Gelato Village Handover Guide

Introduction

The Brand Gelato Village has become synonymous with quality, Modern Italy, and providing an
unparalleled experience.

These three aspects govern what we do, who we are, and how we are perceived. Ultimately, this is
what builds upon the bottom line for the company.

Our marketing is built upon the future Building the company into a brand that can expand. If the
Gelato is the engine, then marketing is its fuel.

Strategy

Whilst a lot of this has been outlined in the initial marketing strategy document, It can be broken
down as follows:

Sampling
Social Media
Communications
PR
Community relations
Feedback
Internal changes

All of the above feeds into business growth.

The key to our marketing, is not to promote Gelato and Gelato Village as a product for the summer
But to promote it as a lifestyle choice. People who come to Gelato Village are better than those
who visit mass produced Gelaterias. Our customers are cooler than those who simply do not
know.

However, we need to convey this message without directly saying it.

All of the above runs alongside what is already in the Brand Narrative, and if anything, is an
extension of it.

Sampling

With all premium products comes two drawbacks:

 Misconception
Hesitancy

It goes without saying, that if you have a strong product Offer samples. Offer them all day long.
Because the sample can sell the product. However, we take this a step further at Gelato Village

People often have many misconceptions with regards to the products. What is it? Its unhealthy.
Its frozen yoghurt. It contains Gelatin. etc etc.

Customer hesitancy is based on several factors. Is it suitable for vegetarians? I dont know what this
is, therefore I will stay away. The other place looks better And they do gelato too.

By using the samples to not only offer samples, but to conquer the misconceptions and hesitations
of our potential customers, we then boost sales. Sampling offers us an opportunity to ensure that
we boost our sales through the quality of the product alone.

However, random samples does not work, as it fails to engage people beyond a base level. This ties
them into the sampling session, but does not tie them into the brand, and leads to turnover rates. It
is imperative to find effective means of tying in sampling sessions to the brand Either through in-
store events, or by leafleting/other promotions then taking place off-store. This can include
photography for social media, or using the opportunity to gain social media followers, knowing that
the few who join, will more than likely buy into the brand.

With the branded Gelato cart, and our electricity generator, we can choose precisely where and
when we offer our samples. Strategically choosing locations around Leicestershire, we can ensure
maximum reach.

In-store samples require product knowledge from the staff, who must be competent in
understanding, knowing, explaining and ultimately selling the product to customers.

Social Media

Since the mid 2000s, Social Media has become in effect, a home away from home. Consumers from
different demographics use a variety of social media in order to communicate. As such, it is one of
the most important forms of marketing for us.

Facebook

Facebook has been a staple since its rapid growth post 2007. However, its usage has dwindled
amongst the younger population, and is only effective with specific demographics. The key to long
term Facebook prosperity is to ensure that we not only tell people stories, but to ensure that we
effectively engage within the principles of the brand.

In order to successfully engage with customers on a long term basis, we have to ensure a degree of
dynamism to our posts. This incorporates the following:

Product Marketing
Events (Trips to Italy, awards etc)
A balance between the marketing being personal and impersonal.
 In-depth features (Ingredients etc)
Focusing only on genuine and well publicised holidays.
Ensuring competitions/communications are in good taste, and in line with a premium
brand
Staying away from in-jokes
Effectively boosting posts
Acceptable standards of photography
Frequency of posts
Brand Marketing

Product Marketing

This is something that everyone does, but often too often. Product Marketing is something that gets
very repetitive, and very boring, very quickly. However, it sells a product, features high levels of
engagement, and can be used to attract new and infrequent customers.

Based on the nature of the different gelato we have at Gelato Village, and the high quality of
ingredients we use for each, we can often provide product marketing, without it getting too boring
for our consumers.

Product marketing is very useful for when we do not have much happening, and thus require back-
up posts. However, they are still fundamentally important towards boostings sales, even in the midst
of high levels of activity.

Another form of product marketing is on the basis of the cabinet. Customers are often eager to
know what we have, and often save on making visits, until a particular gelato is available. Snapchat is
the best form for this, but Facebook and twitter is still useful.
Product marketing must also be used to explain the product, as opposed to solely mentioning the
product. Saying something is amazing, does not work. It is imperative we demonstrate how, and why
it is amazing. Breaking the product down works, but at times, something relatively simple can work
too.

As shown in the following screenshots:

The former and latter screenshots both demonstrate the benefit of these differences. Previous posts
also factor into the momentum a particular post may or may not carry.

The former reached 1,500 people through paid boosting, and 1,500 people through organic viewing.
This correlated into 81 engagements. The paid boost was 3.00.

The latter reached 1,500 people through organic viewing, but correlated to 8 engagements.

Events

Certain events such as awards always tend to attract higher levels of engagement. It is imperative
we consider the potential ramifications for the business, and utilise it to grow the company:

Short term Boost

Long term growth
Mid-level Growth

The short term boost is based upon the initial hype of a particular event Especially with those who
belong to the following consumer groups:

Have not heard of Gelato Village

Infrequent Visitors
Those who know us, but have not yet visited us.

Those who have no heard of Gelato Village, or are not receiving our message effectively now have
yet another reason to visit us We are award winning! The infrequent visitors will be more likely to
visit us again sooner, and those who have not yet visited, will feel slightly more motivation to see
what all the fuss is about.

The long term growth ties in significantly with our brand building strategy. e.g. Gelato Village is now
award winning, or Gelato Village keeps winning awards. Whilst the strategic benefits of awards do
not last permanently, they place us in good stead to build upon our platform. It also places a
psychological marker for anybody walking past, or even mentioning Leicester in General
Something we saw when Leicester City won the league. Gelato Village had Danish, UK, and even
Japanese Television visiting us as part of their features on Leicester.

The mid term growth is shown through a sales boost over the coming months following promotion
of the award, alongside a boost in engagement through Social Media, and in-store interactions.

Thus, it is fundamental that our events marketing (either in-store events, awards, or even
community efforts such as the Children from Chernobyl who visited) be marketed in a manner that
effectively boosts the brand in the short, medium and long term.

Balance between personal and impersonal

This is fundamental to all of our communication efforts, on both Facebook and other platforms.

With Daniele and Antonio as well as the frontline members of staff being in essence, a part of the
brand, it is imperative that our communications reflect a certain degree of personality. However, our
engagement is forged on the basis of the Brand conversing with potential customers, and not
individuals within the brand conversing with customers.

Being a premium brand, the standard is self-explanatory. However, we as individuals are not
premium in tune with the brand. We all have our own faults, strengths, weaknesses and
personalities. It is imperative that we balance our communications to reflect the brand, as opposed
to ourselves as individuals.

By being too impersonal, we fail to build a relationship with our customers, and veer towards being
almost corporate. This is the antithesis of Gelato Village, and fails to build the brand in the direction
we wish to head towards.

However, by being too personal, it becomes a relationship akin to a close friendship Which is often
a step too far with most consumers, and only ever builds relationships with our core group of
customers Who represent a smaller proportion of our income, and tend to communicate with us
themselves. These customers tend not to respond too often to our posts, but will always tag us
during their visits, and make their presence known.
The above photo represents the only time I have ever mentioned myself in any form Merely
stating that its my job on offer, and to impress me. This was followed with an email address. This
was after 18 months of marketing.

Whilst certain customers recognised me through my presence in-store, or through our interactions
at events, I was never a part of the brand Only one of the driving forces.

Personal photos, whilst taken at an official event runs contrary to the Gelato Village Brand, as the
marketing consultants are always dispassionate in their approach from a marketing perspective. In
essence, focusing solely on the development and growth of the brand from the sidelines. With this
being our only post not to receive a like from a customer or potential customer, it clearly is not a
viable form of marketing.
Scanning through the metrics, this post led to 3 Other Clicks, and 1 Hide all posts.

Conversely, focusing (in terms of personnel) on those who are a part of the brand has active
marketing benefits.

It is imperative to balance how we post on these events. Limiting these posts to fewer, but key posts
generate more positive results than continuously posting Irrespective of the excitement a
particular event can generate.
At the Artigianale Gelato Festival, in Agugliano, I limited posts to 3 photos, and a video.

This was based on a photo of Agugliano (This is not including a basic introduction to the festival prior
to the event), alongside a photo of Antonio and Daniele submitting the Mango Lassi Gelato, Antonio
and Daniele collecting the award, and a short informal video of the aftermath of winning, with
people trying the gelato. This was done for people to emotively capture the feel of the event, and
feel as though they are a part of it, even though they are sitting at home in Leicester Thus, driving
sales. In particular, of the mango lassi gelato.

For future festivals/events, it is imperative to break down what the event is, what it means, and why
it is important that Gelato Village have been invited/are attending. It is also fundamentally
important to limit future events to necessary posts. An easy example is logging onto Facebook on a
dreary Monday morning, only to see a post from a friend who has taken a trip to the Seychelles. The
immediate reaction is to hit like, and then move on. However, your friend then posts again, and
perhaps you take a small interest in his photo, you certainly dont care that he is eating a freshly
caught crab, nor do you care that he has gone scuba diving. You then see another 5 posts, whilst you
are sitting at your desk cracking on with emails.

It is very similar to the events Gelato Village attend We have to post fewer, but more effectively.
This ensures the interest of our followers, and ultimately, excite and hype them into furthering sales,
as opposed to depressing them into losing interest in the event, and thus the brand. It is something
that can significantly impact sales in a negative manner. Whilst the sales of Gelato Village are
unlikely to decline, it is the responsibility of marketing to ensure that it grows effectively.

In-Depth Features

Having written many blog posts/articles, it is clear that they do not provide a measurable impact
through our social media communication. They do however, help with our Search Engine
optimisation through link-building. Whilst the quality of the blogs are always a factor, as a rule of
thumb, blog posts do not serve our social media promotion effectively enough.

With regards to in-depth features, such as on chocolate, or the process of making gelato, or our
ingredients, it is something that can work through a series of posts Almost on a storyboard level.
Whilst the level of engagement drops through the storyboard, there are always potential customers
following an engaging story from start, through to finish.

This is best served by building a small narrative, and conveying this information in a simple manner,
through a series of posts alongside photography for each. It is also important to post these daily, as
opposed to doing so over the course of hours.

Genuine and well publicised holidays

It is very often that there are gaps in content for social media promotion. 365 days a year equates to
365 posts a year. It is clear that often there will be times where we are short of content. Holidays
and specific events help us to build a narrative and utilise this to boost sales.

It is important however, that we carefully select the holidays to work on. For Christmas, we do a
Pannetone Gelato which is clearly relevant to the event. Other events/holidays are significant to
specific cultural demographics, who forge a strong relationship with Gelato Village. These are the
events to focus on.

The above is an example of a completely pointless day. #humpday. The same goes for all the
random and meaningless days that society as a whole completely ignores, as well as those involved
in the Gelato industry. Examples are National Cheese Day and World Dessert Day etc etc. In order
to promote according to particular holidays, it must meet the following criteria:

Recognised within the industry

Has enough scope amongst customers
Directly related to the Brand e.g. Artisan Gelato Day (which doesnt yet exist!)
Has clear backing from Gelato Village, beyond a few social media posts.

As a side note, the use of hashtags on Facebook does not work. Whilst Facebook has used to
incorporate hashtags into the platform, it is a fundamentally useless, and aesthetically weak tool.

Ensuring Competitions/Communications are in good taste.

Competitions are a great way to facilitate engagement with our customers through social media.
However, having said that, special offers are difficult to balance with a premium brand. Buy one get
one frees, half price, 20% off etc etc are all terrible ways for a premium brand to market itself. It
serves to only provide price loyalty And Gelato Village is far from a price competitive
establishment.

The key, is to engage customers with the brand, and then provide a reward. Asking a question that
requires a little research, or something that cannot be simply Google searched, are ways to engage
with the brand, and to also reward them for it with a free cup etc. These are better served during off
peak seasons, and limiting them to one offer per form of social media.

Staying away from in-jokes

Whilst we may find certain things hilarious, our customers do not. It is imperative we maintain a
professional level of marketing, and staying away from jokes/anecdotes etc that nobody outside of
Gelato Village, and friends of the brand understand.

Effectively Boosting Posts

Facebook is now set up specifically to derive money from businesses. This is done in the form of Ad
spending via the boosting of posts.

Facebook selectively chooses what does and does not appear on your mini-feed. In order to ensure
effective reach, boosting posts is imperative.

An awards post, which would naturally generate large levels of engagement, received 5,266 organic
reach. Through boosting it at 25, this added a further 21,333 people that the post reached.

Through 607 likes, 421 of these were through the ad spend, and 186 through organic likes. The
boosted post also resulted in 9 new pages likes, 24 comments, 7 shares, and 409 photo clicks.

Another example was the Do you prefer your gelato in a cup or cone? post. A post I thought was
very well executed.
It reached 11,862 people, which correlated to 209 likes, and 107 comments.

Breaking this down, 7,527 people reached were from the boost, 162 of the likes, and 72 of the
comments. It also resulted in 7 new page likes and 3 shares.

This leaves 47 organic likes, and 35 organic comments,

Ensuring that the majority of our posts are boost worthy both in terms of content and photography
is pivotal to Facebook success for Gelato Village.

In order to Boost effectively, it is clear that we strategically select demographics, and balance cost.
Premium boosts (Such as our video, and a very significant achievement/award) should be budgeted
between 20 - 50. With 50 being for exceptional circumstances.

For smaller boosts, such as a new gelato, we should boost between 5 - 10.

For regular boosts, such as something promoting the brand on a base level, or a regular
gelato/product the advisable budget is between 1-5.

Even a 1 boost can be of significant effectiveness.

Facebook allows us to select the following for our target demographics:

Gender, Age, Location and Interests.

The primary demographic is as follows:

Gender: Female
Age: 25 34

Location: Leicester

Generally, it is advisable to target both genders, but the female demographic is clearly our most
popular demographic Particularly those aged between 25 34.

Facebook also allows you to target people through interest groups. Dietary needs, Religion, etc.

This is something that has an occasional use.

With regards to location, Leicester is clearly the most important. However, it is worthwhile
expanding upon this for certain posts. Targeting Leicestershire, and on occasion Birmingham and
Nottingham has proven to be highly effective But only doing so on occasion.

Acceptable standards of photography

One of the key elements to Facebooks algorithms is its sensitivity to photography, and what it
considers as good and bad photography. Though this is more for spam related issues, Facebook
tends to respect what it considers to be good and bad photography.
The above are examples (professional photography withstanding) of good and bad photography. The
third screenshot is the only photo that is acceptable.

Whilst Facebook is a factor, this has far reaching ramifications for the Gelato Village Brand. Two of
the photos are not in line with what the brand represents, and should not be habitually forming with
regards to our posts.
Frequency of posts

In order to maintain consistency, and to ensure effective engagement, it is generally advised as a

rule of thumb to post to Facebook once a day. Mornings/early afternoons tend to work best.

However, this can spike on specific occasions Such as when Gelato Village was in the news due to
the Football, or when we are away on events. Even so, the absolute maximum level of posts should
be capped at 3 posts a day during ultra peak times, 2 at peak times, and 90% of the time, we should
be focusing on a single, good post per day.

Brand Marketing

This is key for all aspects of our Facebook Marketing. Each and every single post we produce should
not only be in line with the brand, but should seek to further it.

This goes a step above our posts, but it is also imperative to responds to customer check-ins,
reviews, comments, and mentions (where possible).

Metrics

Facebook provides a wide variety of metrics, and would require a document of its own.

As a simple example, over several months our video, as well as a few key events would see natural
spikes in engagement. However, it is clear that boosting posts is of paramount importance.

We have also compared Facebook engagement to the in-store sales, and saw a direct correlation. It
is vital that we constantly study and analyse metrics to spot key trends.
Instagram

Instagram is different to Facebook, in that it is solely based on high quality photography.

Whilst Instagram has looked to incorporate adverts, and video, it is primarily its high quality
photography which it is useful for.

Our Instagram Strategy incorporates the following:

High quality Photography

Use of Hash-Tags
Innovative/Engaging content
Responding to messages and comments
Selectively adding people
Removing spam

High Quality Photography

This is the foundation upon which Instagram is built. Research has shown that Instagram followers
engage far more effectively with photos they find visually appealing, and often those they have not
come across before.

To maximise the effectiveness of Instagram posts, we need to post in the morning, and ensure that it
is a high quality photo. This can be done through the use of the many filters Instagram have on offer,
as well as utilising professional photography too.

Use of Hash Tags

Hash tags are of immense importance to Instagram. Unlike with Facebook, Instagram users actively
search for photos utilising particular hashtags. Which is why this is of pivotal importance to our
efforts.

Strategically, we use a mixture of both generic, and specific hashtags.

Instagram allows us to use up to 30 hashtags per post. As such, it is worthwhile posting a minimum
of 25 hashtags immediately after the content.

The hashtags are part of what enables the page to grow in the right direction.

Innovative/Engaging Content

It is very easy to simply find a photo, and then make a post. However, the content is one of the key
factors in ensuring a strong and effective Instagram presence.
The screenshot above resulted in over 110 likes (anything above 110 is good And as our followers
increase, what we consider to be good rises also) and 17 comments. With many of our customers
being of a South Asian background, where Mangoes are almost at the forefront of culture, it is
natural for a similar product to maintain a certain level of engagement, and thus, sales.

Content which subtly explains, analyses, or promotes discussion always results in higher net utility
for Gelato Village.

Posted in early 2016, this post resulted in high levels of engagement, and saw a small (but
temporary) boost in sales for the classico waffles.

Responding to Messages and Comments

A common feature of Instagram, followers often comment with questions, queries, complaints and
compliments. It is important we respond to these points, as it builds upon the relationship that
Gelato Village, the brand builds with its potential customers.

Whilst Marketing used to be about selling products, it is often stated that it is now about telling
stories. Only, this is a myth. It is about successfully engaging with potential and actual consumers on
an emotional and psychological level, that dictates their spending habits. Whilst this is covered in
our over-arching marketing strategy, it is just as valid for comments.

Selectively adding people

A key way of growing a follower base is to follow potential customers. Instagram caps the amount of
people that can be followed in a day, but we can utilise this to constantly follow people, but then
unfollow should they not reciprocate.
Many followers only follow those who follow back, and as such, but also as a part of our
engagement strategy, Gelato Village chooses to follow back the majority of those who follow us
Particular those who are likely to make at least 1 visit to our gelateria.

Removing Spam

Very often, we receive tags when either using particular hashtags, or from just random spam. It is
important we block accounts and/or report them to Instagram. Often these will offer 1000s of fake
followers, or 1000s of real followers. Something that is very short sighted to ever endeavour to be
involved in.

Snapchat

Snapchat is one of the most widely used forms of social media for those under 25. Whilst a lot more
informal than other forms of communication, it is still just as effective.

Snapchat has the highest level of engagement on the basis of followers, compared to all other forms
of social media.

Our Snapchat strategy is based on using witty posts, showing what happens behind the scenes, as
well as random events such as the store being busy, fresh gelato being placed in the cabinet etc. The
only structure it possesses, is taking a photo of the board (with all the gelato available on the day),
as well as a brief video of the cabinet.

Snapchat is of fundamental importance, and each snap can result in almost 150 views. All of which
followers have actively chosen to view. It would be incredibly short-sighted to overlook Snapchat.

Twitter

Twitter in theory, and on a personal level is entirely different to utilising it to actively boost sales. It
is very easy to work in small circles, and only ever effectively reach small circles. The key to twitter, is
adjusting strategy to utilising posts that have been used from Facebook and Instagram (particularly
in terms of product photography), and to then adjust them for Twitter. Ultimately, you will see a
direct boost in sales.

It is also important to respond primarily to customers who tag us, as opposed to other businesses
and generic events. As with all social media, it is important we have relevant followers, than simply
racking up the numbers.

Communications

This incorporates both our offline, and online communications. It asks the question of us: What are
we saying? What is our message? What do we want to say to customers? How do we propose to say
it? etc.

In order to effectively communicate, we have to ensure that all of our messaging is coherent,
consistent, but not boring and repetitive. We have to ensure that it maintains the same style that it
always has, and we have to ensure that we do not communicate from a individual level, but from
that of the brand itself.

Whilst small changes are always unavoidable, it is imperative we keep this as consistent as possible.

Leafleting

Whilst a very traditional method, with generally low levels of engagement, it is often the style and
content of a leaflet that provides its value. Rather than taking the traditional approach with our
initial leaflet campaign, we opted to create a leaflet that explained what gelato is, and why what we
do is so good As opposed to simply creating and presenting a menu.

A new leafleting campaign is very necessary, to build upon the awards and achievements of Gelato
Village, to further explain from a different perspective, as well as to continue to target locations in
Leicestershire, which we did not previously do.

Strategic Alliances

Key to any business, we have forged strategic alliances with many of our suppliers, likeminded
businesses, and those who Gelato Village have some form of relationship with.. This is something we
do for both community purposes, as well as our business interests. Whilst certain businesses are
promoted due to their importance to us, it is important that we do not fall into the trap of marketing
over businesses who do not reciprocate.

The Coffee Counter

Following our issues with St. Martins Tea and Coffee, we have recently switched suppliers to The
Coffee Counter, who are able to provide us with an espresso closest to that of Italy. This coffee not
only has a high quality, but is also of a consistent roast Something that St. Martins could not
achieve for us.

The Bee Farmer

The Bee Farmer provides us with Honey to sell, as well as the honey with which we make our honey
Gelato. It provides little financial benefit to Gelato Village, but is primary done so as part of our
community efforts.

Notura

Notura are a fruit importer who only source Grade A fruit from around the world. The quality of
their products are highly specialist in nature, and are almost impossible for the market to recplicate
in quality. Although they lack a lot of brand awareness, and thus of no benefit for Gelato Village to
promote, they do form an important part of our supply chain.

Agrimontana

Agrimontana is a fine foods supplier based in Italy, who source many products for us. They focus on
the ripples that are used to decorate the gelato, as well as the jams we use for our breakfast
croissants. Again, a company that lack in marketing and brand awareness, however they form an
intrinsic role in our supply chain, and are important to Gelato Village.
Belvoir Ridge Creamery

The producer of our milk. The Belvoir Ridge Creamery is where all of our gelato begins. Whilst
discussing the cows and the milk is fundamentally important to raise awareness of our product, it is
only through moderation that its effectiveness in our marketing efforts have any real tangible
benefits to sales.

Local Businesses

There are several local business that Gelato Village have strong/weak alliances with. Those include
businesses within St. Martins, as well as those we supply gelato to. The key here is to ascertain which
of these businesses is contributing to building Gelato Village as a brand, and which as assisting us by
promotiin Gelato Village, as opposed to solely using our marketing for them. i.e. It should not all be
one way traffic.

Brands we have provided Gelato to:

St. Martins Tea and Coffee

Kobe Sizzlers

33 Cank Street

Burleighs Gin

Gunpowder and Tea

LCB Depot

Currently, Gelato is only being supplied to LCB Depot, and Gunpowder and Tea (My own Brand). It is
imperative that where we supply is of a standard matching the brand, and is adequately promoting
Gelato Village.

Internal Communications

This incorporates both staff training, as well as signs etc.

Naturally, English is not the first language for staff members. As such, common courtesies such as
please and thank you need to be ingrained into the psyche of the front line staff members. Adequate
techniques in conflict resolution need to be taught alongside this.

However, what is of primary importance, is product knowledge and an ability to elaborate on this. The
staff need to be trained on how to effectively market our products, which is something they can only
do if they have a firm understanding of it. This form of face-to-face marketing is paramount to the
success of Gelato Village. For instance, the staff should not see samples as a burden on the business,
but rather an active, exciting and interactive method of promoting it All positives within the realm
of marketing.

The challenge of marketing Gelato in-store is still one to be developed. This requires a balance
between that is effective, tasteful, and what is acceptable to Daniele and Antonio. Many (frequent)
customers who do not use social media, but still regularly visit the store do not realise that we make
the gelato in-store, that it is made from scratch, and uses the best possible ingredients. This needs to
be conveyed far more effectively.

Alongside this, we still have too many customers who state: I walk past it every day But Ive never
been in! We need POS to effectively combat this.

The loyalty card has been developed to maintain brand loyalty. It has been outlined on a LinkedIn
article I have written.

Co-ordination of processes

This involves Photographers, Graphic Designers and Web Developers.

It is down to the marketing consultant to co-ordinate all sub-contracted workers, and to ensure that
this is maintained within the Brand guidelines, as well as the strategic aims of the over-arching
marketing plan.

It is also the responsibility of the marketing consultant to ensure that photography provides value
for money, is something we can recycle for future use, and that the marketing consultant is co-
ordinating the photographer to provide the requested shots As opposed to having the
photographer to decide on the shots they take.

It is easy for sub-contracted workers to provide pretty things such as designs, photos etc, that may
look good, but will not have a measurable impact on sales.

Advertising

Our advertising strategy is very selective and robust. Aside from Facebook advertising, Youtube
Advertising (The Gelato Village Video is something I have not put on Youtube as an advert as it will
have a more measurable impact in November) and Google Ads (They are offering 75 free Credit on
a 25 spend) we do not regularly advertise anywhere.

Advertising only works through if executed both vertically and horizontally Vertically through
repetition, and horizontally through a variety of platforms and spaces. For small businesses, it is
difficult to execute a strong advertising campaign.

As such, we are currently advertising in the following spaces:

Facebook

Leicester City Football Club (Hoardings)

Postbox TV (Tesco, Narborough Road)

We need to further this towards:

Youtube

Google
Instagram and Twitter ads have failed to work for us, and the cost benefit ratio makes them
particularly unfeasible. Especially considering the small demographic we wish to target.

Niche Magazine, and the other local magazines in Leicester (including the Leicester Mercury) are
complete no-go areas for any form of advertising Particularly their awards which all come valued
only with our ad spends.

Community Relations

Our community relations are primarily built upon the charities we work with, the awards we enter,
and our general community work.

Awards

We have currently entered three major awards The Artigianale Festival Agugliano, The English
Italian Awards, and The Great Taste Awards.

Winning 3rd prizes for our Mango Lassi Gelato is clearly the most significant achievement for Gelato
Village. This was an award that pitted us against the best in Italy and The Canary Islands, as well as
some of those who wrote the book on Gelato, and even taught Antonio. This is an absolutely huge
achievement, as much as it was broken down to our customers, needs to be broken down again,
when the Mango Lassi comes back into season.

The English Italian Awards is an awards scheme that came with great response from our customers,
and enabled us to become that place that won yet another award. I would not recommend
entering this award next year, but would recommend considering a small sponsorship of it, should
they ask.

The Great Taste Awards is an absolute joke, with idiots who dont know food from dogshit. Do not
enter this for another 3 years, until our 2016 Great Taste Winner badges become outdated. They
gave Stracciatella 1 star, Chocolate Sorbetto 1 star, Pistachio and Gianduia 2 stars, and Mango Lassi
NO stars. They know next to nothing to give them those scores, and whilst Antonio and Daniele
respect the judges opinion, I am fairly certain that those judges tastebuds are clearly not atuned to
Gelato.

When the experts on gelato cannot stop praising the Mango Lassi, when they clearly cant tell that
our Pistachio gelato extracts more of the essential oils from the pistachio (and hence a more
pistachio punch), and when they assume that Stracciatella just doesnt work, its simply not worth
wasting our time with. Stracciatella is something invented in 1962, a staple of all real gelateria, and
the Great Taste Judges claimed it doesnt work. Dont waste your time, and Gelato Villages money
on it. The only value that the Great Taste Awards hold is its impact on sales, and the Brand building
of Gelato Village. For this, it only needs to be entered once the date on the badge begins to expire. I
would recommend entering again in 2018/9, or only entering a single product next year.
It is worthwhile exploring Michelin stars, as well as other fine dining awards that are globally
recognised. There are awards which operate only one level below Michelin. It is worthwhile speaking
to Lilu Restaurant about these.

Gaelic Football Girls

Being regular customers of Gelato Village, we have offered them money for their tour t-shirts, which
is something that will provide us with little to no marketing benefit. It is strictly something that is a
part of our community efforts, with the only financial benefit being the girls continuing to socialise at
Gelato Village following training.

Charity Requests

Gelato Village receive numerous charitable events, on a weekly basis. Our standard reply is to offer a
half KG of Gelato as a raffle prize.

The only time we have exceeded this is to provide an experience for the Children of Chernobyl, who
have not grown up in the most hospitable of atmospheres.

Feedback

Customer Feedback is the foundation of how we develop as a business. However, careful balance is
required with listening and not listening to customers. All requests must be taken within the brand
guidelines, and must be taken within context of the overarching marketing plan.

Genius Wifi

Genius Wifi has been installed, and comes complete with metrics. The consistent metrics it provides
from wifi logins will help us to ascertain who our customers think, feel and behave.

Unfortunately, we agreed to this prior to Leicester Wifi had become available, which will severely
limit its performance. However, many will still use it to access wifi, and it will be instrumental to
understanding the habits of our customers.

Issimo

This was without a shadow of a doubt, the biggest failure I have had during my tenure at Gelato
Village.

The theory behind this is perfectly sound, and were I to go back in time, I would probably do it again.
However, it is simply a bad idea. The idea was two fold:

1. To create a flavour range for particular periods of the season

2. To up-sell from cups/cones, to Waffles and Coppas (sundaes).

In short, it completely failed. We sold a few more waffles, and quite a few of the Issimo gelatos. But
it did not achieve its objective in significantly boosting sales in a 2 week period.

Assessing why, I realised it was because customers were not ready to be up-sold to. Their tastes
had not developed enough to enjoy Gelato in any form other than a cup/cone. The seating was not
attuned to a full sit-down dessert. The gelato itself is good enough to be eaten on its own, and
always will be. Alongside this, we were worrying too much about the launch of Whipee, at a time
where our Brand did not have the stability it has now.
Positively, the Gelato itself sold, and it did provide a measurable impact on social media growth and
sales (even though Issimo itself completely bombed). However, it failed in its objectives.

We still need to outline a strategy to develop our waffle sales in a manner consistent with the brand,
and to strengthen our secondary product sales.

Conclusion

There is still a lot for me to cover (I cannot think what, but I know there is something or the other)
but this should be enough to provide a clear and consistent guide in marketing Gelato Village.

The overall marketing plan does not need to be changed, and to do so without thorough research
would prove to be fruitless It is through both research as well as trial and error that I have come to
the conclusions on how effectively to market the Brand. I have made many mistakes, and have had a
few failures, and there is no sense in repeating them. (e.g. Issimo) I have kept this as simple as
possible, so as to maintain its practical use for you, and to ensure that its not filled with theory. In
essence, Ive given you many of the answers.

We have seen unparalleled growth, and the marketing is what will determine whether you hit your
sales targets, or do not. A 30% increase from October 2016 to October 2017 is not unfeasible, with a
bare minimum of 25% is what is anticipated This is including any previous momentum that has
been built for a long time.

Should you need any help or advice in the future, please do not hesitate to ask. I am still available to
help you, Daniele and Antonio, and will still be round to collect Gelato for Gunpowder and Tea!