Communication Platform - Start - alo.se · PDF fileOur brands – first and foremost Quicke and Trima, but to a certain extent also Ålö – have two types of customers: dealers/importers

CommunicationPlatformFor Ålö, Quicke and Trima

When we talk about strategies for more effective communication, we are met with many realities and numerous expressions. We have therefore chosen to define our marketing communication, so that everyone involved can understand where in the chain our platform stands. We give our description below:

Business planWhy we exist, the company’s vision and the overall objectives

Communication platformOur personality, our basis, our promise to the market

Marketing planHow we – within the set frameworks – go about meeting the objectives for the relevant market

The platformin context

The platform | What is a communication platform? | Promise | DNA | Target groups | Competitors | Media | Competitiveness | Why Trima? | Why Quicke? | Implements | Graphical consequences

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Basically, it’s quite simple. Ålö’s communication platform is a guide to how we speak to our various markets in order to meet the set objectives and visions. In sporting speak, we can say that the communication platform is our tactics board. Our plan and our rules for what and how we are to communicate – everything from small product ads to the web and major trade fairs – so as to reinforce the attraction and competitiveness of our three brands Ålö, Quicke and Trima at all times.

What risks and opportunities are there in having set communication rules? One risk is that if the risks are too many or too complicated, they cause confusion and no longer serve to simplify and guide. Another is that they

are too few, everyone makes their own interpretations. However, the big opportunity is the strong impact communication has when carried out consistently and uniformly. What we say both penetrates and becomes better established.

The platform therefore states what messages our communication is to relay. The graphical profile, our design manual, sets out on the one hand what our communication should look like. Together, these two aids form the collective image we want our brands to have. So that all our marketing communication is uniform, clear and strong.

What is acommunication platform?

Summary

• Ålö’scommonsetofrulesforourcommunication

• Aconsistentexpression,irrespective of market, media, opinion and taste

• Providesfocus,clarityanddirection in all marketing ventures


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Ålö’s promise to the market has principally been the same since the start of 1949. In simple terms, it means that the customer must benefit the most – in time, money, simplicity or other advantages important to the customer – by choosing us as their supplier. Another way of saying this is that with us the customer gets the best assurance of having their needs met.

This promise is universal and applies to all our markets. However, we deliver our promise in different ways through the slightly varied profiles of our product brands (which we discuss further on). With each of our product

brands, our promise continues to apply even if and when market needs change. We therefore promise to be the best and the fastest at what we do.

The promise can and is expressed in different ways in our communication – depending on customer requirements, preferences, opinions and tastes arising from national and regional difference etc. A controlled variation also helps keep the interest of those we communicate with. However, irrespective of the style, device or manner in e.g. our pictures and text, what we are promising in the end must be clearly shown.

Our promise to the market

Summary

Ålö is the right choice, wherever we are active in the world:

• Whetheryouwanttosavetimeand money

• Whetheryouwanttosimplifyandimprove

• Whetheryouwantaproactivepartner


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What does Ålö represent? What are the common features of the Ålö, Quicke and Trima brands? Ålö is the basis from where everything started and continues to be so. It is here that our basic core values and general strategies are found. In simple terms, we can say that Quicke and Trima ARE our promise to the market, while Ålö is what MAKES and KEEPS the promise.

The brand and the company Ålö have a world-leading market position. There are several reasons for this, for example: • We have always been able to meet actual needs, ever

since the days of our founder Karl-Ragnar Åström.• We therefore have leading experience in our area. • We are practiced specialists who have always focused

on the same product segment. • We have always been quick at developing new

solutions when the criteria and needs have changed.

• We have systematic quality assurance through extensive tests, both when we introduce new products and in our day-to-day production.

• We have always had full control of the most important parts of our design, production and market resources.

In many respects, these strengths coincide with Ålö’s core values, our DNA. Like our promise, we can say that our core values are CARRIED by Ålö, while the effects and benefit are CONCRETIZED through Quicke and Trima. The most important overall message which Ålö must communicate is therefore:

With us the customer will always find the front loader with associated equipment – Quicke or Trima – which gives them the biggest and clearest advantages. Guaranteed by, and typically, Ålö.

OurDNA

Summary

• Ålöwasbornfromaclearmarket need

• Ålöistheexperiencedmarketleader

• Ålöisapracticedspecialistwithin its field

• Ålödeliversfuture-proofproductivity


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Our brands – first and foremost Quicke and Trima, but to a certain extent also Ålö – have two types of customers: dealers/importers and end customers (i.e. farmers and/or contractors working with agricultural tractors). The Ålö company has its customer category in our OEM customers. All target groups are as important as each other, although we communicate with them in different ways and with different types of information and material.

• We mainly reach end customers using traditional mass communication such as advertising, DM, outdoor advertising, event marketing such as trades fairs etc. And also via digital channels such as www and social media.

• The dealers/importers often need sales support in the form of more detailed information and campaign and store material such as hangings, streamers, rollups etc. Here, information and news – such as newsletters directly via the web etc – regarding our brands and products are also important units.

• We communicate with OEM customers via the Ålö brand and mainly through direct contact with the aim of being perceived as a strong and attractive partner. For

this target group information of a news nature can be interesting, too.

In terms of the content of the communication as well, we speak in slightly different ways. Where our end customers are concerned, we use traditional argument, give reasons for choosing our product brands and build relations via new media. We also communicate the ÅLÖ brand with dealers/importers in order to strengthen our role as supplier. It is also important to monitor and control the dealers’/importers’ communication of our brands so that profiles, identities and sales arguments are not diluted by them or take a different direction than what we established.

Our structure of several different target groups sometimes makes our marketing communication complex. The content of the communication and the sender in particular can change – e.g. when the dealer/importer acts as the sender when marketing our product brands. It’s a fact that we have to adapt to, although it is important that we still ensure that our brands’ overall message and look comply with the set guidelines. For specific visual examples, see the design manual.

Target groups

• Endcustomers

• Dealersandimporters

• OEMcustomers

• Competitors(implements)

Summary


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For a long time, our competition structure has comprised many local markets all over the world with local, competing dealers. (Alongside all the end customers on these markets, of course.) On these markets our product brands Quicke and Trima compete with a number of other brands such as MX, Stoll, John Deere, Facheux, Fendt etc. Using regular brand and competitor analyses, we follow how our position in relation to these competitors changes on different markets.

Generally speaking, all our business activities are beginning to see new patterns and behaviors among their customers – in that they are increasingly communicating with and buying from producers directly instead of via intermediates. The Internet plays an important role here, for example.

Obviously, it is important for us to follow this trend carefully so that we can adjust our sales channels quickly if need be. In terms of communication, uniformity, consistency and clarity are even more important in this respect. In an increasingly globalized world, our brands must stand for the same values and be expressed in a similar way everywhere.

Another communication aspect where competition is concerned is how we ourselves appear and behave in the face of rival brands. Here, we follow good market ethics, which means that, first and foremost, we highlight the benefit and advantages to the customer instead of comparing ourselves with competitors. The exception is when we can show that we are better through e.g. comparative tests – conducted entirely by a third, independent party.

Competitors

• Aglobalmarketwithmanylocalcompetitors

• Strongdevelopmentofnew,direct sales channels

• Globalizationrequiresuniformityand clarity

Summary


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Media

•Mediaimagesandmediahabitsare changing constantly

•Wemustbewherethecustomersare

• Wecombinedifferentmediatoboth push & pull

Our choices of media are, of course, important if we are to communicate as effectively as possible with our target groups. One of our obvious objectives is, therefore, that: We must be where our customers are. At the same time, the rapid development of media has made it difficult to take stock of all communication channels. To make things easier, we can divide the choice into two main categories.

Traditional media• Magazine advertising, magazine supplements, press

influence• Trade fairs, demonstrations, customer visits and

suchlike• DM, direct marketing• Moving media such as TV, radio and film• Outdoor advertising such as billboards etc.

Development-intensive media• Internet, including social media such as blogs, Twitter,

Facebook etc.• Email marketing• Mobile services, e.g. SMS, RSS, competitions, surveys • Event and action marketing, e.g. public installations• Relationship marketing such as customer clubs etc.

Whether we use traditional or more recent media, we must choose what is best suited to each individual marketing venture. This often involves using a smart mix of different media channels. Factors which control our choices include the age of the target groups, the specific requirements in the various countries and cultures - and the media cost, of course. Another important factor is experience - if we know a medium works, we use it. Naturally, it is also important to follow developments closely, so that we can swap communication channels quickly.

Media aside, it is also essential that we are consistent in our message for reasons of clarity and impact. We must also have a balance between ’push & pull’. This means, on the one hand, taking the initiative ourselves and, on the other, setting communication hooks to encourage target groups to find out about us.

Summary


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• Twostrongbrandsgiveabroadercompetitiveness

• Differentmarkets,butauniformimage

• Theycomplementeachother,notcompete

• Ålörepresentsfundamentalquality and assurance

SummaryWe currently have two very strong product brands – Quicke and Trima – which together give us a unique competitive advantage: We can offer choice to the market. Quicke appeals to those who value leading engineering and functionality, while Trima attracts those primarily looking for a solid and reliable workmate. It enables us to market two different front loaders without them competing against each other, giving us both breadth and distinction in our offering.

Whatever their preference, customers can be sure that they have chosen the best front loader on the market.

Through their relationship with Ålö, both represent leading quality, ergonomics and the ability to meet all the basic requirements customers all over the world have of front loaders.

Both Quicke and Trima are market leaders or have a very strong position in their relevant main markets. It also gives us the opportunity to position Ålö’s front loaders as BOTH market leaders and challengers (directed at rival brands).

Broader competitivenessto attract more


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Allourproductsarecharacterized by basic advantages such as high quality, good ergonomics and the assurance that they represent the market’s best solution for meeting a customer’s needs. Quicke is also a front loader which has been developed for a target group who increasingly demand modern design, high performance and innovative functions. Our Quicke product therefore has the following prominent profile features:• Design• Exclusive details and functions• Performance

However, brand surveys for Quicke show that the profile features are not totally clear to the target group. The target group’s image of Quicke does not do the real Quicke product justice, in other words. An important communication objective is, therefore, to strengthen and establish Quicke as a brand at the leading edge of design and technological development (without forgetting quality, ergonomics and assurance).

To achieve this objective quickly, we must not just show and describe Quicke’s outstanding details and functions, we must also emphasize Quicke’s personality created by its features.

The Quicke brand’s soft values/personality are:• Outgoing and approachable• Development-conscious, will last• Prestigious, proud of its strengths

It’s important to remember that brand positions are never permanent. The image and perception of the brand is affected by everything from competition conditions and external circumstances to internal changes (organizational and/or product-related). It is therefore vital that we are consistent, uniform and persevering in our communication at all times. It is also why we have created frameworks like those in this communication platform.

• Quickerepresentsdesign,exclusive details & performance

• Quickeisoutgoing,development-conscious and proud

Why Quicke?

Summary


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Like Quicke, Trima is completely equipped with the basic advantages which characterize all Ålö’s products. In other words, high quality, good ergonomics and assurance, which ensure that it always represents the market’s best solution to the customer’s needs. Surveys also show us that the Trima brand is seen by the market as a “solid, reliable workmate”.This is a relevant and good position in terms of:• The large part of the target group who value assurance,

stability and productivity• Our own Quicke brand which is more development-

oriented

Another important strength is that Trima’s reliable and down-to-earth features are closely linked to quality and ergonomics, features which Trima’s competitors often stress in their argument.

In many respects, therefore, Trima has the position we want it to have. But this doesn’t mean we can relax. It’s important that we continue to communicate the brand’s salient features and advantages so that it keeps and

builds on its existing position. One of Trima’s advantages is that (like Quicke) it is a world-leading brand. The fact that the majority choose Trima proves that it meets the market’s requirements by a long way - despite not having the trendiest of images. It generates self-confidence, which is an important part of Trima’s personality. The Trima brand’s soft values/personality are:• Reliability, always works• Sensible, clever• Confident in a down-to-earth and humble way

It’s important to remember that brand positions are never permanent. The image and perception of the brand is affected by everything from competition conditions and external circumstances to internal changes (organizational and/or product-related). It is therefore vital that we are consistent, uniform and persevering in our communication at all times. It is also why we have created frameworks like those in this communication platform.

• Trimarepresentsassurance,stability and productivity

• Trimaisreliable,down-to-earthand safe

Why Trima?

Summary


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Implements is a product segment marketed together with our brands Quicke and Trima, and which are therefore communicated as original equipment for them. Implements are sold to dealers/importers of Quicke and Trima as well as end customers.

The fact that they are communicated as original equipment (although in practice they are not labeled with the relevant brand) is an assurance to the customer. The customer knows that the implements have been developed and made just for their front loader, which guarantees optimum adaptation, quality, performance etc. They also possess the product brands’ soft and emotional features - the customer knows and feels assured that both the front loader and implement promise and represent the same thing.

The fact that we don’t market implements under the parent company’s (Ålö’s) brand is due to clarity. Our aim is to emphasize our products and the implements as logical

accessories consistently. If we also marketed implements ”directly” from Ålö, we risk confusing the customer. Ålö acts as a guarantee in the background, while implements are original accessories for the product brand chosen by the customer.

Implements sold to OEM customers are also marketed as original equipment for the OEM customer’s brand for reasons of consistency. These customers and their dealers/importers/end customers are usually aware of who the market-leading manufacturer is, and the fundamental high quality and good functionality which Ålö represents. Therefore, where possible, we strive to reinforce this knowledge through the brief and discreet information text on OEM implements: ”Design and manufactured by Ålö”. This is not marketing, but discreet information aimed at strengthening the bond with OEM customers and increasing assurance for their end customers.

• Originalequipment(Quicke&Trima)helpsincreasesalestothecustomer

• NeutralequipmenthelpsincreasesalestoOEMandotherbrands

• Doesnotrequireitsownname/brand

Implements

Summary


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Asmentionedearlier, the design manual, our graphical profile, must work with and support the marketing messages we communicate. In basic terms, this is both simple and obvious. If, for example, we write “innovative”, we cannot show a picture which says “traditional”. Texts, images and formats must always pull in the same direction and reinforce each other, so that our communication, and ultimately our brands, are perceived as we want them to be.

Nevertheless, images and idioms can of course be interpreted differently. For some people in our target groups, visual details can cause associations which we, as

the sender, can’t control. We are also aware that there are differences depending on country and region. However, to be able to facilitate variation, it’s extremely important that we act as one and follow the basic guidelines. Otherwise, we will be inconsistent, unclear and eventually weaken our brands’ position rather than strengthen it.

Conclusion: The design manual’s guidelines are very important for ensuring that our visual identity and communication are as clear and precise as possible. If we follow the guidelines consistently – wherever we are – we will give a strong, coherent impression and avoid incorrect interpretations.

• Aconsistentmessageintext,image and format creates clarity

• Thereisalotoffreedomwithintheset frameworks

• Together,westrengthentheproducts’ competitiveness the world over

Graphical consequences

Summary


Documents

Communication Platform - Start - alo.se · PDF fileOur brands – first and foremost Quicke and Trima, but to a certain extent also Ålö – have two types of customers: dealers/importers