Introduction ______________________________________________________________

BMW is an automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company that was established in 1916. They are the worlds leading premium automotive manufacturer and sell in excess of 1 million vehicles annually worldwide. This translates to 18,000 newly registered vehicles in Australia every year making them Australias market leaders in the premium automotive manufacturers segment. BMW have multiple dealerships located throughout Australia, the majority being in capital cities. Earlier this year BMW released the X1, a premium compact SAV (sports activity vehicle). Now, they wish to promote the expansion of this line by releasing the X1S drive, which is not only a bid to expand their current market share but a way to create a completely new segment in the market, which will reach out to a new, untapped target. They wish to present the X1S drive as attainable to those who previously would not have considered it. This following media plan rotates around the launch of the BMW X1S drive series, similar to the previous X1 series, however, being a 2-wheel drive as opposed to a 4-wheel drive. The target for this vehicle are mainly those aged 35 45, who are located in capital cities, in the AB quintile, men and/or women, but more so women. The media plan is going to address two major goals and aim to achieve them through several media marketing strategies based on the launch of the X1S drive SAV series. The plan intends to maintain the companys momentum as current market leaders and aims to drive in and educate new clientele whilst keeping the older clientele present. The secondary focus of the plan will outline how to access and communicate with said targets, exploring their media consumption habits and lifestyles. (refer to appendix 1)

Objectives

Marketing Objectives

Increase the number of units sold of BMW X1S Drive Series from 300 to 350 cars per month in the category of premium SAV (sports activity vehicles) segment by 4th of December 2010. (refer to appendix 1)

Increase the sales (rough estimate based on base model) of the BMW X1S Drive Series from $29,012,400 to $33,847,800 in the category of premium SAV (sports activity vehicles) segment by the 4th of December 2010. (refer to appendix 1).

Media Objectives

Within the $1.75 budget, create a national campaign over 5 weeks that conquers new clientele whilst retaining the older clientele. (Reach, awareness)

Following the launch of the campaign, provide sustained support throughout length of the campaign (continuity)

Target advertising to those who are planning on buying a new car at a frequency of once a week (frequency)

Utilize media that can create awareness and effectively communicate the benefits sought from the BMW X1S Drive Series. (reach)

During and following the campaign, sustain client awareness and also increase dealership footfall.

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Target Market

The BMW X1S Drive target audience is based upon the following points; Demographics The primary target market are men and women, aged 35 to 45. Of this selection 34.8% are of the AB Quintile and are located in capital cities (refer to appendix 2). About 55.4% of the total target has an income in excess of 100k (refer to appendix 2) and paying off a mortgage on a house; 71% of them have children under the age of 16 (refer to appendix 3) and 25% of the total population or less per state meets the above criteria. Geographics There are 2.9 million people in this target and about 74.6% of the target is located in capital cities (refer to appendix 2). The highest being in Sydney with 25.3%, Melbourne with 21.9% and Brisbane with 11.1% making these the cities to target the most. Psychographics On average 70.6% use the computer at home and at work 16 or more times over a 3-month timeframe, for uses such as Internet and email (refer to appendix 4). They spend their time visiting and entertaining friends and relatives and consider themselves family oriented, of these, 61% men and women try to look stylish and are socially aware (refer to appendix 5). In their spare time they take day trips (48.8%), have weekends away (42.4%) and exercise (62.9%) (refer to appendix 4). They spend a lot of time in their car, due to the amount of errands they need to run and as a result 84.4% listen to the radio whilst driving (refer to appendix 5). Although becoming a redundant form of communication, this target (as they are primarily gen x) respond well to direct mail, 83.4% and 81.8% both men and women will read addressed mail and jointly addressed mail respectively (refer to appendix 6). When they do take public transport, which isnt very often they go by air, train and/or taxi.

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Attitudes They notice outdoor advertising, with 64.1% and 61.6% noticing billboards and advertising on buses respectively (refer to appendix 6). These women and men like to seek out information by using the Internet, more for information searches rather than entertainment (refer to appendix 5). Leading full and busy lives and believing success to be important (refer to appendix 7), they have active social lives and are financially stable at this point in their life. They like to have responsibility in their jobs and are concerned with their perception of themselves by others. They tend to make risky decisions such a purchasing a new car every 4 years (refer to appendix 3). Media Consumption On the list of medias consumed, Internet and email rate high with 80.9% and 90% respectively (refer to appendix 6). This is due to them having large access to computers with the Internet at work (72.5%) and at home (89.8%) and their use of the Internet is more for information and communication than entertainment (refer to appendix 5). The two most consumed outdoor advertising are bus sides and billboards with 60.75% noticing the ads on the sides of buses and 55.9% noticing big billboards (refer to appendix 6). As the target are continually on the go either running errands, going to work, picking of the kids from school or going to social events they are deemed time poor and spend a good amount of time in the car. On average 84.2% of women from this target listen to the radio in the car (refer to appendix 5). The target pays very little attention to Television with only 17.7% of the target (men and women) tuning into their highest rated program, which is Spicks and Specks (refer to appendix 6). The last media that this target consumes at a notable rate is direct mail, with 83.4% of men and women reading addressed mail to them and 81.8% of men and women reading mail addressed jointly to them. The main reason being it is delivered to them and is personal to them, therefore, they are more inclined to open it (refer to appendix 6).

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Target Profile

Hello, my name is Allison McNeil and I am a 38-year-old mother of two. I have a daughter, Lucy who is 12 and a son, James who is 9. My partner of 12 years, Oliver, is 42 and works for ANZ in the CBD.

Oliver was recently been promoted to account manager with ANZ and therefore has to fly interstate a few times year. We live in Clifton Hill, Melbourne and are still paying off the mortgage on our house. At the moment we are financially stable as our combined income exceeds 100k and are enjoying the success of our hard work. I work part time as well, as an administrative officer for Ernst & Young and away from work I only have a few days a week free. I have noticed that I lead a very busy and full life and as a result like let go by participating in something spontaneous. I spend a lot of time in the car driving, either to work or the kids to school or their after school activities and due to this I have learnt to like the radio because I can still focus on other things and it doesnt require my immediate attention.

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I love listening to the Breakfast sessions on Fox; however, I know when Ollie is in the car it has to be Triple M. As Oliver and I are busy during the week with friends dinners, afterschool activities and work we find time on the weekends to spend time with our kids, always up for whatever the day will bring, as we are family oriented people. Sometimes we will go away for the weekend or, if we dont have that much time just take an impromptu day trip in the car. As I spend a lot of time in the car I tend to notice billboards and bus sides much more, god knows when Im stuck in traffic I have nothing else to look at! We dont really watch TV, purely because we are time poor and there are too many ads and at times they seem quite devious. At work and at home Ollie and I have access to computers with the Internet. Since learning how to use the internet it has become a huge part of my life, in the morning I always get up and check my email and the news at news.com, I also really like sussing out the latest real-estate one Domain.com. I really enjoy receiving promotional material in emails, because it is sent to me and not forced down my throat like TV so I take the time to read it, the same goes with snail mail. We are currently looking to buy a 2nd car so that Ollie and I dont have to keep sharing the one car between us and so that we can just take it whenever, wherever. We are looking for something stylish, special and trusted, as we like being in trend but dont want anything excessively expensive.

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Media Strategy

As the campaign period for the BMW X1S drive series is 5 weeks, with a $1.75 million budget, blitzing is the strategy that will be employed to maximize said objectives. Blitzing means that the advertising will be continual and intensive for the duration of the 5-week campaign, ultimately blitzing the target audience. Blitz advertising will be undertaken to ensure that brand and product awareness are increased and then sustained and to conquer new clientele without alienating the previous clientele. The need to generate excitement and buzz around the product and incline the new target is ever present and this means that a less aggressive strategy could not be used because the campaign is considerably short. The aim of continually advertising to the desired target in a medium they are already predisposed to is to increase the sales from $29,012,400 to $33,847,800 by the 4th of December, to increase the number of units sold from 300 cars per month to 350, also, by the 4th of December and to increase dealership footfall during and following the campaign. The primary media to be used to target the audience effectively are Direct Marketing/Email/Internet with 88% reach in this target, Direct Mail with 83.4% reach and Outdoor Advertising with 60% (refer to appendix 6). This ties in strongly with the target as they still enjoy receiving snail mail, yet have adapted themselves to using the internet/email and not only use it frequently but also enjoy it immensely. In support of the primary media, secondary media will also be implemented to deliver said objectives. Radio will be used as the secondary media, as 84.2% of the target say that they listen to the radio in the car (refer to appendix 5). Secondary media will be used to support and repeat primary advertising and increase the retention of the brand and product within consumers minds. Medias that have been chosen for the deployment of the advertising campaign will include the utilization of promotional emails/direct mail and internet net banners, that will utilize full colour, personalized headers (for email and mail) and click through linked pages for the internet banners.

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The outdoor advertising will consist of large, full colour, billboards strategically placed on high-density roads and public places. Radio will be used weekdays in the breakfast shows. Both primary and secondary mediums will be used throughout the 5-week campaign to achieve blitz advertising. This campaign strategy has been designed to increase primary sales of the brand in units sold and dollars made, to increase dealership footfall, brand promotion and product awareness within current and new clientele.

The definition of the strategy in graphical form, in our case 5 weeks, nonetheless still represents a continuously intensive campaign.

Creative Message

The decision to purchase is rational and emotional. Of the men in this target 80.8% make their decisions based on logic rather than emotion and a significantly smaller 57.7% of women (refer to appendix 5). Emotional and rational, they are both under the umbrella of logical benefits that the product brings: feeling good. That's all anyone is ever buying. People rationalize buying decisions based on facts, but they make buying decisions based on feelings. The target are going to rationalize the purchase based on facts like BMW is a driving machine, that it is attainable at such a cost and that it is from a trusted, iconic brand. The emotional decision, whether conscious or subconscious, is backed by the joy is unplanned tagline, the spontaneity and adventure the vehicle will bring their lives and their desire to be stylish and to be perceived a certain way, all the things that elicit feeling good within the consumer. What will be conveyed through the creative component of the campaign is that the X1S Drive series is attainable, not impossible, as a port to being spontaneous and to a life filled with joy. The target will believe this message, over the competitors clutter as BMW have already established themselves as market leaders, a brand with tradition, longevity and most importantly trust from the consumers. The message cannot be said with sudden, overwhelming bombardment, because the target wont respond, instead it will take the similar approach of the BMW X1 Drive as the X1S is an expansion of the series. By using a similar visual approach and the same tagline Joy is unplanned, a certain level of brand/product recognition will occur, therefore eliminating the need to entirely re-educate the target. In this campaign the USP will be SAV; Spontaneous (changed from the X1 Sports) Activity Vehicle as it is not a 4wheel drive like the X1 but the 2-wheel everyday suburban car that can transform spontaneity to joy in a moment.

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Media Plan

The campaign period for the BMW X1S Drive series is from the week beginning the 31st of October until the week ending the 4th of December. With a budget of $1.75 million to be used across the 5-week blitz advertising campaign, four mediums are to be used to achieve the media and marketing objectives set out.

Outdoor Of Home Advertising Out of home advertising is set to be one of the three primary medias. This is because 84.1% and 87.3% of the target, women and men respectively notice outdoor advertising (refer to appendix 6), making it a strong contender to successfully target this market. Outdoor advertising will be utilized in three sub-categories; Billboards, Bus Panels and Airport Posters, as they are the most commonly noticed by the target. Billboards The type of billboard to be used is 24-sheet site with an average reach of 70%. 24 sheet sites will be used in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and Hobart (refer to appendix 6). In total 399 full-colour, billboards will be put up each staying up for the whole duration of the campaign. Each city has a different cost per amount of signs used and they are as follows: Capital Sydney Melbourne Brisbane Perth Adelaide Hobart No. of Signs 127 113 53 48 45 13 COST $ 254,000 226,000 106,000 96,000 90,000 26,000

(refer to appendix 8, 12) In the schedule the number of signs are combined to save room as they are all equal in cost per sign @ $2000 a 24-sheet.

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As the number of 24 sheet posters being used is large, they will need to be used throughout the whole city to be realistic. The table below dictates how many signs will be placed in each region to achieve a huge growth on exposure realistically.
No. Signs

Northern suburbs

Southern suburbs 25 25 10 9 8 2

Eastern Suburbs 25 25 10 9 8 2

Western Suburbs 25 25 10 9 8 2

CBD

Sydney

127

25 25 10 9 8 2

27 13 13 12 13 5

Melbourne 113 Brisbane Perth Adelaide Hobart 53 48 45 13

Although excessive, the aim of the amount of outdoors advertising is to reach as much of the target as often as possible. Considering the target market is small, advertising in many places must be enforced to ensure that the target market is exposed to the advertisements. These 24-sheet billboards will appear around upper market shopping centre parking lots, main arterial roads, highways and freeways (of high density) and on appropriate buildings with exposure, all of the sites in proximity to target suburbs. The CBD of each city will have a slightly higher amount of 24-sheet sites, as there is an abundance of the target market, with increased exposure rates and more sites available. The benefits of such a large number is that during the campaign period, very few 24-sheet billboards will be free, meaning that in the 5-week time frame, BMW has very little clutter to get through and very little to worry about in the way of competitors. The large number of signs will aid in the retention of the brand and product and hopefully, due to the huge exposure, incline potential clients to become new clients and visit dealerships, even if just for a visit. It is all about getting them to make the first step. ______________________________________________________________

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The 24-sheet billboards are aimed to reach the target with a frequency of 4 or more time per week to be succinct with the strategy of a blitz continually, intensive advertising, with this medium being the most intense. Bus Panels The type of bus panel to be used is the Twin 8, 610 x 2440 x 2, a mid sized advertisement on either side of the bus. The cost is respective of cities; Brisbane @ $90 a panel, Perth @ $85 a panel and Adelaide @ $80 a panel, totaling $25,500 for this medium refer to appendix 11). The benefit of choosing this format over a 24-footer is that is doubles the exposure of the advertisement as it is on both sides of the vehicle. It is necessary to gain as much exposure to the target as possibly not only for brand awareness but to comply with the set strategy of blitzing, doubling the amount of advertising adds to the continually intensive regime of a blitz. Along with billboards its reach is relatively good with 62.45% (refer to appendix 6) of the target being receptive to them. A total of 100 full-colour, Twin 8 panels will run for the 5weeks in Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide on buses that run through the targeted inner and outer suburbs. The reason that they are only being placed in Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide and not more cities is that the target in these cities are more likely to be receptive to bus panels as they do not have trams. Melbourne and Sydney have trams, meaning there is more clutter in transit advertising; therefore they are less likely to pay attention to bus advertising. Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide have more extensive bus routes and therefore the target will notice these panels more. As bus panels are not directly targeting BMWs current clients its main aim is to drive in new clientele and increase dealership footfall by generating excitement and interest about the new X1S Drive. The frequency is aimed at 2 times a week.

Airport Posters - Airport posters will be used in Melbourne and Sydney airports, with 30 full-colour, posters occurring every 2 weeks for only 4 weeks of the campaign. In total 60 ads for the duration of the campaign per airport. ______________________________________________________________

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This will cost $39,000 per state for the total campaign, broken down it equals $650 per sign (refer to appendix 11). The advantage of airport advertising is that the sizing of the posters varies as they can be customized to particular areas such as; the middle between the luggage conveyer belt, the tops and bottoms of escalator panels, on the wall at a standard 1.8m x 1.2m bus shelter size and in and along corridors. The reason the sizes will vary from airport to airport and week-to-week is too mix it up. To keep creating seemingly different or new ads relates directly to the blitzing strategy in that the number of different ways possible to advertise in an airport could be perceived as hundreds of different advertisements, when really they are just being re-arranged and changed. On another level the next time the flyer comes to the airport they are tricked into thinking it is a new ad, when merely it may have been repositioned and resized. With 40.3% (refer to appendix 4) of the target having travelled by air in the last 3 months and then having them travel on highways, freeways and main arterial roads to reach the airport, high exposure to both billboards and airport posters is expected. The airport posters being a reinforcement of the billboards previously viewed. These two methods combined will mainly communicate the benefits sought from BMW and give sustained support to those current clients or new clients, by reinforcing their opinion of the brand or product or reminding them to visit the website/dealership. The aim is to frequent the consumers at the airport once a week. Internet A total of 3 websites will be used as the 2nd primary media, Internet. Websites that will be used are Hotmail, Domain Real-estate and News.com.au because 90.2% of the target use the Internet for email whilst 76.25% (refer to appendix 5) believe the Internet is far more an informational tool and an entertainment tool; similarly, the target profile specifies these sites as favourites. The size of the Internet ads will be medium rectangles 300x200 pixels, with 1,087,000, 728,000 and 705,000 impressions per week on Hotmail, Domain and News.com.au respectively. ______________________________________________________________ 13

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This totals per site $217,400 (Hotmail), $218,400 (Domain) and $211,500 (News.com.au) (refer to appendix 8). The ads will be in full colour and moving, with a BMW X1S driving across the screen. The benefits are that it will engage the consumer more than a standstill ad and can potentially lead to a click through, which will then link the consumer to the site. The site not only informs the consumers about the new product (therefore encouraging a sale, or dealership footfall) but also provides sustained support for the current clients and can entice the prospective clients with the level of support available to them. Internet has an average reach of 80% (refer to appendix 6) amongst this target and throughout this medium we wish to achieve (in terms of frequency) the mentioned impressions per week, or 4 times a week in one consumer. Direct Email/Direct Mail Although sufficient figures cannot be developed for this medium it is essential to the success of this campaign nonetheless. Direct mail/email is the last of the primary mediums being used with a reach of 83.4% in men and women and 89.6% for women and 90.8% for men in email (refer to appendix 6). It is a highly personalized way of communicating with the target. For one it engages them because it is personal to them and not generic (like a TV commercial) and as one needs to sign up to mailing lists there is a guarantee that the majority will be interested and therefore, open the email/mail and either click through to the site or re-read the letter over several times. Direct mail will be sent to the consumer once every month, featuring the BMW magazine and a brochure on anything updated, models, insurance plans, paying schedules etc. Emails on the other hand are less formal and will be sent every week, to save time and resources on printing and sending the same material each week. The emails will contain information on the company, sponsorships the company is involved with, any upcoming functions the company is involved with and whether or not there are any upcoming deals or promotions. ______________________________________________________________ 14

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All the necessary details to make the consumer feel a part of the brand, on the way to forming that mutually beneficial relationship between brand and consumer Direct mail/email can increase purchases and in-turn sales volume by offering consumers special promotions and deals. They can certainly increase dealership footfall informing the customer of new models come in and take a test drive and this medium also provides exceptional sustained support for new and current clientele, 24/7, personalized as an inquiring email is replied to by a service member. The reach of email/direct mail in large as 89.6% of women and 90.8% of men in the target use the Internet for email primarily and 69.3% of the target men and women really enjoy going online to receive and send emails (refer to appendix 7). The emails and mail are sent with the registered BMW letterhead and the contact details of the South Yarra dealership. The costing for this medium can be found in Further Recommendations and Production Costs Budget. Radio Radio is the only secondary media in this campaign, supporting the 3 primary mediums. The ads will be 30 second Run of Station that run Monday through to Friday in the Breakfast session. They will be played on the Today Network; Sydney 2day, Melbourne Fox, Brisbane b105, Perth 92.9 and Adelaide SAFM and on Triple M in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide. The ads for the Today Network of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane will be 20 ads a week or 4 ads a day in the breakfast slot. The ROS for Perth and Adelaides Today Network is 10 ads a week or 2 ads a day in the breakfast slot. Triple M have the same ROS package nationwide, 10 ads a week or 2 ads a day in the breakfast slot.

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______________________________________________________________ The pricing for the packages is as follows: (based on Neil Stagolls ROS packages)

Sydney 2day Melbourne Fox Brisbane b105 Perth 92.9 Adelaide SAFM Sydney Triple M Melbourne Triple M Brisbane Triple M Adelaide Triple M

20 p/ week 20 p/ week 20/ p/ week 10 p/week 10 p/week 10 p/week 10 p/week 10 p/week 10 p/week

100 per 5 week 100 per 5 week 100 per 5 week 50 per 5 week 50 per 5 week 50 per 5 week 50 per 5 week 50 per 5 week 50 per 5 week

$400 = $40,000 $350 = $35,000 $255 = $25,500 $220 = $11,000 $200 = $10,000 $400 = $20,000 $350 = $17,500 $255 = $12,750 $200 = $10,000

* Refer to appendix 8, 10 Radio is beneficial because it has a captive audience and as it is a passive medium the audience are more likely to be receptive, especially with 84.2% of the target agreeing to I listen to the radio when Im in the car. This medium, although a secondary medium, still provides sustained support for customers by continually building their brand knowledge and retention; similarly it supports the primary media by reinforcing the brand and product in the consumers mind. As a result, this could see the number of units sold increase, due to the consumers heightened awareness of BMWs X1S and consequentially see the sales increase dramatically, during and following the campaign. The intensity of the radio advertisements not only embody everything previously said they also comply with the blitz advertising strategy by continual, intensive advertising. The reach of this medium, men and women is roughly 30% whilst the desired frequency is 3 times a week.

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Further Recommendations _____________________________________________________________

Direct Email and Mail Scheduled under production costs, the production team will have to figure out pricing based on the reach and frequency BMW want and the current market share they already have. The cost must also be considered.

Bus Panels The reach and frequency are based on Asteroid data as specific reach and frequency cannot be determined for this medium.

Airport Advertisements The reach and frequency are based on Asteroid data as specific reach and frequency cannot be determined for this medium.

Radio Upon contacting the respective stations, pricing must be discussed as the pricing in the previous schedule is based on run of station packages and therefore, subjective to the station and current rates, may escalate or decrease. The reach and frequency are based on Asteroid data, as up to date stations on Asteroid are not available and therefore, 100% accurate reach and frequency cannot be determined, however a strong guide has been provided.

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Budget

Summary Cost Table Media Used OUT OF HOME 24 Sheet Billboard Bus Panels Airport posters Internet Direct Email Direct Mail Radio TOTAL SPEND: * Direct Email and Direct Mail are production costs $ 798,000 $ 25,500 $ 78,000 $ 647,300 $ Production cost $ Production cost $ 181,750 $ 1,730,550 Cost

As some medias were limited to specific states, below is a table detailing how much was spent in total per state:

Budget Spent Per State

2% 33%

11% 11%

Sydney Melbourne Brisbane Perth Adelaide

14% 29%

Hobart

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Graphical Representation of the overall breakdown As shown below, there are 3 medias that dominated the majority of the budget; this was to ensure that these mediums were used to their full potential and that the highest possible exposure could be gained per media.

Media Budget Representation

$181,750

Radio
$901,501

Internet
$647,300

Outdoor

Some of the costs could not be included in the media schedule because they were not media related. Such costs include production costs, the two main production costs being direct mail and direct email. Both will definitely be used in this campaign therefore it is imperative that upon execution of this plan both costs be included and considered.

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