Issue identification and root cause analysis:
Poor internal culture in the organization
Poor brand identification in the market
Understanding the CEO’s new vision for the organization
Strategic effect of the communication plan:
Support the strategic goals of BrightStar by improving brand perception and increasing market share
Establish effective communication practices in the organization
Strategic goals of the communication plan:
Inform persuade obtain buy-in
Improve communication between the company and the buyers
Explain the impact of the merger on the buyers
Establish a clear vision and mission
Gain consensus from buyers on the new vision and strategy
Reposition the company’s brand to increase market share
Environment/risk analysis:
What is the risk of not meeting these strategic communication goals?
Corporate management has lost control of the company’s narrative to the grapevine
The communication between the organization and the buyers is hampered by misinformation and non-strategic messages
Buyers cannot make purchase decisions because of the lack of communication
Loss of market share
Poor communication causes buyers to lose trust in the organization
Buyers have a poor perception of the brand in the market
Actual price increases force buyers to seek cheaper alternatives
Perceived changes in the quality of the brands drive buyers away
The absence of a clear vision and mission means that:
Buyers are confused about the strategic direction of the organization
Buyers do not understand their role in helping the organization achieve its strategic goals
Event triggered
Surveys among the buyers in the company result in negative feedback
Buyers do agree with the company’s decisions because of lack of information to know whether the decisions are good or bad
Attitude triggered
The main theme in the feedback is that corporate management does not communicate adequately with buyers
Buyers distrust corporate management because of poor communication
Outside events that could affect the strategic communication plan
Dissemination of inaccurate stories about the company from the media
Buyers’ resistance to the strategic communication plan
Procedural considerations:
Some communication platforms are effective
Regular meetings
Some communication platforms are not working well
Phone calls
Social media
The company lacks a formal channel of communication to address the needs of the buyers
Obstacles:
Finance
The strategic communication plan requires money for consultants and surveys
Some buyers may be resistant to change
Fear of price increases because of the new strategy
Fear of a decrease in the quality of the brands because of the new strategy
Misunderstanding of the new strategic direction of the company
Situational analysis
Reasons for change
Research has shown that buyers are the most important stakeholder group of organizations
According to the study, the main objective of companies should be to satisfy the needs of the buyers
Oghojafor, Ladipo, Ighomereho, & Odunewu (2014) conducted a study that showed that effective communication is a key determinant of buyer satisfaction
The study also showed that buyer satisfaction leads to customer loyalty, which helps organizations to maintain a competitive edge over their rivals
A study by Schultz (2009) showed that effective communication between the organization and the buyers helps in the detection and solving of problems before they become a menace to both the buyers and the company
Hatala & Lutta (2009) are of the opinion that effective communication between buyers and the organization facilitates the exchange of ideas
According to Agrawala & Rahmanb (2015), exchanging ideas with buyers helps organizations to understand the tastes and preferences of their buyers
Lynn (2011) states that information exchange between the company and the buyers is crucial to ensuring the success of brand repositioning strategies
According to Lynn, (2011) brand repositioning can help organizations attract new customers
However, Keller & Lehmann (2004) caution that companies wishing to reposition their brands must communicate their strategy clearly to their existing buyers
Keller & Lehmann (2004) add that brand repositioning may incorporate new characteristics into the old brands, and buyers need to be informed of such changes
Failure to communicate may cause the current customers to feel betrayed by the changes in the brands, which may force them to seek substitute brands from the company’s competitors
According to Keller & Lehmann (2004) the clear communication of the repositioning strategy for the existing customers helps organizations to retain their existing customers
Besanko, Dranove, Shanley, & Schaefer (2009) state that buyers are very sensitive to price changes
According to the authors, organizations must communicate clearly to their buyers about any potential price changes because of the brand reposition
Additionally, Besanko, Dranove, Shanley, & Schaefer (2009) state that the exchange of information between buyers and the organization helps the management to predict future trends
According to the authors, the prediction of future trends is important because it helps organizations to avoid wasting resources in the production of unnecessary goods or provision of unnecessary services
Darbi (2012) highlights the importance of a clear vision and mission to the success of an organization
According to Darbi (2012), the vision and mission should be clear to all the stakeholders of the organization, including the buyers
Buyer traits and perceptions
Buyers receive a lot of information about the company through speculation
Buyers value open communication with the company
Buyers have a poor perception of the company’s brands in the market
Implications of perceptions:
For the strategic communication plan to work, the company will have to:
Embrace open communication within the buyers
Abandon or change how they use communication platforms that have not been working
Improve the quality of the brands to improve their perception in the market
What the strategic communication plan can achieve:
The buyers’ sense of mistrust can be turned into a healthy trust of the corporate management
This will improve customer satisfaction, which will increase the loyalty of the buyers to the organization
Stakeholder analysis:
Buyers
Feeling of dissatisfaction with their communication with corporate management
Feeling of distrust towards the organization
Feeling of disappointment with the company as evidenced by the poor perception of its brands in the market
Feeling of confusion because of the unclear vision and mission of the company
Strategic message mix
Strategic message #1: All the buyers of BrightStar should be informed about the company’s vision and mission, and this information should come from corporate management
Issue: Corporate management will have to embark on an education drive to bolster the buyers’ understanding of the organization’s vision and mission
Strategic message #2: Corporate management is striving to implement effective communication practices
Issue: Research shows that effective communication is a key determinant of organizational success (Blazenaite, 2011)
Issue: Corporate management will have to stop the practice of selective communication
Strategic message #3: Buyers can take advantage of the improved communication to share information with the organization
Issue: The sharing of knowledge and information will enable buyers to determine and monitor the relationship with design, which can influence cash sensitivity
Strategic message #4: Buyers are the most important stakeholder group of the organization
Issue: The company has been ignoring its most important stakeholder group through selective communication
Issue: Corporate management needs to understand that buyers are the primary reason for the company’s existence
Strategic message #5: The BrightStar brand is a leader in the market
Issue: Would require the changing of the buyers’ perceptions of the company’s brands in the market
Issue: Would require a significant improvement in the quality of the company’s brands
Strategic message #6: The company’s strategic communication plan is iterative, and its improvement is reliant on input and feedback from the buyers
Issue: Requires regular surveys, which can be costly for the organization
Implementation
Establish a clear vision and mission
Stakeholders: All buyers
Objective: Ensure that buyers understand the strategic direction of the organization
Message: Buyers should be aware of the vision and mission of the company
Tactics: Organize and invite buyers to company events that highlight the values of the organization
Prominently display the company’s vision and mission in all its communications with the buyers
Organize consultative workshops
Stakeholders: All buyers
Objective: Increase buyers’ engagement with the organization
Message: The strategic direction of the company relies on the opinions of the buyers
Tactics: Enlist the services of consultants to facilitate the workshops
February
Establish communication channels between the buyers and corporate management
Stakeholders: All buyers
Objective: Improve the communication processes of the company
Message: Corporate management is striving to facilitate communication with the buyers
Tactics: Corporate management communicates regularly with the buyers
Change the content of social media communication to make it more interesting to the buyers
March & April
Create a centralized pool of information
Stakeholders: All buyers
Objective: Facilitate the exchange of ideas between buyers and the company
Message: Buyers can take advantage of the new communication channels to share information with the organization
Tactics: Maintain the information collected from the buyer interactions on the company website
Publicly acknowledge the contributions of buyers on the website and other company publications to encourage other buyers to share information
May
Increase the buyers’ loyalty to the organization
Stakeholders: All buyers
Objective: Increase the competitive edge of the company
Message: All buyers are valuable partners of the company
Tactics: Provide high quality products for the buyers
Set reasonable prices for the company’s products
June
Stakeholders: All buyers
Objective: Increase the market share of the company
Message: The BrightStar brand is a leader in the market
Tactics: Provide buyers with free samples of the company’s products
Advertise the company’s products in the print and electronic media
Take part in corporate social responsibility initiatives to increase the visibility of the company’s brands in the market (Vilppo & Lindberg-Repo, 2011)
Start evaluation of the strategic communication plan
Stakeholders: All buyers
Message: The strategic communication plan of the company is iterative, and its improvement is reliant on input and feedback from the buyers
Tactics: Company-wide surveys and interviews of buyers
Assess/metrics
Outcomes-based approach:
Outcome measurement plan
References
Agrawala, A. K., & Rahmanb, Z. (2015). Roles and Resource Contributions of Customers in Value Co-creation. International Strategic Management Review, 3(1-2), 144-160.
Besanko, D., Dranove, D., Shanley, M., & Schaefer, S. (2009). Economics of Strategy. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.
Blazenaite, A. (2011). Effective Organizational Communication: In Search of a System. Social Sciences, 4(74), 84-101.
Darbi, W. P. (2012). Of Mission and Vision Statements and Their Potential Impact on Employee Behaviour and Attitudes: The Case of A Public But Profit-Oriented Tertiary Institution. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 3(14), 95-109.
Hatala, J.-P., & Lutta, J. G. (2009). Managing Information Sharing Within an Organizational Setting: A Social Network Perspective. Performance Improvement Quartely, 21(4), 5-33.
Keller, K. L., & Lehmann, D. R. (2004, August). Brands and Branding: Research Findings and Future Priorities. Retrieved from Warrington College of Business: http://bear.warrington.ufl.edu/CENTERS/MKS/invited/BRANDS%20AND%20BRANDING.pdf
Lynn, M. (2011). Segmenting and Targeting Your Market: Strategies and Limitations. Retrieved from Cornell University, School of Hospitality Administration: http://scholarship.sha.cornell.edu/articles/243
Oghojafor, A., Ladipo, P., Ighomereho, S., & Odunewu, V. (2014). Determinants of Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty in the Nigerian Telecommunications Industry. British Journal of Marketing Studies, 2(5), 67-83.
Schultz, D. E. (2009). Solving Marketing Problems with an Integrated Process. International Jouranl of Integrated Marketing Communications, 7-16.
Vilppo, T., & Lindberg-Repo, K. (2011). Corporate Brand Repositioning with CSR as the Differentiating Factor: A Study on Consumer Perceptions. Retrieved from Hanken School of Economics: https://helda.helsinki.fi/bitstream/handle/10138/26580/557_978-952-232-135-0.pdf
