Borders Group C Andrew Roth Cyndi Hilsabeck Jeff Primos
Borders Group CAndrew RothCyndi HilsabeckJeff Primos
Overview of Presentation Introductions History of Borders 4 P’s and S Borders Current Marketing
Situation Social Media Tactics Recommendation Deep Dive into Facebook
Apps and Blogs
History of Borders Group Inc. Founded in 1971 by brothers by Louis
and Tom Borders It originally served the Academic
community of Ann Arbor, Michigan Borders opened its first large scale retail
store in 1985 In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s
industry sales grew to 1.4 billion and 1992 Borders was sold to Kmart Corp and eventually spun off to form Border’s Group
After losing money with its website Border formed a partnership with Amazon.com.
Product is King
Core products include books, text books, eReaders, movies, music, calendars, posters, and crafts.
To differentiate itself Border’s launched
BordersMedia.com
Price is a Problem
Amazon has leading titles for
their Kindle starting at 9.99. Border’s leading titles starting at
$15.95 Amazon’s Kindle has been deeply
discounted to $139.00 Barnes and Noble’s Nook is priced
from $149-$199. Border’s The Velocity Micro Cruz
is $119-$199
PROMOTION
Rewards Program –you can earn Border’s Bucks for achieving $150 in annual qualifying purchases.
Upgraded Rewards Program is offered to buy into for further advantages.
There is no comparison with their competitors. Amazon and Barnes and Noble only offer rewards if you sign up for their Visa or Mastercard.
PROMOTION
Borders recently entered into a partnership with JiWire.
This is a leading location based mobile company
This type of advertising is growing quickly
“As Wi-Fi usage increases, particularly in lifestyle venues like Starbuck’s and large Bookstores, its changing the way brands interact with consumers”
PROMOTION
Border’s offers weekly deals on their website
They are also in a major public relations campaign to ease fears about their Bankruptcy.
Gift cards, coupons and fullfilling online orders is still taking place.
SERVICE
Borders.com offers a full customer care area.
MARKETING PROBLEM
Border’s is in Bankruptcy This is a result of declining annual
revenues They have struggled to compete in
the eBook business. The bankruptcy will result in nearly
20,000 job losses Borders lead the market in the 90”s The Birth of Amazon was the death
of Borders.
Social Media Tactics
Borders core issue is sales
Tactics chosen on ability to generate sales with existing customer and create new customers
Tactics will use Facebook, apps, blogs, Twitter, and YouTube
Tactic One
What is the tactic Facebook Portal for customers to view
authors pages tied in through Borders Facebook page.
Part of a greater marketing strategy for author book signings and Borders events. Contest for fans.
How does it work?
Objectives Customer awareness of authors via posts
on the main Borders website as well as upcoming promotions.
Number one objective is to generate hype for authors and create a sense of community at the store.
Tactic one cont.
Social Media used in campaign Facebook
Main author’s page and promotion of events Twitter
Live tweets by authorYouTube
Video of event and winner of contestMeasurement
Ultimate goal is additional sales Number of likes tied in with promotion on authors page within
Borders
Justification People trust other people’s opinions.
Target Market Both current and potential customer who enjoy books.
Tactic Two
•What is the tactic•Application created by Borders that allows for an author to self publish a book within the Borders community•Contains all the tools necessary for creation, publication, social media promotion and price control. •Additional costs for additional features.
•Objectives•Creation of community within emerging authors at Borders•New niche for Borders
•Social Media platforms used•Facebook•Twitter•Author’s pages tied in but Borders has authority to control
• Author can separate Borders link if desired.
Tactic Two cont. Metrics
Number of downloads Number of books published Revenue generated Cost of program
Justification New and changing marketplace
Competition
Target Market New and existing authors who are
trying to break into the marketplace.
Tactic Three
• What is the tactic• Application created by Borders that allows for
greater customization of Borders Facebook page by adding “Borders Community”
• Allows users to select topics of interest and go to a community created Facebook page for discussion of authors and interests
• Promotions and coupons for interest specific material
• Objectives• Creation of community with customer specific
categories of interest.• Promotions and coupons targeted to customers with
specific interests.
• Social Media platforms used• Facebook Creation of an app that sits on top of Facebook
Optional download
Tactic Three cont.
Metrics Number of downloads Customer activity on “Borders
Community” pages Usage of coupons sent through
the community.
Target Market Existing Borders customers and
new customers using Facebook.
Tactic Reccomendation
Tactic two used as recommendation Creates a Niche for Borders
Amazon.com has but only to publish Creates community for authors
and consumers Is focused on generating new
customers for new books rather then using existing customers to generate additional sales.
Questions
Thank you for your time
Questions?