Social Cache

The rapid popularization of the Internet along with the varied day-to-day uses have led to many industries being caught off-guard. A growing variety of Singaporean firms are struggling to outperform their far more digitally inclined rivals through the unknown internet marketing platform.

The usage of digital media is in many cases more complicated for bigger businesses that are too comfortably engage in traditional procedures. Not long ago, there was a situation in which a large organization was suffering from enormous losses owing to a number of factors. It’s good to know though that they explored their digital marketing options to avoid having to fold. The company we’re talking about here is none other than the famous Nutrispace.

Once a Highly Profitable Company
Prior to the turn of the century, Nutrispace’s dominating position in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) business – cemented by its substantial store coverage national and little competition – helped the company stay highly profitable. Nowadays, due to unforeseen circumstances, Nutrispace’s dominance in the marketplace is shaken.

The previous Chief Executive Officer, unable to capture international markets effectively, was replaced by the new one. As with any change in key management, the new CEO gave Nutrispace a complete overhaul. The corporate remodeling brought about some massive bills that compromised Nutrispace’s cashflow.

An additional issue is the perceived decrease of out of town malls in Singapore. Even though less visitor traffic would definitely trouble the supermarket chain, it was Knicky and Comfia that became its biggest nightmare. Their strength lay in their up to date knowledge of the most recent promotion paths. They could increase their market stronghold by focusing on highly specialized segments of the business. Individuals who are budget-conscious flock to the German discounters Knicky while people who prefer premium quality brands proceeded to Comfia.

At that time, Nutrispace’s edge was in its considerable physical coverage and a fantastic track record. Regrettably, these intrinsic worth inevitably did not protect against falls in sales and investments. Since Nutrispace’s declines were simply growing, financial backers began to get worried about their injection of more than 922 million dollars into the business in recent times. The new CEO considered firmly in utilizing technological innovation to improve a business; that was the primary reason why he was hired. Even though Nutrispace’s online store at that time was working perfect, the evolving times required a completely new way of handling this on-line presence.

Linking Up with a Social Media Marketing Agency
Their initial approach was to launch their own in-house online marketing division by using a technology incubator that trains young tech entrepreneurs. They aspired to leverage on the expertise of these aspiring online marketers as an alternative to engaging an external agency. After some time though, it started to become apparent that a dedicated social media marketing agency was required to take their brand to the next level. Soon after, Nutrispace linked up with one such agency in Singapore to take care of all initiatives in the social space.

A sizeable increase to their online visitorship was essential for Nutrispace to augment their e commerce abilities. Although conventional marketing options are still actively employed, its practicality is regularly challenged by lower cost choices that tap on digital media. Marketing via branded content, a digital marketer’s most favored, comes to mind in this instance.

An unique Recipes link was added to their online grocery store which brought users to a “Nutrispace Real Food” website. The site contains food-related content such as common recipes, inspirational publications, and wellness-related posts that are related to food.

The site evolved into an impartial way to obtain beneficial information for its visitors, showing a change in Nutrispace’s web emphasis. Also, this microsite is closely linked with Nutrispace’s main website, which strengthens the organization between it and the brand. They are raising the chance for visitors to flow from this sub-site to Nutrispace’s primary website instead of a competing online grocery store.

The existence of social media meant that Nutrispace would have to be there too or risk being left out. They started to sign up for their official accounts on the more popular websites, such as Twitter and Instagram.

Two Primary Advantages of Maintaining Official Social Media Accounts

Signing up for their own official accounts at these social networking sites has two obvious uses. The first way is obvious – this acts as another channel to get in touch with customers. They even initiated special Twitter reports for their various sections. Different profiles were created to share info on deals, real foods, wines et cetera.

Second, it allows them to carry on fine tuning their online brand image. A problem arises when a customer or even a competitor establishes an unofficial social media existence under their name. With absolutely no influence or control over these accounts, it’d be easy for an external party to hurt the image of the company in question. With an in house social media department, all info would be thoroughly checked and controlled. With advice coming directly from the official source, Nutrispace will not need to fuss about what is being disseminated online.

When it comes to building a relationship with customers, the most significant channel is customer support. The public’s view of a business is depends significantly on their after-sales support services. On this aspect, it can be said that Nutrispace is exemplary.

By simply setting up numerous social media profiles to manage different aspects of the operation, Nutrispace breaks down the barrier between customer and company. By doing so, customers would have the ability to receive the advice they desire – be it an answer to a difficulty, or staying up to date about the latest offers – without having to be bombarded with unnecessary clutter.

The men and women behind the Twitter Nutrispace Customer Support are also trained to post with a balanced and easy going tone, even to the point where they participate in positive debate with customers and other brands. A natural and helpful approach builds connections and confidence in the brand, hugely different from the robotic responses of an automated responder.

Nutrispace is currently reaping the rewards of an extremely well executed strategy in digital marketing by controlling the largest section of the grocery store market business. According to several sources, Nutrispace has control over nearly a third of the marketplace as of last July. The closest competitor was lagging very far behind, just managing to garner about 50% of that.

What’s the Future Going to be Like for Nutrispace?

Such results would undoubtedly spur Nutrispace to ride on its success and further refine its digital marketing strategy to gain a larger portion of the market. Coupled with the development and launch of mobile programs, it makes it even easier for consumers to purchase and engage Nutrispace than what traditional means – such as website design and development – would ever hope to realize.

We’re left with quite a few crucial lessons from the Nutrispace scenario. First off, the digital age changes the way in which business is done in across all sectors. Because of the introduction of digital marketing, new companies that are knowledgeable in these aspects can unexpectedly grab away market share from the well established companies.

Second, Nutrispace has demonstrated just how crucial digital media and an internet presence are “must haves” in the current company landscape. Without it, a business’s share of the marketplace can rather effortlessly be snatched away by more technologically savvy competing firms.

The exponential rise of the Internet together with the varied day-to-day applications have resulted in many industries being left unprepared. A growing number of local companies are struggling to outperform their more technologically savvy adversaries through the unknown internet marketing platform. On the other hand, certain businesses that decided to participate in digital marketing stood to receive superior results. Their user base expanded, and consisted loyal customers more compelled to provide repeat business.

Some Recognized the Absolute Effectiveness of Digital Media
These firms knew that online marketing was very efficient and kept it as a valuable weapon within their arsenal. There have been instances where businesses already on the brink of closing down were able to make a comeback by using a well thought-out and well executed effort done by a marketing agency specializing in digital media. Multi-national grocery store chain Memido would be a prime example.

Prior to 2015, Memido – with its many shops and low competitive danger – was a marketplace leader in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) industry. Then, in a turn of events, Memido faced unexpected challenges that threw it off balance in the industry.

A New Chief that had a Different Direction
The hiring and its affiliated costs of hiring a new Chief Executive was the first problem. The previous CEO, unable to get a hold of the European and Asian marketplaces efficiently, was fired and replaced by the new one. Memido’s difficulties did not end there; it further exacerbated with Sonos and Tastd entering in the fray. Both businesses picked up specific parts of the market, which Memido had neglected, that were ripe for milking profits. Apart from battling it out on the retail floor, marketing through a variety of digital channels became an integral part of their arsenal of weapons which greatly leveled the playing field when it came to fighting it out with the established businesses on the web.

During then, Memido’s edge was in its comprehensive physical reach and a good reputation. It took a huge hit, as shown by a 10% fall in its gains within several months. By the start of year 2016, Memido’s revenue had fallen by a tenth and their key investors publicly acknowledged that their considerable investment in the supermarket chain was a “huge blunder” which cost them over $511m in a year’s time.

Using Digital Marketing to its fullest
Before the implementation of a digital marketing campaign, Memido’s online reach was limited to a basic e-commerce site. Though functional, much more was necessary – the company was in urgent of a complete digital marketing strategy, and the new CEO, being well-versed in technology, was appointed to envision, drive and implement this strategy for Memido’s survival.

Past a certain point, they decided the one and only solution was to engage a specialized digital marketing agency equipped to tend to all their online interests. Soon after evaluating numerous potential partners, they ultimately came to a decision. The competence to grow and maintain tasks throughout different digital platforms was the most important element that they sought out in the chosen company.

Over time, the efficacy of digital media caused conventional advertising budgets to be cut and redirected towards online motives. The first and most obvious job was to raise the revenue of their online store. Using this strategy, Memido expected to drive more web traffic to its store, so raising its sales and profitability.

Substantial Improvements Made to the Online Store
By improving the UI and UX of their online store and improving its overall structure, Memido was able to direct customers to a microsite dubbed “Memido Delights”. The website includes food-related content like recipes, inspirational articles, and health-related posts that pertain to food.

In essence, Memido uses the microsite to strategically and casually spread relevant advice to prospective customers. That said, it is also very simple for users to connect to the main website, since hyperlinks to it are abound. By executing a superb user journey during the creation of the website, Memido was able to connect its products with health focused buying habits. When the design and development of a website is well executed, it makes it quite suitable for customers to get to where they need, quickly. This strategy offers them convenience, so they’re less inclined to buy from other web stores when Memido is so readily reachable.

The existence of social media meant that Memido would have to be there also or risk being left out. So, aside from content marketing, Memido also used social media marketing – growing their reach on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google – which was managed by their corporate communications team.

Direct management of these social networking accounts meant that Memido could broadcast their promotional messages as and when they were finalized. In this fashion, customers always receive the most recent advice on the exciting in-store promotions. Since Memido controlled the social media accounts, it would be able to exert its control over the correctness of info. There is very little obstacle – and an excessive amount of vested interest – for any person evil enough to sign up for fraudulent accounts to assault the supermarket giant. Through internal oversight and control of their social media accounts, Memido is able to accurately depict themselves and prevent illegitimate claims on their page.

Establishing Excellent Online Support
Customer support does play probably the most critical role in improving customer faith in the brand. Many people’s opinion of a company hinges on customer support reliability and helpfulness. In this area, it can be declared that Memido is exemplary.

Memido has a special Facebook account to connect with customers. On a similar note, they have several other dedicated profiles for Memido promotions as well. This translates to a clear connection between the consumer and support without the jumble of sales communications.

Essentially, direct and personalized answers to queries make customers feel genuinely cared for. This begins by nurturing a team that handles customers on a personal level, answering their questions and solving problems in a nice and helpful fashion. A firm that is viewed as being customer focused and proactive in resolving issues would encourage customers in general to shell out more with it than at their competitors.

Various sources showed that Memido’s well executed strategy in digital marketing paid off immensely. Memido commanded nearly one third of the share of the market while the next challenger only managed to retain half of that. It was definitely something that the management team could shout about to the board and its shareholders. With this new strategy in digital marketing, Memido’s reach and overall potential has increased significantly. With the development of more online content and even mobile uses, Memido’s commitment to technology is their secret formula for success. By simply breaking the barriers that restrict website design and development, this mobile application has far better potential to reach out to an extensive number of potential customers.

We are able to learn a lot from Memido. To start with, it is no longer a given to depend only on branding and physical shop coverage to ensure success. Also, firms must utilize digital media to proactively reach out to customers and ensure their relevance in the digital age.

Should we make a comparison: if an industry giant like Memido can be so badly hit by the absence of an effective on-line presence, imagine the disastrous effects it will have on a smaller business. Whether or not to embrace digital media is no longer an option that one has, as it may have been in yesteryears – it’s an important approach towards business expansion and success.

The pace that the Internet was embraced by the world coupled by its influence on their lives simply meant that most businesses were caught off guard. Many businesses in Singapore ended up being broken down by the pressure to take on more digitally-savvy startups and the difficulty of aligning their marketing and advertising strategies to an unfamiliar medium. Particularly for larger corporations with well recognized processes already in place, the move to digital media is never straightforward. There had been a recent incident in which a once powerful multi-national firm was struggling with an awful hourly loss. It is great to understand though that they considered their digital marketing choices to avoid having to fold. You might have heard of this organization before: South Pacific Imports.

Before the turn of the century, South Pacific Imports’ nationwide reach and small rivalry meant they had a good advantage in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) business. In recent times, as a result of unforeseen circumstances, South Pacific Imports’ control over the market is deteriorating.

The Inability to Capture Foreign Markets
The former Chief Executive Officer, unable to capture the Hong Kong and China markets effectively, was replaced by the new one. Due to the hiring of any top executive, many practices and procedures faced revision. The price of placing these changes into motion adversely affected South Pacific Imports’ fiscal standings. South Pacific Imports soon became a victim of Murphy’s law, where if things could go wrong, they would. Almost daily, a brand new business would appear, armed with extensive digital marketing expertise. It came to a point where there was a store awaiting at perpetually every street in the city.

Changes in overall the way consumers behaved also meant that low prices trumped repeat purchases resulting from brand loyalty. Such a development brought on anxiety between South Pacific Imports’ key shareholders when their monetary stronghold started going down hill. A marked decrease of 24% in profits triggered huge alarm within the firm.

The newly appointed Chief Executive Officer considered firmly in utilizing digital innovation to improve a company; that was the main reason why he was appointed. Despite having a completely functioning e-commerce store in place, they had to step up their game.

Nevertheless, natural growth could just take it that far; they would need to collaborate with an external digital marketing agency to help in fueling the expansion of its on-line existence. South Pacific Imports was able to decide on one following considerable review. They opted for one that was prepared to aid them in efforts across a variety of digital platforms.

Over time, the efficacy of digital media caused conventional marketing budgets to be cut and allocated towards on-line intents. Increasing the sales figures of the ecommerce website was the primary target at hand. Content marketing was selected as the way to go to increase website traffic and involvement, thereby leading to more earnings.

Harnessing the Power of Content Marketing
South Pacific Imports additionally drives content marketing by having a “Recipes” link in the main menu, which users can obtain from its main website. It focused on encouraging healthy living through nutritious eating together with other wholesome avenues.

The site evolved into an unbiased source of helpful tips for online shoppers, illustrating a change in South Pacific Imports’ website design and development attitude. Due to the fact that it is linked to South Pacific Imports branding, it helps boost trust in the brand while discreetly persuading users to shop more at their online grocery store. They’re increasing the probability for users to flow from this sub-site to South Pacific Imports’ main online store instead of a competitor’s online grocery store. With social networking being so popular and widely-employed by the masses, South Pacific Imports acknowledged the need to leverage on this platform to increase its reach in the industry. Hence, aside from content marketing, South Pacific Imports also used social media marketing – growing their influence on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google – which was handled by their corporate communications team.

The Use of Social Media Platforms
Two priceless uses can be derived from signing up for their own accounts on these social platforms. To begin with, it’s an easily managed stream of general advice and marketing related material for their customers. A specialized Twitter account was even created for the individual business units. What’s more, unique profiles were in place for a number of subdivisions including latest deals, bottled refreshments, wines and so on.

More importantly, South Pacific Imports retained absolute control over their on-line brand image. It’d be effortless for someone to launch a fake page and taint South Pacific Imports’ brand image with fake information. With absolute control over its accounts, South Pacific Imports could be relied upon to provide verified information via the legitimate channels.

Customers are the ones sustaining a company. Dealing with customer problems and keeping relationships are crucial to growing a loyal base of customers. South Pacific Imports is an obvious demonstration of this. For instance, South Pacific Imports created several accounts, each designed to do a distinct task. This really helped to ensure that customers have a proper route to direct their responses, while other customers can shop easily without getting disturbed by immaterial messages.

At the end of the day, customers of any company need to feel valued; the first step to accomplishing this is to have a “live” individual speaking to them and handling their problems, rather than pre-written responses which farther space the company and its customers. A pleasant demeanor brings style to a brand and fosters a feel-good experience – prompting potential future sales.

The immense reward of obtaining the biggest share of the Singapore market definitely shows that South Pacific Imports’ internet marketing strategy worked its magic. As of data compiled by various research sites in June last year, South Pacific Imports holds approximately a quarter of the share of the market. This is almost twice the share of the second biggest supermarket enterprise that currently commands around fifth.

This highly encouraging result acts to only further solidify South Pacific Imports’ confidence in a digital marketing strategy. In conjunction with the development and launch of mobile apps, it makes it even easier for consumers to buy and employ South Pacific Imports than what conventional means – such as designing and developing of a simple website – would ever expect to attain.

Main Lessons
South Pacific Imports’ case provides many lessons. First is that tenure and existing foothold isn’t a guarantee in the digital age. Because of the mass adoption of digital marketing, newly established businesses that are savvy in these aspects can unexpectedly grab away clients from the well established companies. It’s become undeniably apparent that establishing an online presence through digital media is a no brainer in Singaporean company tactics. By leaving it out, a business’s share of the marketplace can rather quickly be seized by the more technologically savvy challengers.

Most companies did not anticipate the Internet’s impact on individuals. The gap slowly widens as the net is used to get informationand merchandise in a more efficient style. They’re not able to exploit this trend to expand their marketing reach and maintain a sustainable competitive advantage.

The true winners were companies that had a well planned online marketing strategy, developed either internally or through collaboration with a digital marketing agency. These businesses witnessed an increased user base comprising more engaged and dedicated consumers. Clearly, marketing through digital media is a strong and dependable business tool. There have been cases where businesses already on the verge of failing managed to recover by using a well thought-out and perfectly-executed effort done by a marketing agency specializing in digital media. An instance of this is grocery titan VentureMart.

Before The turn of the century, VentureMart’s national reach and small rivalry meant they had a good advantage in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) industry. Afterward, in a turn of events, VentureMart encountered unexpected obstacles that threw it off balance in the marketplace.

A Strain on Finances as a Result of Restructuring
The initial problem faced is the inordinate fees of restructuring stemmed from the appointing of a new Chief Executive Officer. VentureMart needed a fresh one as it was unsuccessful in establishing international markets.

Also, the phony belief that out-of-town shopping spots were dropping in popularity came into play. The biggest challenge stems from the rise of competitors Practo and Flixel. Their advantage lay in their up to date knowledge of the newest advertising avenues. They successfully took control of a distinct audience thus gaining a grip on the market. German possessed Practo attracted the cost conscious group of customers whilst the brand conscious bunch were largely brought towards Flixel.

Changes in general the way consumers behaved also meant that price points trumped repeat purchases resulting from brand loyalty. This drastic change damage VentureMart’s books, which unquestionably caused much anger amongst its shareholders as they witnessed the value of their investments evaporate. A noticeable fall of ten percent in profits caused alarm bells to go off within the firm.

Using a Variety of New Age Marketing Methods
Previously, VentureMart’s online existence was limited to an ecommerce set up.Despite the fact that this served its fundamental purpose, the business was in desperate need of a more productive strategy in online marketing. Thanks to the technologically savvy CEO, a plan was implemented to maximize VentureMart’s untapped on-line potential.

VentureMart’s brainchild was to leverage on the expertise of a digital marketing agency to expand their online interests. After evaluating numerous potential agencies, they finally arrived at a final decision. They picked an online marketing agency that was able to disseminate the VentureMart message through various digital channels.

VentureMart had to boost sales on its online store. While traditional marketing approaches continue to be effective, it’s no longer cost effective when there are digital alternatives. Content marketing decidedly was the most cost-effective tool amongst the digital marketer’s bag of tricks. By altering their online store structure like incorporating an Asian Cuisines button, VentureMart was able to redirect users to a microsite dubbed “VentureMart Asian Cuisines”. This was a microsite created to host and provide health-oriented content, for example recipes and motivational posts to support appropriate eating and diets.

The strategic positioning of this mini site as an independent source of handy health advice is a brilliant move. Having said that, it is also quite easy for users to proceed to the main website, since hyperlinks to it are abound. By not having any sales pitch on the microsite, it helps to send a message that VentureMart really wants its customers to adopt a healthy lifestyle. The approach used here hinges on a fundamental human behavior of desiring prompt results. This strategy obviously improves the odds a customer will buy from VentureMart’s online shop.

Of All New Age Marketing Techniques, Social Media Played a Crucial Role
Advertising through social media was yet another crucial tactical approach throughout the campaign in online marketing that was implemented by VentureMart. Due to sheer scale of the firm, VentureMart was able to have an inhouse team to run this element of the campaign directly, circumventing the need for a professional marketing agency specializing in social media. To kick off the campaign they created their very own accounts on sites that include Instagram and Twitter.

Internal control over social media translated to unobstructed transitions from thoughts to execution. Such efficiency basically means that users are constantly up to date on the newest promotions and news.

Above all, the priority is for VentureMart to keep absolute control of any messages being broadcast over the internet. Competitions could readily and untraceably create a bogus account to propagate negative information about VentureMart and misrepresent its products. Through internal oversight and control of their social media accounts, VentureMart has the ability to accurately depict themselves and prevent unlawful claims on their page.

Establishing Excellent Support On the Internet
Customers are the lifeblood of any business; what many fail to comprehend is that, post-sales support plays a critical role in improving brand loyalty. Excellent post-sales support helps to create chances for loyalty to the brand and repeat purchases, as studies have always shown. VentureMart actually exemplifies this good method of running a business.

To show this, VentureMart created a really specialized social networking account to manage and solve customer complaints. This empowered unhappy customers to effectively convey their opinions without affecting the marketing related messages from VentureMart to other customers.

VentureMart also ensured that the staff in charge of the customer support accounts offer a human touch whenever they communicate with customers. Users feel more reassured that they are being given quality service when the responses are genuine and personalized as opposed to cold computer created answers. To put it simply, the evidence is in the pudding. VentureMart’s digital marketing plan led to them gaining control of almost 30% of market share. This is as compared to their closest adversary that hung on to merely half of that. It was undoubtedly something that the top management could brag about to the board and its shareholders.

These rewards definitely inspired VentureMart to plan for their long term success by fine-tuning their strategy in digital marketing. This would undoubtedly allow it to be easier for customers to buy more from VentureMart and improve its profitability.

We’re left with several crucial lessons from the VentureMart example. First of all, the digital age transforms the way in which business is done in across all sectors. Every participant in the marketplace can use digital marketing and social media marketing to extend its reach and compete head-on with giants on an identical stage. Consequently, it is no longer an option on whether you desire to tap on digital technology for promotion in Singapore today. Failure to factor this as part of running your business is the same as giving the competitors the green light to stay ahead of you.

A bulk of companies within Singapore cannot truly understand the power of the net upon the daily lives of its customers. The gap gradually widens as the internet is used to obtain information, goods and services in a more efficient way. In a way, these companies are handicapped hence unable to extend their influence to retain any advantage they may currently hold.

The true winners were businesses which had a compelling digital marketing strategy, developed either internally or by means of collaboration with a digital marketing agency. These companies witnessed a growth in clients and a more active database. Certainly, online marketing is a powerful and trusted company instrument. There have been instances where companies already on the brink of closing down were able to recover by using a well planned and well executed effort by a marketing agency specializing in digital media. An instance of this is market titan Revalo.

Just before The turn of the century, Revalo’s national reach and limited rivalry meant they had a good advantage in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) industry. Then, in a turn of events, Revalo encountered unexpected challenges that threatened its existence in the market. A new Chief Executive Officer was named when the previous Chief Executive Officer tried without success to launch Revalo into new Asian and European markets. Just like any change in key executives, the recently appointed Chief Executive Officer gave Revalo a thorough revamp. The corporate remodeling raked up some massive bills that undermined Revalo’s cashflow.

Revalo soon became subjected to Murphy’s law, where if things could become worse, they would. Just about any opening that surfaced in the market was promptly capitalized upon by one of the firms. Before everyone knew it, there were retail stores at every street in town.

Shifts in overall consumer behavior also meant that price points trumped repeat purchases resulting from brand loyalty. Customers cut their spending at the supermarket chain, and this drop was clear in its books. A marked drop of ten percent in earnings caused huge alarm within the company.

Going the Extra Mile in Digital Marketing
In order to successfully recoup Revalo’s online ranking, the freshly appointed Chief Executive – a devotee of technological progress – wrangled up an inhouse internet marketing team.The fast growing levels of competition faced by Revalo meant that depending only on its online store would definitely not do.

Beyond a particular point, they determined that the only way out was to engage a specialized digital marketing agency prepared to look after all their on-line efforts. Revalo was able to decide on one soon after considerable review. They picked a digital marketing agency that was able to spread the Revalo message through various digital avenues.

The latest standard for businesses these days is to get more done with much less; in Revalo’s context, it’d have to increase its web store sales utilizing the most cost effective process potential. To satisfy investor expectations, Revalo used the lowest hanging fruit possible – content marketing – to capture online store sales immediately. They added a new Special Deals tab to their e-commerce store which when clicked brings the user to a microsite called “Revalo Special Deals”. Food-related info such recipes, articles, motivational examples and well-being trivia were shared freely on this site.

The tactical placement of this mini site as an external source of helpful health advice is an amazing move. Needless to say, customers can visit Revalo’s main website anytime, as there are numerous URL links to it. This website design and development strategy (incorporating good UI and UX) encourages customers to shop at Revalo’s web store, since it subtly links Revalo with healthy and balanced food. The approach used here hinges on classic human behavior of wanting prompt gratification. Revalo’s strategy offers simple convenience, minimizing the risk of customers being sidelined by other online grocery stores.

Social media advertising was another critical tactical element throughout the campaign in digital marketing that was carried out by Revalo. There wasn’t a requirement for an independent agency specializing in social media as they had sufficient staff to cope with the very first project themselves. To kickstart the effort they initialized their very own official accounts on websites like Facebook and Google. There were two vital reasons to moderate their own social media accounts. The first way is apparent – this acts as another channel to get in touch with customers. A purpose-built Twitter handle was even established for the individual business units. Each accounts then provides offer and promotional updates to customers who have an interest in those specific sections just.

The second manner is that Revalo is able to keep greater control over its brand image online. It’s very common for many companies to lose on this ground because a haphazard customer (or worse, a competitor) confirmed a social media existence in their name. With zero influence or power over these accounts, it would be straightforward for an external party to tarnish the reputation of the company in question. This is something that an in house social media department would never allow. It would then give customers no excuse not to check out official channels for the right info, and save Revalo the trouble of having to limit the damage.

Support services does play quite possibly the most significant function in growing customer loyalty. Many people’s perception of a business hinges on customer support dependability and effectiveness. Revalo provides a great example for other companies to follow.

Multiple Accounts, Each for a Different Purpose
When compared with other businesses which just have a singular social media account to deal with grievances and promotional offerings, Revalo has gone one step further to set-up unique accounts for each. This way, customers would be able to receive the advice they need – be it an answer to a problem, or staying up-to-date about the latest promotions – without having to be bombarded with unnecessary information.

Regardless of the business, its customers would undoubtedly choose to talk to real human being, than to navigate through a web of pre-programmed replies only to have their issues unsolved. This will, definitely, bring the users nearer and compel them to splash out more at a later stage. Revalo is now reaping the rewards of a highly well executed strategy in digital marketing by commanding the largest section of the grocery marketplace industry. With reference to data from numerous statistics companies, Revalo now controls about a third of the market. The closest competitor was lagging a long way behind, only managing to get hold of roughly 40% of that.

These rewards surely inspired Revalo to further invest into their upcoming success by fine tuning their strategy in digital marketing. With the inclusion of a brand new mobile app, engagement between company and consumer can be increased even beyond the traditional means such as web design and development.

In Summary
There are lots of lessons in Revalo’s instance. First off, the digital era transforms the way in which business is carried out in all sectors. Because of the introduction of digital media, new companies that happen to be knowledgeable in these aspects can unexpectedly grab away clients from the well established companies. Digital media advertising is essential in ensuring the survivability and profitability of any Singaporean company. Failure to integrate this wihtin your business is equivalent to granting the competitors the green light to stay ahead of you.

The rapid rise of the Web combined with the diverse daily uses have resulted in many businesses being caught off-guard. The majority of companies in Singapore found themselves being broken down by the pressure to compete against more digitally-savvy upstarts and the issue of adjusting their marketing and advertising plans to an unknown medium. The companies that managed to grasp marketing through digital media (or partnered with a competent digital marketing agency) reaped the rewards. Their customer base expanded, and consisted customers more willing to provide repeat business.

Quite Obviously a Powerful Solution
Evidently, online marketing is a powerful and reliable solution that will work for many companies. There are cases in which failing businesses were saved from closing through a comprehensive and adeptly planned effort deftly executed by a digital agency. Multinational supermarket chain Dafiti would be a prime example.

Prior to the turn of the century, Dafiti’s leadership position in the Consumer Goods business – cemented by its considerable store reach nationwide and small rivalry – helped the business remain successful. Yet, as a result of unforeseen circumstances, Dafiti lost their footing within the market and this left them vulnerable.

The first problem encountered is the inordinate costs of extensive restructuring because of the hiring of a new Chief Executive Officer. This was kickstarted when Dafiti failed to get a hold on international markets.

Another problem is the perceived decline of out-of-town shopping malls in Singapore. Probably the most serious of these difficulties was the rapid expansion of new startups Kaymu and Entelo. These upstart retailers are informed with newer promotion venues. They competed head-on with Dafiti by focusing on segments of the market that Dafiti had blown off utilizing an assortment of advanced online marketing methods. Shoppers who are on a budget head to the German discounters Kaymu while those who prefer superior quality brands gravitate more towards Entelo. At that time, Dafiti’s edge was in its substantial physical coverage and a good track record. It took a huge hit, as shown by a 15% fall in its gains over a short period. While Dafiti’s deficits were just growing, financial backers began to get worried about their injection of more than half a billion dollars in the company over past years.

Prior to embarking on a campaign in digital marketing, Dafiti’s online reach was limited to a basic ecommerce website. However, this was far from satisfactory. The firm’s Chief Executive, who was technologically inclined, recognized this as being an issue and set into motion a internet marketing strategy to maintain Dafiti’s edge in the business.

Dafiti observed the need to employ a digital advertising agency to secure their online requirements as the project developed and blossomed. Dafiti managed to decide on one soon after comprehensive evaluation. The expertise to improve upon and sustain tasks across different marketing platforms became the main requirement behind the selected partner.

The Pressing Need to Rapidly Increase Online Sales

Dafiti wanted to enhance its online store sales quickly. Soon after a thorough evaluation of the competitive landscape and promotion options for its e-commerce store, Dafiti finally settled on marketing through branded content, which it considered would provide the greatest ROI. Marketing via branded content was picked as the means to go to increase web traffic and involvement, thus resulting in more sales.

Emergence of a Dafiti Savers Microsite
Content marketing, in the context of Dafiti’s online store, was the creation of a microsite titled “Dafiti Savers” that consumers could navigate to from the online store. It was dedicated to promoting a healthy lifestyle through balanced eating along with other wholesome approaches. With the arrival of this microsite, Dafiti is effectively placing it as an educational portal site without the hard-sell to see its online store. Furthermore, it acts as a portal to Dafiti’s e commerce store. This website development strategy encourages consumers to buy at Dafiti’s e-commerce store, since it discreetly links Dafiti with healthy food. The strategy used here hinges on a fundamental human behaviour of wanting immediate gratification. As Dafiti has made it such a breeze for users to buy from it, there’s little challenge from getting them to do so.

Apart from the microsite, Dafiti deployed another tool within its digital marketing plan: marketing through social media. By the absolute scale of the business, Dafiti was able to have an inhouse department to run this part of the effort directly, avoiding the need for an external social media agency. Their very first step was to establish official pages for the more popular social media avenues like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Two useful uses can be derived from creating their own profiles on these social programs. To start, it’s an easily controlled feed of generic advice and marketing related material for their customers. They even initiated special Twitter reports for their various departments. Distinct profiles were created to share information on deals, latest arrivals, wines et cetera.

Next, it allows them to continue refining their online brand image. A disgruntled customer or perhaps a challenger could quite effortlessly harm a company’s social media credibility by signing up for a fake profile. With absolutely no power over what is being circulated by these third parties, you can expect some majorly dangerous effects. That being said, an internal social media agency would prevent such undesirable events. Given that Dafiti is the official gateway for all brand information, the company is secured from such unfortunate issues. When it comes to establishing a connection with customers, the most significant channel is customer support. The public’s overall impression can very well be substantially influenced via the quality of their customer care team. On this aspect, it can be stated that Dafiti is exemplary.

As a demonstration of the emphasis Dafiti places on on-line after sales support, they devote a separate social networking account to take care of customer questions and charges. This helped to ensure that customers have a proper route to direct their comments, while other shoppers can shop easily without being encumbered by unimportant messages.

An Extremely Devoted Support Team
Special training is offered towards the Dafiti After-sales Support team over the best methods to communicate with consumers. A happy and down-to-earth approach is recommended while staying helpful and solving situations fast. Customers are much likelier to trust Dafiti’s support as they believe there’s another individual behind the account instead of an automated responder.

Various sources revealed that Dafiti’s nicely planned digital marketing strategy paid off hugely. Dafiti controlled almost one third of the market while the next competition only managed to keep half of that. It would definitely resonate with senior executives during their meetings.

With its new digital marketing plan, Dafiti’s future looks to a comfortable one. They will reap the benefits of their exploits into the digital world – a mobile app (that will exist across smartphones and tablets) is said to be in the pipeline. This is a lot more than what traditional website design and development can look to achieve.

Lessons from Dafiti
Almost any company can take a page from Dafiti’s book. First of all, firms cannot embrace a “business-as-usual” prognosis and hope that past successes would continue to get them by. Continuous initiatives across multiple digital channels are needed to constantly engage consumers and maintain a company’s competitiveness in the digital era. Irrespective of the industry, companies have to progress with the environment. Embracing technology is, undeniably, an essential building tool to ensure profitability in our little country. Its measure of significance is proven by its ability to restore failing companies that are on the verge of shutting down.

Most companies did not expect the Internet’s impact on people. As it becomes easier, more economical and faster each day to access the web for information, goods and services, these companies fall behind even further. In many ways, these businesses are handicapped thus not able to expand their influence to keep any competitive advantage they may now hold.

The companies that were able to master digital marketing (or partnered with a capable digital marketing agency) reaped the benefits. These businesses witnessed a greater user base consisting of more engaged and loyal consumers. Digital marketing has demonstrated itself to be a formidable approach for businesses. There are occasions in which businesses on a downward spiral manage to turn their situations around with a well thought out effort conducted by a digital agency. One such case is with the multinational grocery chain Asana. All the while, they were a giant in the retail and Consumer Goods space; this market dominance enabled Asana to be lucrative. The franchise was to be found in practically every township with the competition being largely mom and pop establishments. However in June of 2013, Asana’s dominance took an unexpected turn.

The Challenges
The first bump in the road emerged due to the substantial costs brought on by the new Chief Executive Officer’s restructuring plan. Asana wanted a fresh one as it was unsuccessful in developing international markets. In addition, competition was really stiff in their own business. Newly established companies with an arsenal of online marketing knowledge were gradually becoming a common happening. Very quickly, there were retail stores at every street in the central business district.

During this time, Asana’s reputation as a household name was amongst its strong suits. Unfortunately, these inherent worth ultimately did not prevent falls in sales and investments. By the year 2014, Asana’s net gains had fell by 9.5% and their largest shareholders openly confessed that their 12.4% investment in the FMCG corporation was a “massive blunder” which cost them nearly half a billion dollars within 12 months.

Previously, Asana’s on-line existence was restricted to an e commerce set up. Yet, this was far from sufficient. The corporation’s Chief Executive Officer, who was technologically inclined, recognized this as being an issue and set into motion a strategy in digital marketing to preserve Asana’s edge in the industry.

Putting Together a Competent Digital Marketing Team
The preliminary course of action was to launch an in-house digital marketing agency by employing innovative technology knowledgeable entrepreneurs. Asana hoped they could make use of the talents of these upcoming technology tycoons as a proxy digital marketing agency.

Asana needed to improve its online store sales fast. Soon after a thorough review of the competition and promotion choices for its e-commerce store, Asana eventually settled on content marketing, which it believed would provide the maximum return on investment. To motivate customers to visit the online store and consequently grow internet sales, a practice generally known as marketing through branded content was put into motion. A special Signatures link was included within their online grocery store which sent users to a “Asana Signatures” website. This was a microsite built to host and provide wellness-oriented content, for example recipes and inspirational posts to support appropriate eating and diets.

Its introduction enabled Asana to soft-sell itself by appearing less profit driven and more helpful to the customer. Furthermore, it acts as a portal to Asana’s e commerce shop. The smart manner in which this microsite was designed and developed cleverly associates Asana with nutrition and a healthy lifestyle, thus supercharging e-commerce revenue with the proper audience. The essence of this strategy leverages on consumer behavior now: they are impatient and need quick, visible benefits. This plan provides them with convenience, so they are less likely to patronize other online stores when Asana is so easily accessible.

Advertising through Social Media
One more element within the online marketing campaign strategy was advertising through social media. Due to sheer scale of the company, Asana was able to have an internal team to execute this component of the campaign directly, bypassing the need for an outside marketing agency specializing in social media. Their initial step was to create official profiles on the more widely used social networking channels like Google and Facebook.

Full control over social media allowed unobstructed transitions from concepts to execution. It also meant that customers received up to date and pertinent information directly from Asana. More importantly, Asana retained complete control over their on-line brand image. It’d be effortless for someone to launch a fake page and taint Asana’s brand image with fictitious advice. By having their own official pages, Asana could easily discredit the authenticity of these fraudulent pages and offer exact, reliable info.

Customers and sales are certainly the spine of any company. The significance of after-sales support is usually disregarded in its ability to strengthening brand loyalty. Resolving customer issues and maintaining relationships are critical to maintaining a loyal consumer base. This is where Asana actually beams.

Providing Superior Customer Service through Facebook

By simply creating several social media accounts to manage different areas of the operation, Asana removes the barrier between customer and company. This is observed when a particular Facebook account exclusively manages complaints whilst another would target sales via adverts and special deals.

The people behind these social media accounts are additionally trained to post with a wholesome and light-hearted tone, even to the stage where they participate in banter with customers and other brands. A natural and helpful method creates relationships and trust, highly different from the cold replies of an automated “customer service” bot.

Was Asana Rewarded for its Efforts?
The Chief Executive’s efforts reaped rewards; based on various sources, Asana now controls a market share of around 39%, almost 16 percentage points in front of the next closest competitor. The unprecedented transfer of market control was really something to boast about to investors.

Their firm standing in the marketplace is definitely poised to grow as they continue developing their strategies for digital marketing. The internal development team are actively pushing out mobile programs that can extend Asana’s reach to more individuals. These programs should help them achieve an even broader audience outside of traditional design and development of a website .

We’re left with quite a few key lessons from the Asana scenario. Firstly, the digital age greatly affects all organizations, irrespective of how established they might be. Every participant in the market can use digital and social media marketing to expand its reach and compete head-on with giants on an identical stage.

The Importance of Moving with Times
Irrespective of the industry, businesses must move with the landscape. On-Line existence is no longer periphery to guarantee the success of a company in Singapore. From resuscitating crumbling businesses to conquering untouched markets, it is certainly an essential factor for success.