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Transcript of Special Project Report HTM 4964
!
Special Project Report
Rebecca Pearson
HTM 4964 Professor Parsons August 22, 2014
The Problem:
Fauquier County Fair, Inc. did not have a Marketing Plan or a Social Media Marketing
plan when I first took on my internship in December. There were many hands taking part
in the Social Media Management for Fauquier County Fair, Inc., but there were no goals,
timelines, manger or person responsible to manage the day to day responsibilities of
social media. They had ideas, but no organized plan to bring their thoughts together or
steps defined to put a plan in to action. Fauquier County Fair, Inc. is a non-profit
corporation that is run solely by volunteers and depends on sponsorships, as well as
private donations to operate. The absence of a Social Media Marketing Plan puts the
corporation at a serious disadvantage when you rely on one major event per year to bring
in revenue to reduce debt and capital improvements. Sponsors, as mentioned above, are
the most important part of a non-profits’ success when putting on an event like the annual
fair. Sponsors will not want to participate if the company has no Media presence, because
there is lack of exposure and less benefit in the investment. Social media is a key in
today’s society, therefore without it you are missing the ability to capture a large
audience in a cost effective way. Since this organization’s main purpose is a single
annual event, without a strong Social Media presence they cannot reach their prospective
audience. Increased attendance is one of the organizations goals and Social Media can
help them reach their full potential. In addition to the fair, during the year the FCF also
holds two other large fundraising events, which also do not reach their full attendance
potential. A well-designed Social Media plan for the Fauquier County Fair, Inc. can
increase awareness about the fair and provide sponsors the avenue to get more value for
their sponsorship dollars.
The Symptoms:
The most obvious sign of the problem was their annual Fair, over the last several years
the event was not generating enough income for the amount of work that was put into the
event. Net revenues ranged from 13% to 28%. The year 2011 had the highest percent,
which was 28%, with the two years prior to 2014 only averaging 15%. Their
Sponsorships were covering their entertainment cost, so any additional revenues could be
used to cover other operational cost incurred during the year. Their Social Media
presence seemed pretty low. Their Facebook page only had 2,257 likes and the Facebook
page itself had no new posts since August of 2013. All Social Media was being poorly
managed. Another symptom was the way they had done their advertising. Their plan
relied heavily on newspaper ads, a radio spot, and in 2013 they mailed out a letter size
postcard. This plan had not been redesigned in years and was not really successful either.
For example, in 2013 they wasted $7,000 on sending the postcard that had a cut out
coupon and only saw a 2% return on that investment. When looking closely into the
operation it was the lack of organization and preparation that was the root of the problem.
Discover any trends:
A key pattern seen in the financial records in Appendix A is the lack of growth in
sponsorship revenue. The two largest sponsor categories are Corporate and
Entertainment /Events/Tents. Corporate sponsors had no growth from 2010 to 2013,
therefore when looking at past years you can see corporate sponsorships had the potential
to rise. The category for those that sponsored Entertainment/Events/Tents, on the other
averaged close to a 12% increase over the same time period. Overall from 2010 to 2013
sponsorships rose roughly 7%. Since sponsorships had a slow growth pattern and
promotional materials had not been redone in the past four years the decision was made
to redesign those materials. The committee wanted to increase the value for the sponsor
by giving them more exposure. This was accomplished by the Social Media and
Marketing strategy implement for 2014. When you look at the gate revenue one can see
that it has not been consistent in the past years either. From 2010 to 2013 the lowest gate
revenue was $67,058 and the highest gate was $99,906. When you look at Appendix B
you can see the organization had a good year in 2011, which was a year that the weather
played a roll. They had 80 degrees days, low humidity and no potential thunder showers,
which is abnormal for July. Gate revenue is also an area that would benefit from a Social
Media Plan and improved Marketing Plan. Sponsorship and attendance are key factors
and are linked together, because sponsors want exposure and the more attendance
increases the more exposure you provide for the sponsors.
Analysis:
When analyzing the critical issue it was obvious it was a lack of organization and
preparation. This in part is a negative outcome of the way the organization is structured.
Everyone is a volunteer. The board had committees that weren’t accomplishing the task
they were given because the individuals assigned to the job did not always have the time
to give to the committee. They had responsibilities outside the fair that hindered them in
accomplishing what they were set out to do. When I began my internship the board had
made a point to do a better job of emphasizing the responsibilities of committees. This
helped the lack of organization and in turn helped everyone allocate more time to
preparation. The chair of the advertising committee, Patty Leonard, started much sooner
than previous years on developing an advertising budget. From 2010 to 2013 advertising
was a line item on the financials, but they didn’t have a set budget until 2013 when Patty,
at the last minute, was named the new chairman with little time to prepare an advertising
campaign. She decided to try something new that was not successful. As mentioned
above $7,000 was spent on postcards that were mailed out to a limited number of
residences. The postcards were not even sent out to all the zip codes in the county.
Based on the number of coupons used this added no value to the number of fair attendees.
As I evaluated all the issues that began to appear, it was obvious to me that even though I
began my special project focusing on a Social Media plan, the overall marketing strategy
needed improvement and was directly related to social media. So when I was ask to be a
member of the advertising committee I could see how everything was related. The cost
for the solution was minimal. The management of Social Media and research I did for
finding the best way to market to individuals was cost free. I was an unpaid intern so
there was no compensation expense for my services and although the advertising budget
for 2014 was increased the portion allocated to the fair remained the same. The key then
became using the dollars smarter and the committee decided to focus on the number of
people that would be reached by the budget. This moved the organization away from the
more traditional forms of advertising previously used. Prior to 2014 the local paper and
radio station had been the main focus. Appendix C is the Advertising Budget created by
the advertising committee. Many hours were spent researching different ways to
advertise and ways to get the event on message boards for free. The market research I
did indicated that WMZQ was the radio station of choice, so the committee decided to
end the relationship with WFLS. We signed a contract with WMZQ and also decided to
use a small station C103 to give us exposure to three more rural counties close by. The
main reason for this decision was that on Friday we were having a truck/tractor pull for
the first time and the committee felt our audience for this event was located in more rural
area. We also advertised in the Valley Trader, because we thought their readers would be
interested in what the fair had to offer and captured yet another audience. The Valley
Trader is sold at over 600 convenience stores throughout the Shenandoah Valley where a
lot of the pullers that follow Interstate Pullers, the organization sponsoring the
Truck/Tractor pull, are located. I made the ad for the Valley Trader to emphasize events
going on at the Fair that attracted to a more rural mindset as seen in Appendix D. To
attract families in the Northern Virginia the committee utilized Certifikid. This
organization is web based and focuses on reaching families that are looking for
entertainment and other discounted opportunities. We interviewed individuals that
redeemed those discounted tickets and found that most were families that home schooled
their children. We also used Facebook push option, which was also used by Culpeper
Star Exponent. Culpeper Start Exponent was an amendment to the budget attached and
reached 30,000. We estimated our total reach was well over 750,000, including the
companies that did not provide a figure for their estimated reach. This does not include
the benefits from the Social Media plan.
Identify and Evaluate Alternative Solutions:
When identifying and evaluating alternative solutions I first wanted to see how the
organizations audience would be best marketed too. As mention above, I conducted some
market research. I did this first by creating marketing questions that served multiple
goals. I wanted to find out what form of media individuals use to find out about current
events and what were the sources of those media outlets. Fauquier County Fair, Inc. has
one of their fundraisers in February every year, so I took that opportunity to interview
those who attended and filled out surveys from the attendee’s I interviewed. Therefore, I
asked questions based on media preferences; such as newspapers, radio stations, social
media influence as shown in Appendix E. After conducting the surveys at the event I then
turned to our social media to add some of our current follower’s preferences. We kept
that open as a contest so our followers would have an incentive for filling out the survey.
After conducting the research I analyzed the data. I determined the most popular, radio
stations, papers, and social media tools, most used multiple Social Media sites. These
findings were used heavily by the advertising committee. Once I went over everything
with the advertising committee we decided what changes we would make for the
advertising strategy. We had no previous commitments so we could change our
advertising any way we wanted. I elaborated on changes to the Advertising Plan in the
Analysis section above. Social Media was redone too. We decided in order to get better
Social Media presence we would post more online information related to the upcoming
fair and figure out ways to attract potential customers. One of the best decisions was
starting the social media and advertising campaigns earlier. Typically things would get
going in May, but we started the beginning of March. This was a great time to start,
because they had just had a fundraising event. We knew we had a very wide base of
potential customers so we decided to look at not only Fauquier County, but we tried to
attract surrounding areas too. Part of my Social Media plan was developing and
scheduling post revolving around three different campaigns. I developed a timeline with
a campaign concentrating on past fairs, bringing back memories that would create a
desire to make more. I labeled my campaign “Throwback Thursdays” and utilized
pictures of past fairs to bring some nostalgia to the event. I also developed a campaign to
feature the events and entertainers coming to the fair. I called this campaign “Who’s
Coming Wednesdays” to try and create some excitement for the event in the weeks prior
to the fair. The last campaign I developed encompassing the Sponsors, which is a key
factor in the success of the fair was name “Sponsor Sundays”. This was used as a perk in
our Sponsorship material too. This change allowed us to provide a perk to our sponsors
for increased exposure and the potential to gain more sponsors, because with changes to
social media and advertising the reach for everyone was dramatically increased. Like us,
sponsors wanted to get as much exposure as they could with dollars spent. Therefore by
increasing exposure via Social Media and Advertising Plan it provided more exposure for
the business. This is what of the top concerns for Corporate Sponsors and as a Corporate
Sponsor you were listed on all printed material. The advertising committee felt they met
the challenge for our Corporate Sponsors by increasing the reach for them and getting
their name in the public eye. Ultimately getting potential customers to see their product
and visit there business is what we wanted to see. Creating the multiple timelines and
scheduling the events, and actually managing the page made the page more interactive.
Potential customers were finally getting their questions answered. I was able to interact
by posting comments that were important for creating more awareness about the fair.
If no changes had been made the growth in Sponsorships and Gate Revenue would have
not increased at the same levels they did. Sponsorships may not have increased at all. In
order to get better and have success you must continually evaluate the business and make
changes to improve. Change can be good and with so many factors that have changed
about the way organizations conduct business now as compared to five years ago you
can’t ignore them or it will have a negative impact.
How success was measured:
Success was measured by an increase in social media presence, increase in sponsorship,
and increase in gate revenue. We measured Social Media presence by their potential
customer worth by total likes and total reach. For every person by “likes” we had given a
$20 worth for the $10 gate fee and the $10 they would spend inside. The $10 they
potentially would spend inside is factored in because we receive revenue commissions off
of rides, games, and food. We used this amount to be conservative because we know
these potential customers would not be coming alone. In late December there was 2,257
“likes”/potential customers giving our Social Media a $45,140 worth by fair time in July
their was 2,758 potential customers giving our Social Media a $55,160 worth. That is an
18% increase in Social Media presence in 7 months. We also contributed our Social
Media “total reach” into measuring success. Total reach is defined as the number of
people who are served any activity from the Facebook page including posts, posts by
other people, mentions and check-ins. The total reach in December and January did not
get over 2,000 people but by the time the Fair came along the total reach rose close to
19,000 people, all due to increased activity and social media presence. The rise in total
likes and total reach can be seen visually on Appendix F.
Total number of sponsors and total dollar amount was how we measured total
Sponsorships; our goal was to have a rise in both from previous years. The organization
realized a 49% increase in sponsorships when compared to 2013 making 2014 a record
setting year. Our number of sponsors rose from 51 to 69. A 26% increase in the number
of sponsors. The total sponsorship in dollars increased $29,996.00 or 33% when
compared to 2013. A detail analysis of Sponsorships can be found in Appendix A.
We wanted to also measure success by looking at gate revenue. This year we had a very
good weather year so it would not be fair to contribute all the gate success on our new
Social Media and Advertising/Marketing Plan, but from the increases we had we know
that the changes made to those plans had a positive affect. In 2011 the weather was near
perfect and we increased the gate right at 22.2% if you compare the two years, which
confirms our assumptions. Historically the Friday gate was weak so one of our main
focuses was to increase the gate on Friday. We made sure to advertise heavily to certain
areas based on interest of the event we had scheduled for Friday night. The gate more
than doubled from the previous year, which is a good indication of a success on
advertising to the right market for the event scheduled. To see the detail analysis you can
look at Appendix B. The total gate for all categories increased and the overall increase
when compared to 2013 was 66%. This was a tremendous increase. If you compare
2014 to the average of the previous 4 years the increase was right at 50%. If you compare
the new 4 year average to the previous 4 year average it rose 13%. If the organization can
continue the success of 2014 they will see increased profits in the years to come. They
will have to evaluate all the changes, not just the ones I worked on to see what the future
holds.
In addition to increases in the above there was an increase in overall Net Income, which
can be seen in Appendix G. It shows this years success compared to years in the past and
overall growth in Net Income. This displays the potential the Fauquier County Fair has
for success in the future.
Implementation
We had the time to implement this solution this year so we were able to see the benefits.
We started with Market Research to figure out the direction we needed to go in and
because this was done in late February committees were finalized in early March. This
gave committees two to three more months to get things accomplished. Since the
committees implemented timelines with drop dead dates that also helped people stay on
task. Once we found which media outlets best suited our audience we decided what
adjustments to make as compared to the past choices, assigned individuals tasks to
complete, and began working on getting things accomplished. I was able to make new
ads for the Valley Trader, which as I previously mentioned was a new organization we
decided to use. I enjoyed having the opportunity to create the ad and work directly with
the contact form Valley Trader from getting the quote to having the ad sent to print. The
Social Media plan was easy for me, since I was in charge of Social Media. I was able to
plan out all of the campaigns the Facebook page would have weekly and scheduled the
timing of the post. This worked really well. The implementation issues revolved around
making the advertising choices, since so many people were involved and sometimes it
took a long time to get ahold of the right people in a timely fashion. We didn’t always
have our best contact when we made our first connection. It took time for everyone to
proof ads too, again because everyone is volunteers it isn’t their top priority. Our
choices for advertising changes went very smoothly.
The challenges the company will have in the future will be the availability of time and
effort for managing the Facebook page. FCF is all volunteer and planning out Social
Media posts for the months before the fair is very time consuming. The other parts of the
Marketing plan should continue to be implemented efficiently as long as someone has the
time to commit to the task. I feel like the downside to the organization is that those
involved do have jobs and many have businesses of their own that demand a lot of their
time. The fair tasks sometimes get set aside, but miraculously they get done. The
organization would not be as successful as it is if the volunteers were not as committed as
they are. They all have a passion to continue the event and keep the heritage of the
county in the eyes of the public. They work hard to have the event and provide a facility
the community can rent at an affordable price. The net rental revenue is another source
that helps pay for capital improvement projects and the operation of the business. I
learned a great deal during my internship and value the opportunity I was given. Many
say that if you do not know where you came from you certainly will not know where you
want to go. This is so true. So now I will begin to create my future from everything I
have been taught at Virginia Tech. I feel well prepared and look forward to my next
opportunities.
Analysis(of(Sponsorship(Revenues
(( 2014
Percent(of(Increase(from(2013 2013
Percent(of(Increase(from(
2012 2012
Percent(of(Increase(from(
2011 2011
Percent(of(Increase(from(2010( 2010
Sponsorship
Corporate 35,000$(((((((((( 40% 25,000$(((((((((( 0% 25,000$(((((((((( 0% 25,000$(((((((((( 25% $20,000( Corporate(B(In(kind 15,000$(((((((((( (
Entertainment/Events/Tents 40,800$(((((((((( 31% 31,100$(((((((((( 12% 27,825$(((((((((( 16% 23,950$(((((((((( 13% $21,200Trophy/Departments/Premiums 4,754$(((((((((((( 50% 3,165$(((((((((((( B42% 5,460$(((((((((((( B37% $8,650Sponsorship(B(Other 50$(((((((((((((((((( B$((((((((((((((((((((( 750$((((((((((((((( B$((((((((((((((((((((( $0
Total(Sponsorship 90,850$(((((((((( 49% 60,854$(((((((((( 7% 56,740$(((((((((( 4% 54,410$(((((((((( 9% $49,850
Note:(Changed(Sponsorship(Program(in(2014(dropping(the(Trophy/Departments/Premium(category.
Analysis(of(Gate(Revenues
(( 2014
Percent(of(Increase(from(2013 2013
Percent(of(Increase(from(2012 2012
Percent(of(Increase(from(2011 2011
Percent(of(Increase(from(2010( 2010
Gate(feesAdvance(Gate(Sales 7,731$(((((((((((( 79% 4,331$(((((((((( B19% 5,348$(((((((((((( B18% 6,492$(((((((((((( B1% 6,544$((((((((((((Friday 31,465$(((((((((( 154% 12,365$((((((( 24% 9,955$(((((((((((( B47% 18,933$(((((((((( 13% 16,740$((((((((((Saturday 43,805$(((((((((( 42% 30,855$((((((( 58% 19,530$(((((((((( B57% 45,918$(((((((((( 61% 28,505$((((((((((Sunday 17,283$(((((((((( 61% 10,731$((((((( B23% 13,880$(((((((((( 58% 8,762$(((((((((((( 45% 6,036$((((((((((((Thursday 17,460$(((((((((( 39% 12,590$((((((( B31% 18,345$(((((((((( B7% 19,801$(((((((((( 4% 18,995$((((((((((
Total(Gate(Revenue 117,744$(((((((( 66% 70,872$((((((( 6% 67,058$(((((((((( B33% 99,906$(((((((((( 30% 76,820$((((((((((
2014 Advertising Budget
Type Size Reach Company CostWeb Fair Facebook @$25 per push 500.00$ Radio Fair 138300 WMZQ- Washington DC 5,675.00$ Radio Fair WFLS-Fredericksburg with Personal Appearance -$ Radio Fair C103-Culpeper/Madison/Orange 800.00$ Radio Fair 150452 Fauquier Now-sponsored by BBT Bank -$ Web Fair Our KidsWeb Fair Certifikid discount ticket sales -$ Print Fair 32000 Discovery -$ Print Fair 48000 Discovery 1,295.00$ Print Fair 13520 Fauquier Times insert 3,337.75$ Catalog Fair 6480 Catalogue to distributePrint Fair Valley Trader 600.00$ Print 4- 1/4 page Fair 80642 Fauquier/Culpeper/ Prince William $812 per 1/4 page 3,248.00$ Print Leaderboard Fair 100000 Fauquier.com/Culpepertimes.com/Princewilliamtimes.com 600.00$ 4,448.00$ Web Fair Washington Parent 500.00$
Advertising Dollars Allocated 16,555.75$ Advertising Budget (18,000.00)$ Advertising Dollars Unallocated (944.25)$
Tractor/Truck Pull C103 $ 800.00
Radio 2- 1/4 pageTractor/Truck Pull 13520 Fauquier/Culpeper/ Prince William $812 per 1/4 page $ 1,624.00
Print 2,424.00$
Catalog Full Page Fair 13520 Fauquier Times- Annual Guide 750.00$
Homegrown, Handmade & Farm Fresh
2014
July 17 – July 20, 2014
Saturday(July(19th(
Tyler(Toliver(@(7(PM(Darryl(Worley(@(8(PM(Fireworks(after(the(concert(!
Thursday(July(17th(!
Friday July 18th
Friday(July(18th((Truck(and(Tractor(Pull(@(6(PM((
Broken(M(Livestock(Rodeo(@(7(PM(!
Rules(at(www.interstatepullers.com(For(More(Information(Call(Chris(Johnson(at(703L509L3163(
Friday July 18th
Friday July 18th
facebook.com/fauquiercofair
www.fauquierfair.org
Admission:!!Thursday!–!Sunday!!$10!per!person!(13!&!older)!$5!per!person!(12!&!under)!!
Fauquier County Fair Fauquier Fairgrounds
6209 Old Auburn Road Warrenton, VA 20187
Hours:!Thursday!11:00am!to!10:30pm!Friday!10:00am!to!10:30pm!Saturday!8:00am!to!10:30pm!Sunday!8:00!am!to!6:00!pm!!
Appendix D
!!
Fauquier(County(Fair(Market(Research(Thank!you!for!helping!us!learn!how!to!best!connect!with!you!!
In(what(ZIP(code(is(your(home(located?(((((
!! ___________________!
!
!
What(Radio(Station(are(you(most(likely(to(listen(
to?(
! 98.7!WMZQ!
! 93.3!WFLS!
! 103.1!WJMA!
! Hot!99.5!
! BIG!100.3!
! 94.7!Fresh!FM!
! I!do!not!listen!to!the!radio!
! Other:!_______________________!
!
If(you(were(finding(information(from(the(
community(online,(where(would(you(look?(
! Fauquier!Now!
! Fauquier!Times!
! Fauquier!Chamber!of!Commerce!
! I!do!not!look!for!community!information!
online!
! Other:!________________________________!
!
Do(you(use(Social(Media(to(find(out(what(events(
are(happening(in(the(community?(
! Yes!
! No!
Have(you(ever(received(mail(from(the(
Fauquier(County(Fair?(
! Yes!
! No!
!!(
What(newspaper(s)(are(you(most(likely(to(
read?((
! Fauquier!Times!
! Culpeper!Times!
! Gainesville!Times!
! Washington!Post!
! Richmond!Times!
! I!do!not!read!the!newspaper!
! Other:!________________________!
!!!Do(you(view(these(newspapers(online?(
! Yes!
! No!
!!!!!(
Which(Social(Media(site(s)(do(you(like(to((
use(to(keep(updated?(
! Facebook!
! Twitter!
! Instagram!!
! Other:!______________________!
!
Appendix E
!
Annual&Fair&Net&Income&Analysis
2014
Percent&of&Increase&from&2013 2013
Percent&of&Increase&from&2012 2012
Percent&of&Increase&from&2011 2011
Percent&of&Increase&from&2010& 2010
Fair&Income $235,467 38% 170,331$&&&&&&&&&&&& 5% 161,818$&&&&&&&&&&&& A19% 199,596$&&&&&&&&&&&& 20% 165,750$&&&&&&&&&&&&Fair&Expensee ($160,444) 12% (142,837)$&&&&&&&&&&& 2% (139,732)$&&&&&&&&&&& A2% (142,855)$&&&&&&&&&&& A1% (144,844)$&&&&&&&&&&&
Net&Income(Loss)& $75,023 1.7&&&&&&&&&&&& 27,495$&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& 0.2&&&&&&&&&&&& 22,086$&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& (0.6)&&&&&&&&&&& 56,741$&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& 1.7&&&&&&&&&&&& 20,906$&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Income&as&a&percent&of&revenue 32% 16% 14% 28% 13%