Get Dosed Marketing Plan Kristin Kaza Collaborative Consumerism Spring 2013 By: Michelle Graven
What s Inside Get a Dose of This- Company Background... page 3 The Good and The Bad- SWOT Analysis... page 6 The Targets... page 9 Get Dosed- Marketing Plan... page 10 In the end- Conclusion... page 13 2
Get a Dose of This Every month local designers and food vendors gather to sell their goods near the north side of Chicago, Illinois. This amazing gathering is called the Dose Market. It takes place in the River East Art Center once a month yearround. The market brings in vendors that serve products that are sold nowhere else. Some past items were Honey Butter Fried Chicken, Charcuterie, Flour from Nellcote, and other unique items. Some restaurants and designers got their start at the market. The Dose Market brings in local venders and designers to show off their products. Food is one of the biggest parts of the event. It is what sets it apart from the other fairs across the city. Dose food venders are local artisans, chefs, and bakers. Dose has the finest selection of food. They chose from the top local markets. Some of the food is unique and new to the world. Fashion is the other component to Dose. The fashion is always current even if it has a vintage vibe. Like the food, it is all local designers who create unique items. Like every company, there is some drama involved. In July 2012, it was reported that three of the four founders decided to leave the market. It was unknown if the market would continue. The Chicagoist received an email from the three women commenting on the incident. They wrote: "We're writing to let you know that the three of us are no longer involved 3
with Dose Market. We do not know what the future holds for Dose, but should it continue to exist, none of us will be involved in any capacity. All inquiries regarding the future of the market can be directed to April Francis. The three of us are proud of what we created and extremely thankful for your continuous support over the past year. Rest assured that we are hard at work planning our next venture -- stay tuned (Todd)!" Market goers were concerned that it would not be as popular and have the same type of vendors. The Chicagoist also received a comment from the fourth founder, April Francis, who is now the controller of the market. She said: "We are thankful for the generous support of the Chicago community over the past year, now and in the future. Dose Market will continue to provide strong support to all of the vendors who make Dose Market what it is an extremely warm and creative community, a launchpad for new products and the place to find the very best in food and fashion in Chicagoland (Todd)." The reason the founders split is still unknown. The market is still up and running and seems to continue to gain customers and vendors. Three women and one guy now run Dose. Their names are April F. Creator, Mckenzie M. Market Curator, Molly K. Market Communications, and Leo S. the Marketing Intern. Their motto is "We ve got big love for food, fashion, and fantastic small businesses. Together, we aim to bring you the city s best in one space, one Sunday a month ("Market Info")." Dose does most of their marketing on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. They do have a street team but it mostly 4
consists of the four "Dosettes." They post a lot of photos and videos on these sites. There is a discount if goers buy their tickets in advance online. The main website is very simple and easy to navigate. The Dose Market gathers a lot of people. Some people have said that the market is an amazing place and lots of fun. Others have said that it is overpriced and way too crowded. I went to one of the markets in March. It was a little confusing getting around, but all in all it was a okay experience. It did have overpriced items, but I had fun and tried some new types of food. 5
The Good and The Bad Strengths: Social Media- The market is very active on major social media sites. The biggest promoters are Instagram and Facebook. They post catchy photos and phrases. The website is also very organized. The employees- The employees are very informative when asked questions. They will answer to their best availability and if they cannot answer the question they will pass it on to someone who can help. Amount of markets- There are eight markets throughout the year. It happens when the weather is nice out. It allows more people that need to travel to come to the market. There is also a new variety of merchants each market. Weakness: Prices of products- The prices are very high at the market. Using local merchants looks good in the community but the prices make it difficult for some locals to shop at the market. There is also a coat check cost. Very specific clothing taste/food palate- The market doesn't appeal to everyone. It is very sophisticated. Unorganized- The market felt very unorganized. The website is organized but new market goers can easily get lost at the market. How the tables are set up do not fully make sense and some of the tables were hidden in 6
the corner. The merchants were not very approachable. Opportunities: Expand to other cities- Co-founder April said that they are looking to expand to other cities. Right now they are looking to expand to Milwaukee, WI. Expanding will grow the market and types of merchants attending the market. Explore new merchants- There are already a lot of great merchants but more options is always positive. Gathering new merchants can attract a new audience and gain more followers. Partner with local colleges/universities- The market can partner with local college students studying marketing or fashion or art. It allows students to gain experience and get exposed. Threats: Renegade Craft Fair/Fete- There are many pop up shops in Chicago. Some of the other pop ups are cheaper than the Dose Market and offer different attractions. Fete is a major competitor because it is headed by the three founders of the Dose Market that left in July 2012. Company Drama- In July 2012, it was reported that three of the four founders decided to leave the market. It was unknown if the market would continue. The last founder left is now in charge and is making the company her own. The market is constantly changing due to the change. Economy- The economy is always a factor. Many people either have low 7
paying jobs or no job at all so there is not a lot of money around. The cost of living is also expensive so some people do not have the money to spend a lot of money on an article of clothing or special food. 8
The Targets Current Target Audience upper-class extra income to spend on everyday products Sophisticated Fine Food palate New Target Audience Age 18-24 College Student On a budget Interested in fashion, art, food, or photography Looking for internships 9
Get Dosed «Objective: Increase attendees by 15%. o Strategy B: Promote online community Tactic: We will have a photo scavenger hunt on Facebook. Participants will take photos of certain items and post them to our Facebook page. The winner will receive two free tickets to the market and free parking. Second place will win a discounted ticket and free parking. Third place will win free parking. Every participant that completes the competition will win a coupon for 15% off any item at the market. Tactic: We will have a trivia competition ran on our Twitter page. Each day we will post a question about our merchants, Dosettes, and past markets. Users will tweet us the answer. We will randomly choose a winner for those who answered correctly. We will post the winner on our Facebook and Twitter. Each winner will receive a free ticket. We will run the competition a month before each market. o Strategy A: Offer lower priced products 10
Tactic: We will search for other local merchants to find a wider range of prices. We will find merchants that match our target audience but at our price point. Tactic: We can also have the merchants offer student discounts for local college students. We will also offer a coupon for each presell ticket «Objective: Promote local awareness of Market s local feel o Strategy A: Partner with local colleges Tactic: We will partner with local colleges to recruit students to help with planning and setting up the market. We will find fashion students to help us find merchants and also we can feature a few students who design and produce their own creations. We will partner with marketing students to help promote and plan the market. We will recruit photography students to help take photos and videos of the market. This will give the students experience. Tactic: We will offer fall, spring, and summer special events internships. Each internship will last three months. This will allow students gain experience with special events. We will target Junior and Senior 11
students and the internship will be unpaid but give the students school credit. The student will help plan and produce three markets. o Strategy B: Partner with local businesses Tactic: There are lots of businesses around the River East Center, so we will partner with them to drive business into their shops after the market. We will offer discounts to the shop for our customers. Market goers will receive a coupon to use at the local shop that will be valid for two weeks after they attend the market. Tactic: We will offer a discount to the market if they shop at one of the local businesses. The local shop will give the customer a coupon to use either on the market ticket or an item at the market. 12
In the End The Dose Market is a very sophisticated company. The Dose Market brings in local venders and designers to show off their products. The Dose Market gathers a lot of people. Some people have said that the market is an amazing place and lots of fun. Others have said that it is overpriced and way too crowded. The current target audience is the upper- class customer with extra income to spend on everyday products. We would like to target college age students and local business near the River East building. With this marketing plan, we may be able to improve our image and gain new followers. 13
Works Cited Market Info. Dose Market RSS. The Cited LCC, n.d. Web. 02 Mar. 2013 Todd, Anthony. Is This The End For Dose Market? [Updated]. Chicagoist. Gothamist, 05 July 2012. Web. 02 Mar. 2013. 14