Module 04 Social Media Plan- Rough Draft For this module, we'll be fleshing out your work from previous weeks to complete a rough draft of your final project. You have already identified your topic an

Nothing Bundt Cakes is a company near and dear to my heart. I have been a manager at this company for a year and a half now and can truly attest to the quality of the product. I am personally responsible for operating the front of the store including customer interactions as well as participating in events in the community such as hospitals and schools. I am also the marketing manager and often bring cakes to local businesses in the area in order to bring attention to our company. This particular company is a franchise each location is independently owned and operated. The cakes and frosting are made at each location from scratch according to the long-perfected recipes. From there they are then decorated on site according to the occasion whether it be a birthday, baby shower, wedding or other event. The staff is always warm and welcoming as well as prepared to help out with any occasion the customer may be in for. Social media is one of the largest forms of marketing available in modern times.

Bundt cakes are a moist cake baked in a round pan and these particular cakes are then frosted with buttercream cheese. There are four different sizes offered by the company. The smallest starts with bundtinis by the dozen, then a slightly larger bundtlet size is offered, working the way up is the eight-inch cake, following is the ten-inch cake and lastly is the tiered cake.

There are a variety of ten permanent and one changing featured flavor. The permanent flavors include Chocolate Chocolate Chip, Red Velvet, White Chocolate Raspberry, Lemon, Classic Vanilla, Marble, Confetti, Pecan Praline, and Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookie in select locations. From these flavors there are top favorites based on location and the areas preference.

When it comes to social media the company is making progress towards connecting with their consumers.” Social platforms help you connect with your customers, increase awareness about your brand, and boost your leads and sales. With more than three billion people around the world using social media every month, it’s no passing trend” (Why, 2019). One of the ways i’ve personally noticed that the company does is an email-club. Through this email program the company entices customers to sign up by offering a free bundtlet sized cake on the customers birthday. The email program also periodically sends out various buy one gets one offers and updates on new flavors. I have personally seen that through this email program many more customers have returned to the bakery with their families. The target audience is families as most special occasions are celebrated around those closest to us. Working in the front of the store I am able to see firsthand an influx of young children, teenagers, parents and grandparents alike.

While there is already a basic social media presence amongst the company, I personally believe that since each location is individually owned that location could have their own social media targeted specifically for that store and community. This could be implemented across the top social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Yelp and Twitter.

When it comes to similar products there are many bakeries that specialize in unique types of cakes, cookies and pastries. As far as i’m aware and my research shows there are no known competitors across the country that specialize solely in bundt cakes. There are plenty of family owned and operated businesses that may offer this unique twist on a classic cake, but I am personally not aware of a single company that offers as large of a variety and customization of products solely in bundt cakes. Some competitors that I often hear about are the bakeries in Publix, Walmart and Target. While these bakeries do offer decorated cakes for occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, baby showers and weddings just like Nothing Bundt Cakes, they are different in their style and flavor. Many of these particular offer products like sheet cakes that are large rectangle cakes most often decorated in frosting. Other bakeries may

even specialize in fondant work. Which Nothing Bundt Cakes does not offer. Instead Nothing bundt cakes decorations include bows and flowers that add a more pleasing visual element. I have often heard from customers that our product is much moister than the other bakeries they have tried. The flavor choices differ as well, as some of these bakeries offer different flavor choices than us. Most of the decorating styles are also either in cupcakes, sheet cakes or tiered cakes which are not the same size as the bundtlets, bundtinis and cakes. Most of the decorating done in these bakeries is done with frosting as opposed to the handmade decor in our bakey.

While these bakeries are not as similar of competitors in my opinion, they are still competition.

Facebook is a fantastic way for companies to connect with clientele. I know that personally the Nothing Bundt Cakes company does have a Facebook and will circulate many types of ads when they have a new promotion or flavor come out. This platform is a great way to get attention towards the company as with Facebook advertisements people can like, comment and share the posting with their friends. I have seen that when a new flavor comes out or a holiday is coming up, then there is an increase in the amount of ads that I see.

Personally I think that if my stores specific location had a facebook page instead of just an overall company page it would be easier to connect with customers in the local area. From what i’ve found Facebook is more of a family oriented website to keep up with family and long time friends. Nothing Bundt Cakes is a family oriented business and majority of the customers are making purchases for large groups of parties and special occasions. If a website can bring these customers together in a way that they can connect to the owners and operators as well I believe that the overall satisfaction rate will be higher. With facebook I do like how easy it is to communicate directly with the company. There is a function to directly message the company in Facebook Messanger, while you will not get a specific owner or operator directly, you will get ahold of someone from the main companies resources to help you out with any questions, comments or concerns.

Instagram is a helpful way to visual the products on a social media platform. The company is able to post to social media with a picture and also create and use certain hashtags to connect their customers. Being able to see what the product looks like through pictures is a good

way to be able to sell the product. With Instagram companies can also tag people in the pictures. There is also the ability to list the location as well. If the user clicks on the link for the location it will take them directly to all posts pertaining to that location. For instance if a post is tagged under a specific bakery location, then the location can access what people really think about their store and product.

My goal for this instagram would be to separate the instagram page by location like Riverview Nothing Bundt Cakes for instance and then from there on out form a connection with the community itself. I have seen many other companies try this approach and it seems to work for them. The employees are able to respond to individual questions and concerns and build that foundation for a business relationship. I feel as though conversations could be started in the comment sections, but with the helpful feature of Instagram’s Direct Messanger the supervisor of that locations social media page would be able to further answer their questions.

I feel that if nothing bundt cakes broke down their page into locations it would be a lot more beneficial to both the franchise and the consumers. I also feel that if photo contests were held with some promise of a prize or recognition, perhaps even a follow back, there may be more buzz generated towards the company. If people are showcasing how they display and or use our products for their special events then the company can better gather useful information on how to help point out what works in the future. Oftentimes just working in the front of the bakery I often hear how everyone enjoyed our product at the customers event and it brought them back into the store, but I feel if I were able to visualize this with pictures I will be able to better help recommend certain things for occasions based on what works best. If this concept were tied into a contest, then participation would increase and I feel as though it would be a worthwhile situation all around.

Yelp is a useful review website where customers can directly interact with business owners and operators. I looked up my particular store on Yelp and read the comments that were present on the website. With Yelp it offers such a unique and professional way for customers to give their honest feedback on the product and the service that they personally received. I know

that the owners look through social media pages like Yelp, but I also feel that being a manager I should also stay updated on how the customers are receiving the product and how they were served. If there is a poor review I can then help to retrain the guest service associates to better look out for what the issue was to begin with and how it can be fixed in the future. Image is a major part of this business, that’s why cleanliness and product quality are such key components to the company. A first impression is only obtained once and if someone does not have a worthwhile experience and they then voice their opinion with no solution, then that could be a potential issue. This is why social media platforms like Yelp are so beneficial to operators of companies.

Twitter is a common ground of social media where businesses can connect with their customers. In 120 characters or less important information along with the creation of unique hashtags can be used. Many companies have taken the liberty to reply to customers directly within the means of retweeting and hashtagging a keyword. With the use of these hashtags the user can simply click on the hashtag and it will lead them to what others are posting about on the same topic.The premise of retweeting can further share a posting with that particular person's followers. People can also like tweets to show support and comment on the posting as well. I feel that if Nothing Bundt Cakes took an approach of connecting directly with their twitter followers rather than just describing upcoming events.

Personally I would like to expand upon the companies twitter page by including more personal announcements by connecting with specific states and franchises in order to see how the customers are receiving the product. By connecting directly with each franchise and franchise owner I believe that the company will be able to see what better sells in certain areas and with specific people. I specifically have had customers ask about specific decorations or particular flavors, but unfortunately I was unable to help them due to not being able to communicate these requests with corporate. If these customers were able to tweet about their questions, then I believe that they would have a better chance at having their ideas heard out. Forbes reported that by having an online social media presence companies are able to decrease marketing costs while increasing the number of people that hear about the business (DeMers, 2015). The more feedback that a company has on a product the better they can improve upon their product. When flavors are announced I also think it’s a good idea to make that a known fact online by creating a post about it. After the post is made people can then retweet it and further spread the word to people who wouldn’t have otherwise heard about it.

In conclusion I believe that with the use of social media companies can benefit greatly by building a connection with the clientele. Nothing Bundt Cakes already has a base foundation of social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Yelp and Twitter. With the addition of franchises using their own social media I believe that the company could further build a connection and answer questions from customers in a specific area from the employees or owners who will be assisting them. When there is a strong bond established with customers businesses are able to get a feel for what their customers are really looking for and are better able to assist them. The evolution of social media has enabled a way to receive quality feedback on what customers truly feel and when companies learn from that they can better improve and therefore be around for the long term.

References:

Cakes, N. B. (2019, April 11). Nothing Bundt Cakes (@nothingbundt). Retrieved May 1, 2019, from https://twitter.com/nothingbundt?lang=en

DeMers, J. (2015, September 20). The Top 10 Benefits Of Social Media Marketing. Retrieved May 1, 2019, from

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jaysondemers/2014/08/11/the-top-10-benefits-of-social-media-mar keting/#6cf1acf21f80

E., A., F., R., L., P., G., A., Richard, D., S., . . . Tiffany L. (2019, March 30). Nothing Bundt Cakes - Riverview, FL. Retrieved May 1, 2019, from

https://www.yelp.com/biz/nothing-bundt-cakes-riverview

Nothing Bundt Cakes. (n.d.). Retrieved May 1, 2019, from https://www.facebook.com/nothingbundtcakes/

Nothing Bundt Cakes (@nothingbundtcakes) • Instagram photos and videos. (n.d.). Retrieved May 1, 2019, from https://www.instagram.com/nothingbundtcakes/?hl=en

Why Social Media Is Important for Business Marketing. (2019, January 24). Retrieved May 1, 2019, from

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