Attracting Ideal Customers Through Inbound Marketing : Case: KOULU Education Group Oy
Matlouthi, Helena (2017)
Haaga-Helia ammattikorkeakoulu
2017
All rights reserved
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2017060111883
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2017060111883
Tiivistelmä
This thesis was written for a commissioning company called KOULU Education Group Oy. The objective of this thesis was to create a guideline that helps the commissioning company attract its ideal customers through inbound marketing. Inbound marketing is a marketing approach that is becoming increasingly important for companies as traditional, outbound, marketing is losing its effectiveness.
The project started with gaining an understanding of inbound marketing and the first inbound marketing action, to attract. The first inbound marketing action describes a methodology of attracting ideal customers to a company, specifically to a company’s website. This task required researching literature and online sources related to the topic. When theoretical knowledge had been obtained, the company staff and intermediaries were interviewed. The company staff was interviewed face to face with an aim to gain an understanding of the company background. The intermediaries, who represented the company’s target markets in Turkey, India and Pakistan; were interviewed via Skype. The purpose of the interviews with the company’s intermediaries was to gain an understanding of the company’s ideal customers and consequently to create the company’s buyer personas.
As the company was not completely new into the inbound marketing methodology, conducting a situational analysis of the company’s first inbound marketing action implementation was essential. Situational analysis was conducted through the author’s structured observation and utilization of various free online analysing tools. Based on the outcome of the situational analysis and the previous tasks, a guideline for the commissioning company was created.
The outcome of this project is a guideline that helps the commissioning company attract its ideal customers through inbound marketing. The guideline first introduces the inbound marketing and the first inbound marketing action, to attract, from a theoretical point of view. After that, the actual recommendations on attracting the commissioning company’s ideal customers are provided and suggestions for further steps by the company are listed. The buyer personas developed for the company are included in an attachment for the guidelines.
The project was implemented according to a plan and the guideline was positively accessed by both the company and the author. The project can be thus considered successful.
The project started with gaining an understanding of inbound marketing and the first inbound marketing action, to attract. The first inbound marketing action describes a methodology of attracting ideal customers to a company, specifically to a company’s website. This task required researching literature and online sources related to the topic. When theoretical knowledge had been obtained, the company staff and intermediaries were interviewed. The company staff was interviewed face to face with an aim to gain an understanding of the company background. The intermediaries, who represented the company’s target markets in Turkey, India and Pakistan; were interviewed via Skype. The purpose of the interviews with the company’s intermediaries was to gain an understanding of the company’s ideal customers and consequently to create the company’s buyer personas.
As the company was not completely new into the inbound marketing methodology, conducting a situational analysis of the company’s first inbound marketing action implementation was essential. Situational analysis was conducted through the author’s structured observation and utilization of various free online analysing tools. Based on the outcome of the situational analysis and the previous tasks, a guideline for the commissioning company was created.
The outcome of this project is a guideline that helps the commissioning company attract its ideal customers through inbound marketing. The guideline first introduces the inbound marketing and the first inbound marketing action, to attract, from a theoretical point of view. After that, the actual recommendations on attracting the commissioning company’s ideal customers are provided and suggestions for further steps by the company are listed. The buyer personas developed for the company are included in an attachment for the guidelines.
The project was implemented according to a plan and the guideline was positively accessed by both the company and the author. The project can be thus considered successful.