Marketing Strategy: ecommercenews.tv

The site will be marketed to two distinct audiences; Subscribers and Advertisers. The primary need is to create awareness of the site, followed by conversion into subscriptions.

PR is attractive because it is very cost effective particularly during the course of the launch period. The Press will be giving good coverage to the debate of subscription vs. free sites.

The FT Group’s chief executive John Ridding is recently quoted as saying "The way things are evolving, content revenues should overtake all advertising revenues by 2012”.

Given that the Press themselves are involved, they will devote many column inches to the issue.

ecommercenews.tv is well placed, as revenues from FT.com digital subscribers grew 30%  last year, as readership rose around the world mirroring a strong appetite for financial news.

It is not only print media which is seeing its readership flow to online versions. The Times recently observed that “By the end of the decade, many experts predict on-line TV viewing will overtake broadcast viewing as the primary means of television consumption.”
 
 
Marketing to Subscribers.

As mentioned, PR will be a key element. PR plans include:

Pre-launch personal contact with key journalists (FT, Times/Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph/Sunday Telegraph, Guardian/Observer, Independent, Investors Chronicle, The Economist). Allowing them free access to the site.

Launch event. To take place in interesting venue in the City. Invitations to wider list of journalists, analysts and opinion formers in the City.

Email contact with influential financial websites (non-competitive).

General press release.

Advertising plans include:

Email contact with 1.8million UK investors from regulator approved list.

Print advertising or inserts in selected investor publications (Candidate publications: Daily & Sunday Broadsheets, Investors Chronicle, Investment Week, Money Week, Moneywise, Money Observer, What Investment, Shares, Business Week).

Contact Sole practitioners and SME’s in Legal and Accountancy Firms

Promotions.

A series of incentives including discounted and free trial subscriptions.

Partnership with reputable financial publication or organisation to promote to readers/members. 

 
 

Marketing to Advertisers.

While advertising revenues have been taking a hit recently, (not surprisingly considering we are in the biggest recession in living memory), they will return. Many internet sites whose business model requires them to be totally funded by advertising will disappear – there just isn’t enough advertising money in the world to fund them all, but there will still be a move to online advertising away from conventional mediums. Advertisers will be looking for more targeted opportunities. This is where ecommercenews.tv scores.

FSA rulings make it very expensive to mail/email investors using an approved list. Ecommercenews.tv will be able to deliver high-quality investors/consumers to advertisers at very competitive rates.

Historically, while TV has been the most powerful of advertising mediums, it has also been the most expensive and least able to deliver very targeted audiences. It uses rather a scatter-gun type of approach. ecommercenews.tv changes that – it allows very targeted TV advertising which will appeal to financial and high-end consumer product companies.

Marketing plans to advertisers include:

Target specific advertisers and approach them direct.

Personally contact the most important on-line ad agencies.

Personally contact the most important full-service advertising agencies. (Utilising high-level personal contacts)

Email all financial advertising agencies.

Email wider list of agencies and advertisers.

Also offer selected, prestigious advertisers six months free advertising in the initial period to enhance the reputation of the site.