. Many of today’s traditional college students thrive on technology, including cell phones, smart phones, laptop computers and iPods. They also value face-to-face interactions with their peers whether that be studying, watching movies/TV or going out to bars and parties. It’s also important to note that most college students must work hard, but they en-joy having fun, too. While these characteristics are common among most students, each university usually has students of a particular personality with diverse characteristics.


Consumer Analysis: Julie Hall, CCSU sophomore


Julie, a history major, hopes to work in politics someday. She loves reading and is quite social. She’s from Connecticut but her parents live a little too far away to commute. Plus, she wanted to get a true college experience by living in a dorm. Julie wakes up everyday at about 9 a.m.in her small dormitory room. She has her first class at 10 a.m. After checking her e-mail and Facebook, showering and grabbing a ce-real bar from her closet, she races to class. Following this hour-long class, she goes to the library to check her e-mail and Facebook again. She also prints an assignment for her second class of the day. Around noon she meets her friends at the school cafeteria. They grab lunch using their college meal plan, but none of them are happy; they hate the cafeteria food on campus. After lunch, Julie has two more classes. Once finished in the classroom, she joins a friend at the gym to work out before eating dinner with friends at the school cafeteria, once again using her meal plan dollars. She spends some time goofing around with her roommate until about 8 p.m. She decides it’s time to do homework. She also has to complete a chore she hates: laundry. She puts it off as much as she can, but when she finally has to do it, she looks for the easiest, most pain-free way. Finding quarters to put into the machines on cam-pus can be a pain, so she decides to call Spin Cycle and have them pick up and drop off her laundry. This means she can stay in her room with her roommates and her homework while someone does her laundry for her — It’s almost as good as mom! She also just learned about the Laundromat’s café and that they use cards instead of quarters. She’s thinking about grabbing a few friends next laundry day and hanging out there instead of in the dorm.


Consumer Analysis: Bob & Sue White, Newington residents


Bob White, a certified public accountant, has lived in the central Connecticut region all his life. As a working adult, he moved to Newington so he could be near Hartford, where he works, without living inside the city. Bob graduated from the University of Hartford in 1972 and has been practicing accounting ever since. He works for a small accounting firm located in Hartford. He likes his job and he enjoys working with people and helping them with their accounting needs. However, he can’t wait to retire and take it easy. He’s worked hard all his life and it’s something he’s always looked forward to since his children grew up and moved out. Typically, Monday through Friday he works 9 to 5. He drives his car to the office every-day and parks in the parking garage. At 11 a.m. he meets with a client and then he takes him out to lunch at a café near the office. Around 1 p.m. he returns to the office before meeting with another client at 2 p.m. At 5 p.m. he heads home to Sue, his wife, who teaches at a local elementary school. Because she arrives home before he does, she fixes dinner for the both of them. She also received the couple’s laundry and Bob’s dry cleaning. She had Spin Cycle pick up and drop off the clothes. She loves not having to worry about this chore. After dinner, Bob mows the lawn and Sue works on cleaning up dinner. The laundry’s done, so the couple relaxes together in the living room. Bob reads a book about busi-ness while his Sue watches Jeopardy. Around 9 p.m. the phone rings; it’s Bob and Sue’s daughter. She has just put Bob and Sue’s grandson to bed and called to chat for a while. She says she would like to come visit Bob and Sue this weekend, and they are excited to see their daughter and grandson. Bob and Sue highly value any and all mo-ments with family, especially their young grandchild.


Consumer Analysis: Clyde &B Lydia Czu, owner of 123 Restaurant in Newington


Clyde was born and raided in Boston before meeting his wife and moving to Connecticut. His wife, Barb, is originally from Hartford, but the couple currently lives outside Newington, where they operate a business: 123 Restaurant. During the week, Clyde wakes up every morning around 6 a.m. He arrives at his 123 around 7:30 a.m. so he can prepare for the morning breakfast rush. Many people stop in and get a cup of coffee around 8 a.m. When it slows down a bit mid-morning, he works on preparing the din-ing room for any lunch guests who might come in. His waiters and cooks arrive at 10 a.m. It’s a busy afternoon for Clyde and the staff, but they like it. It helps the time go by faster and also means they’re bringing in more money. Around 2 p.m., Clyde takes his lunch break. During lunch, he runs some tablecloths and uniforms over to Spin Cycle and grabs a bite to eat while waiting. He enjoys completing his errands during lunch so he can go home at the end of the day. Clyde stays until about 6 p.m. when a manager comes in to take over for the evening. When Clyde arrives home, his wife, Lydia, has a quick dinner put together for them. She works for the restaurant, too, mostly for the catering side of things. Before fixing the couple’s dinner, she stopped at Spin Cycle to pick up the dry cleaned uniforms she had done; some waiters will need to wear them this weekend for a wedding catered by 123 Restaurant. After dinner and clean-up, the couple goes for a walk around the block. The two are trying to stay healthy, but it’s a challenge for both since they live such busy lives. At home, the couple sits together on the couch with their two dogs. They watch their favorite show on the Discovery Channel before heading to bed. On the weekends, when Lydia isn’t working events, the couple enjoys going seeing a movie or a show with friends. Although they have no children to care for, they spend a lot of time with friends and family, including Clyde’s 88-year-old mother and his five nephews.


Consumer Analysis: Lisa Dez, events manager at Newington Chamber


Lisa graduated from college not too long ago, but she’s already a professional in the event management world. Her job as the Chamber of Commerce’s events manager is to come up with and plan events for chamber members and local residents. As a young professional herself, she loves business networking events and has planned many around the Newington and Hartford areas. Lisa grew up in New York but attended the University of Hartford. She loved the area and decided to stick around after graduating, but once her classmates graduated, she had few friends left in the area. Luckily, she uses her events management career to meet new friends in the area. Someday she hopes to get married and have children. In the meantime, she considers life an adventure. She’s extremely outgoing but loves occasional quiet time alone in her apartment, where she reads a good book, writes fiction stories or watches epi-sodes her favorite TV show, Sex and the City. While her job requires her to be interested and passionate about the Newington area, she does have a genuine interest in the welfare of the people who live there. She vol-unteers a couple times per month at the local soup kitchen and mentors a high school ―buddy‖ from inner city Hartford. She takes Sarah, her buddy, to cafés and restaurants around the area. They drink cof-fee or tea and enjoy local music and art. She’s thinking about taking her to Spin City Café Laundromat next week when a really cool band is supposed to play, but she’s nervous that it will be awkward hanging out someplace where there are washers and dryers, too. But, being the outgoing young woman she is, she’s always up for some-thing new. She tries it and loves it so much she decides to host a couple networking events there for the upcoming year.


Distribution Network Analysis


Because Spin Cycle Café Laundromat offers a service rather than a product, its distribution network is unique. However, outside entities still play an important role to our business’s success. The following diagram demonstrates Spin Cycle Café Laundromat’s distribution network.

Beer and Alcohol Distributor

Food & Beverage Distributor

Dexter Washing Machines

WiFi Provider

Bands, musicians, artists, etc.

Spin Cycle Café Laundromat

Consumer buys alcoholic beverages.

Entertainment organizer

Consumer uses washing machines and other laundry services to clean clothing.

Consumer buys food and beverages

Consumer enjoys art and entertainment acts.

Consumer uses WiFi


Competitive Analysis


Laundry Services 1. Precision Wash and Dry Laundry

Wethersfield, other 2004

2. Battiston's

Farmington, Rocky Hill, Southington, Wethersfield, West Hartford (2)

Chain founded in 1946 3. Personal Touch Cleaners and Laundry

Newington 1993

4. 5Til 10 Laundry

Wethersfield 2007

5. Spin City Cleaners and Laundromat

New Britain 2010

Cafés 1. "Chain" cafes (Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, etc.) 2. Vida Doce Cafe and Pastry Shop

Newington 2009

3. The Black Cup Wethersfield 2006

4. Reno's Café New Britain 1990

5. Narcissus Chocolate Café

Wethersfield


Current Financial Situation


Spin City Café Laundromat does not currently have a lot of financial information available. However, we do know a few things about the company’s financial status. As of August 2010, the company’s owners are working on putting reports together. Before this year, the company was up financially. Unfortunately, overall, the company is trending downward in 2010, partly because

two or three new Laundromats joined the area. This year’s hot temperatures caused the company to begin running the air conditioning in April, which has led to increased costs for

utilities and energy. However the company is looking to decrease costs by hiring broker energy. This will reduce energy costs by 50% while making the building as a whole more energy efficient.

When speaking of the company’s financial information, it’s also important to mention the company has paid thousands of dollars per

month for marketing and advertising, but it hasn’t paid off. The company would like to continue working to minimize costs while in-creasing income and increasing awareness at the smallest cost.


Historical Marketing Results


Since its opening three years ago, Spin Cycle Café Laundromat has relied heavily on obtaining business using traditional marketing methods, including print, TV and radio advertising. These methods worked all right in the beginning, but recently they have proven much less successful, much less useful and much less efficient than in the past. The following chart examines what Spin City has done in the past and whether the effort is considered successful or unsuccessful in drawing business. Understanding past marketing missteps will allow us to build a successful marketing plan that’s best for Spin Cycle’s business future.

Successful Efforts Unsuccessful Efforts

1. Coffee News (no longer in publication)

2. CCSU student center events

1. Billboards on Route 9 a. Costs $1,000 per month b. Now cancelling

2. Coupons in Clipper Magazine, circ. 40,000 a. Got about 10 to 15 coupons back each run

3. Cable TV advertisements a. Ran through Comcast cable, local Hispanic TV channel b. Not running right now because low ROI c. They’re hoping to use TV commercial in social media

4. Radio advertisements on 93.7 and 95.7 (Top 40s stations) and live remote radio broadcasts

5. Central newspaper advertisements 7. Yellow Pages 8. A T &T video website listing


Macroenvironment


While implementing marketing plan initiatives, Spin Cycle Café Laundromat should consider the following macroenvironment forces that may provide opportunities for the company or threaten this marketing plan’s success. Demographic Forces The Newington area is heavily populated with aging and youthful populations. People are beginning to move closer to cities because they are often the easiest places to find jobs. Since Newington is near Hartford, it’s likely to see a population increase.

Economic Forces The recent economic recession has caused everyone — individuals, businesses and government entities — to cut back spending and save money wherever possible.

Natural Forces More and more individuals and businesses living a green, environmentally friendly lifestyle. These entities want to patronize organiza-tions that do what they can for the environment, including improving energy efficiency.

Technological Forces More than ever before, laptops, smart phones and netbooks allow for ultimate mobility while working. However, some of these new tech-nologies come with internet already equipped, meaning they don’t need WiFi. Luckily, most laptops still require WiFi to get online away from home. Also, online ―mass mingling‖ has begun to occur on sites like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Mobile devices like those mentioned above make it possible for people to virtually gather anywhere.

Social & Cultural Forces As life becomes more mobile and more on-the-go, more people seem to seek energy from caffeinated beverages like coffee, tea and energy drinks. Also, a large boom in enormous companies like Wal-Mart and McDonald’s has created a ―local movement‖ in which many people want to shop and eat locally whenever possible. Finally, today’s consumers, especially those under 40, have become al-most immune to traditional print, TV and radio advertisements. While newspaper coupons and TV commercials may effectively reach older audiences, reaching younger audiences requires more creativity than a simple advertisement.


SWOT Analysis & Action Plan


Strengths Unique venue Great owners and staff Fest ive enter ta inment ,

fun events New website New marketing plan Clean, spacious location

includes outdoor space Location near high-traffic

venues and residential neighborhoods

Weaknesses Low funds Low staff quantity Low brand and reputation

awareness Fairly new business (only

three years old)

Opportunities Consumers’ mobile lifestyles The Newington area is a

highly populated location and according to the Coin Laundry Association, people living in locations with a high popula-tion density are more likely to use laundry services.

Green earth-friendly trend

Threats Cost effectiveness Two new laundry service

businesses joined the area in the last two years.

Although the only café Laundromat in the area, Spin Cycle faces a high level of compet it ion f rom local Laundromats and cafés.

SWOT Action Plan In moving forward, the Spin Cycle Café Laundromat needs to play up its strengths while downplaying its weaknesses, mini-mizing threats and always being mindful of new opportunities. As proven through the SWOT chart, Spin Cycle has more strengths than weaknesses, which is great. However, this plan will eliminate two of the company’s weaknesses: low brand awareness and the company’s newness. By eliminating these two factors, funds will increase, allowing the company to hire more staff if needed. To eliminate the weaknesses, Spin Cycle should capitalize on opportunities today’s world offers. The company has already taken a step toward shaping itself for consumers’ mobile life-styles by offering free WiFi. It can also market itself in more heavily populated locations. It should also keep in mind the importance of living ―green‖ and saving money. We must prove using Spin Cycle’s services is cost effective AND time effective (saves the consumer time). While many Laundromats and cafés/restaurants are cost effective, we’re the only one in the area that is also time effective because we allow customers to do laundry while completing work, socializ-ing, being entertained or relaxing. In addition, unlike any other café in the area, Spin Cycle customers can enjoy breakfast, lunch, a light dinner, a snack or a coffee while doing laundry.

Objectives


III. IMC Objectives & Issues

To increase Spin Cycle Café Laundromat’s laundry service

clients by 50% within one year. To increase awareness of Spin Cycle Café Laundromat

among the target market by 50% within one year. To increase Spin Cycle Café Laundromat traffic by 40%

within one year. To increase Spin Cycle Café Laundromat’s profits by 15%

within one year.

Critical Issues 1. Members of our target market is not aware of us

and is not our services Spin Cycle Café Laundro-mat as much as we need them to.

2. Spin Cycle Café Laundromat, as a small business, has limited funding for marketing activities.

3. Many people may not understand the advantages of using our laundry services over purchasing their own personal washers and dryers.

4. People may not understand the unique atmosphere of a café Laundromat.

IV. Marketing Strategy

Marketing Strategy


Positioning Strategy The Spin Cycle Café represents an atmosphere of good, clean, fun and we need to position it as such. Incorporating the Café’s events, charm and friendly employees are crucial to the campaign’s success. Here’s a break down of exactly what the tagline stands for:

Good represents customer-oriented service from a staff that cares about making the customer feel good and happy.

Clean represents Spin Cycle’s décor and appearance. It also represents the establishment’s laundry service offerings.

Fun represents patrons’ experiences at the café. It’s unique because it’s not usually a word associated with laundry, but it is a word associated with the Spin Cycle Café Laundromat.

Target Marketing Strategy As previously mentioned, we will focus our marketing on two key markets:

Primary Market: College students, especially those attending CCSU, Trinity College and the University of Hartford.

Secondary Market: This segment is broken into two interlinked pieces: - Adult residents of the Newington area - Business owners/event managers in the Newington area Marketing Research Strategy Insufficient time did not allow for much primary research before beginning the marketing plan. Therefore, we need to survey consumers electronically and via paper surveys before launching the majority of our initiatives. About 12 months later, we will survey consumers again to see if our initiatives were successful and if we need to change pieces of the plan. It’s also important for Spin Cycle’s staff to obtain feedback from customers whenever necessary, even if that means simply recording when someone says they really enjoyed or disliked something.

Mission Statement:

“Spin Cycle Café Laundromat is a family-

owned business that aims to make laun-

dering clothes the most relaxing and en-

joyable experience. We have combined

two businesses that complement each

other well. Spin Cycle offers a clean,

pleasant, enjoyable experience to all

whether doing laundry or gabbing a bite

to eat. So simply sit back and make your-

self at home…”

Creative Brief


V. Creative Strategy

To whom are we talking? People near Newington, Conn., especially adults age 21-55 and students attending local colleges/universities. What do they currently think? Many are currently unaware of our business and what we offer. What would we like them to think? Spin Cycle Café Laundromat is the one place for everyone to go and have ―Good. Clean. Fun.‖ while doing laundry, surf-ing the web, watching a performance, completing homework or other tasks. What is the single most persuasive idea we can convey? Spin Cycle Café Laundromat is Good. Clean. Fun. Why should they believe it? Where else in the area can anyone get a food, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, WiFi and laundry services in one centrally located building? Nowhere.

V. Creative Strategy

Big Idea


www.spincyclecafe.com

VI. MarCom Strategies & Tactics

Promotional Strategies & Tactics


Strategy Use a street team, provided by the Entertainment Promoter, to promote the Spin. Tactics Street team members will wear uniforms (Black or white Spin Cycle T-shirt with jeans, see appendix p. 32) when working for the café

on and off site. Street teams will distribute printed materials like flyers and postcards (see page 27) at malls, events, local high-traffic areas, local

businesses, apartments, colleges (especially in dorms) and supermarkets Extra T-shirts can be purchased online or in stores. Strategy Issue incentives to bring in more customers and get consumers to take surveys. Tactics Consumers may take surveys online, at the café or during one of the street team events. Those who complete the survey will receive a coupon for half off a non-alcoholic beverage at the café. Those who provide their

name and address will be entered in a drawing to win one of 10 free Spin shirts and one of five Spin gift certificates. Host a Last Comic Standing contest in January 2010 to combine with the last Saturday of the month. Café customers can vote for

their favorite comic and the winner receives a headline show, a Spin T-shirt and a Spin gift certificate. Frequent consumers can receive a frequent customer card. When they use the laundry services 15 times, they receive two free

washes/dries or a wash and a dry. Also, those who buy 10 sandwiches can get the 11th free and those who buy nine coffees can get a 10th for free.

Strategy Implement student-only discounts for students at CCSU, Trinity and University of Hartford Tactics Admissions welcome packets coupons for students at all three schools Create a relationship with each university’s student activities center and share information about upcoming events. For two weeks after the launch party, all college students who present their IDs can receive a discount on café purchases.

Event Strategies & Tactics



Strategy Inform the target markets of Spin Cycle’s changes and updates by hosting a launch party in October 2010. Tactics Set up new signs for the front of the building Partner with liquor distributor for alcoholic beverage signage and drink specials Unveil new website, new uniforms and new marketing plan Print Good Clean fun passes for frequent customers and distribute at event Hire a DJ to play music and to entertain Join the chamber, invite local businesses and collect business cards for a drawing and for future business contacts Invite the local government and ask one member of the local government to participate in a ribbon-cutting presentation Strategy Attract and create awareness among higher-end business clientele Tactics Join the local Chamber of Commerce and ask about opportunities to speak Spin’s business. Offer to host Chamber events and events for other local organizations (Rotary clubs, women’s clubs, etc.) Host a business networking event for professionals of all ages and stages of life. While there, have Spin owners network with others

as well so they can inform businesses of with these groups to hold their events at the Spin. This would networking events in the Greater Hartford area.

Strategy Hire an outside entertainment promoter and agency to arrange the events so the business can focus on its business operations. Tactics Hire the Entertainment Promoter, starting in September 2010. They will book, promote and market entertainment that has a following for Friday Jazz Nights, Comedy Nights (last Saturday of each

month) and other events. Also, Spin Cycle should create entertainment and event booking guidelines based on what the Entertainment Promoter learns.

Public Relations Strategies & Tactics



Strategy Hire a local university student intern (paid or unpaid) to work on public relations for Spin Cycle. Tactics Student will use expertise and experience to come up with story ideas that would interest college students and, therefore, campus

media outlets. Possible outlets: The Recorder (at CCSU), The Trinity Tripod (at Trinity College) and The Hartford Informer (University of Hartford). Student will also work on managing Spin Cycle’s social media presence on Facebook and Twitter. Educate student on Spin Cycle and what it’s about so he/she is able to give quotes to campus media and write about the company in

press releases, if necessary. Since Spin Cycle cannot afford to pay an employee with cash, we can pay the intern with internship hours for campus credit, refer-

ences and a limited number of free coffee, food and laundry services Strategy Increase consumer awareness and company credibility through pitching stories and hosting speaking engagements Tactics While the student intern works on pitching stories to campus media, Spin Cycle employees can focus on local and national

media outlets. Possible media outlets: The Hartford Advocate, The Hartford Courant and Hartford Business Journal. Spin Cycle should also consider national publications, especially those in the Laundromat industry. Being one of the first Café

Laundromats in the Hartford area, Spin Cycle could be considered a trailblazer. Possible media outlets include: Babbalu, BizNewEng-land.com, Inc. Magazine and the Coin Laundry Assocation’s The Journal.

Pitch visual stories on Spin performances to local TV news and shows Offer to speak with students, especially business students, at colleges about operating a small, family-owned business

Web Strategies & Tactics



Strategy Use web applications to brand Spin Cycle Laundromat Café as a place where those who frequently use technology can spend time and to keep potential cus-tomers informed of upcoming events and promotions. Tactics Create a social media presence using Facebook, Twitter and FourSquare. Update website to be user-friendly and intriguing Create an event calendar on the website that’s private but that allows others to

post approved events Allow clients to set up web accounts through which they can use the laundry de-

livery service, pay with credit cards and protect it all with a password. On Yahoo server and Domain from Domain Registry of America and other ex-

ternal websites, use www.spincyclecafe.com and avoid the longer version (www.spincyclecafelaundromat.com). Create two e-mail distribution lists 1. Distribute monthly to entire list with past events and happenings. 2. Distribute weekly with upcoming events, specials and promotions.

Other Tactics & Ideas Create yard signs and post them along the highway and on campuses, if permitted. Improve art gallery. Invite art professors at local universities to involve their classes either by bringing them to the gallery or by

submitting students’ artwork to be displayed in the gallery. Improve inside décor Consider advertising events in the Hartford Courant’s Monday Blue Page Section Management should set aside at least six to eight hours per week to discuss marketing initiatives, including press releases, the email newsletter, website updates, following up on press requests and calls, etc.

VII. Campaign Timeline


Sep10 Oct10 Nov10 Dec10 Jan11 Feb11 Mar11 Apr11 May11 Jun11 Jul11 Aug11

Entmt. Promoter/St.team

H. Courant Ad

CCSU Planner

T-shirt sales

Online, print survey

Last Comic Standing Contest

Frequent Customer Passes

Launch Party

CCSU ID promo

Join Chamber, host business events

PR Intern

Pitch stories to publi-cations, TV

Speak to college stu-dents about biz

Social Media

Email newsletters

Yard Signs

VIII. Campaign Budget & ROI


Budget & ROI

Sept-Nov10 Dec10-Feb11 Mar-May11 Jun-Aug11

Website URLS $30

Entertainment promoters $900 $900

Street team promoters $1,011 $1,011

Promotional materials for ST

Survey contest $200 $200

Last Comic Standing contest $110

Chamber Membership $218

PR Intern $20 $20 $20

Yard Signs

CCSU Planner Ads

Launch Party

Networking Events

Art Gallery improvements

Décor Improvements

TOTALS

IX. Evaluation


To increase laundry service clients by 50% within one year … Measure overall laundry service use from September 1, 2010, to August 31, 2011. Track how many people use the laundry services and compare September 2010 to August 2011.

To increase brand awareness among the target market by 50% within one year …

Measure how aware the target markets are of Spin Cycle Café Laundromat’s services and offerings. Track brand awareness by surveying a sample of the target market population in September 2010 about the Spin Cycle Café

Laundromat brand. Give the same survey in August 2011 to see what has worked best and perhaps what should be modified. To increase café Laundromat traffic by 40% within one year …

Measure how many different people come in and out of the café two days of each month. Track this data using observation and compare each month to track increases, decreases or plateaus.

To increase profits by 15% within one year …

Measure profits in September 2010. Track sales versus costs for at least each month. Compare August 2011’s data against September 2010’s data.

X. Conclusion


Good. Clean. Fun. It’s a simple concept, but most of the time, simple works best. We don’t want to clutter our customers’ minds. For those who just care about the laundry piece, we have easy-to-use online options for pick up and drop off. For those looking for fun, we’ve got that, too. Rather than telling potential customers how great our business is, we want them to experience it for themselves. We want them to come inside Spin Cycle Café Laundromat and feel what it’s like to relax, eat, drink and have fun. When customers have that experience, they will come back, and, even better, they will tell their friends or bring their friends with them next time. That’s the power of word-of-mouth. It’s simple and it’s cost-effective. All it takes is stellar service, a comfortable environment and a fun experience. And that’s exactly what Spin Cycle Café Laundromat gives its customers today and will continue to give years and years from now.

XI. Appendices

Works Cited


The following websites were used to compile information for this marketing plan: http://www.claritas.com/MyBestSegments/Default.jsp http://local.yahoo.com/info-10537096-maple-laundromat-llc-hartford#overview http://www.coinlaundry.org/resources/industryoverview.cfm http://new.hartford.edu/aboutuofh/quickfacts.aspx http://www.ccsu.edu/page.cfm?p=62 http://www.trincoll.edu/AboutTrinity/CollegeFacts.htm

http://www.claritas.com/MyBestSegments/Default.jsp

http://local.yahoo.com/info-10537096-maple-laundromat-llc-hartford#overview

http://www.coinlaundry.org/resources/industryoverview.cfm

http://new.hartford.edu/aboutuofh/quickfacts.aspx

http://www.ccsu.edu/page.cfm?p=62

http://www.trincoll.edu/AboutTrinity/CollegeFacts.htm

http://www.trincoll.edu/AboutTrinity/CollegeFacts.htm

XI. Appendices

Initiative Examples


XI. Appendices

Take-Out Menu


XI. Appendices

Fliers & Advertisements


spin cycle marketing plan

Documents