Marketing Plan for Bahrain
Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals (BSPCA)
John Peery
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In which methods for building membership,
increasing volunteer involvement, and
increasing donations are developed and
implemented, along with broadening public
exposure of the organization’s fundamental
mission.
REVIEW OF THE PROCESS
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Using the strategic operational planning process
model described by Andreason and Kotler in
Chapter 3 of the textbook I approached the problem
of developing a marketing plan for BSPCA by
following as many of the analysis, strategy and
implementation steps as I thought could be
reasonably accomplished. In keeping with this
process I developed the following mission,
objectives and goals for the organization:
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Mission – To promote animal welfare in Bahrain and
provide care for unwanted and abandoned animals.
Objectives – To increase awareness of BSPCA
services, to reduce numbers of
unwanted/abandoned pets, to shelter
unwanted/abandoned pets, and to increase
adoption of sheltered animals.
Goals – reduce the unwanted/abandoned pet
population; expand facilities to adequately care for
all animals brought to the shelter; raise at least
1,000 BD (US $2,700) in operating funds per month.
ANALYSIS OF THE ORGANIZATION
AND ITS MARKETS
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Internal analysis of the organization shows there are
two groups involved in the operation of the BSPCA.
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The first is a very small group of dedicated volunteers who
are heavily involved in all aspects of the organization, do
almost all of the day-to-day management of the shelter,
coordinate all the fundraising and animal care functions
and serve as the executive committee.
A second group is comprised of a large number of
occasional volunteers who come to the shelter to assist
with feeding and exercising the animals. The organization
does not have any full-time paid staff but does employ two
part-time workers in the shelter.
Analysis of Internal Factors
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There is no long-term plan for fundraising
Volunteer activities are not well coordinated
The BSPCA shelter and offices are difficult to find for
people who have never been there before
Instructions provided on the web site are hard to
follow for those not familiar with the area of the
island where the shelter is located.
The BSPCA website is well-designed and attractive
but several of the links are dead or outdated,
especially the link to join the organization!
There is no link through which a donation can be
made.
Analysis of External Factors
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Bahrain has a generally limited appreciation for animal welfare
concerns due primarily to a cultural predisposition and lack of
information.
The publics to be served by the BSPCA include but are not limited to; a
large ex-patriot European community who comprise a large proportion
of pet-owners on the island, various government agencies including
municipal governments and national ministries, private corporations,
especially those who employ large numbers of ex-patriot workers; and
families with children (typically a group with pre-sentiment toward pet
adoption).
Economic factors are probably negligible due to Bahrain’s strong
economy and the relatively low-cost of the programs being proposed.
Competitors for volunteers include other charitable organizations that
appeal to the ex-patriot community, as well as a broad indifference,
ignorance or disinterest about animal welfare issues.
Competitors for funds include the same as compete for volunteers.
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There is a unique situation now in which a
tremendous appeal is underway to assist Pakistan
earthquake relief efforts. There is a very large
Pakistani community in Bahrain with friends and
family in the earthquake affected areas. This
situation, while temporary, will make it very difficult
for BSPCA, among other charitable organizations, to
broaden volunteer recruitment and fundraising
simply because there is such a huge demand
elsewhere.
DEVELOPING A MARKETING
STRATEGY
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Once the internal and external environments are analyzed
In order to build membership and increase volunteer involvement
through marketing, must determine who exactly constitutes target
markets
Describe and define those target groups
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Primarily English speaking (not only Brits and Scots, but south Asian
professionals from Pakistan and India) or English is their “working” language,
in the case of Dutch and German workers.
Tend to already belong to one or more fraternal (like the British Club, for
example), charitable (i.e., Lion’s Club and Rotary International) and social
(St. Christopher’s Cathedral Auxiliary, for example) organizations.
Larger corporations that employ large numbers of ex-patriots. These include
BATELCO, BAPCO, BBK and a host of others.
US Navy presence in Bahrain includes many young single adults, many of
whom are motivated to participate in social-cultural exchange and thus make
an ideal target market for volunteers.
Core Strategy
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Core strategy based upon the three core
strategies proposed by Michael Porter and
described on pages 83-84 of the Andreason
and Kotler text. For the BSPCA the two
primary strategies are:
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Differentiation
Focus
The cost leadership strategy is of lesser
importance and will not be addressed
Differentiation
Because there are so many different organizations and activities
competing for the time and money of the target markets, it is necessary to
highlight and promote the ways in which the BSPCA is different, even
unique, from the rest:
 Only organization of its kind in the Kingdom.
 By emphasizing the animal welfare mission, the BSPCA can maintain
differentiation from organizations with other missions.
 Knowing that potential volunteers are going to come from groups with a
predisposition for animal welfare, BSPCA should highlight that theirs is
the only organization that provides these unique types of services and
volunteer opportunities.
 The nature of BSPCA volunteer work is relatively simple as compared
to other types of volunteer activities. There are a broad range of
activities available to BSPCA volunteers, none of which require any
special skill or knowledge.
Focus
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Identifying the target markets most likely to
provide a return on the marketing effort
Campaign Marketing Plan
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Once the core strategy has been identified, a
campaign marketing plan must be developed
which incorporates all that has been learned
about the organization and the target
markets. The three objectives of this
campaign are:
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Increase volunteer involvement
Increase donations, and
Increase awareness of services.
DEVELOPING AND IMPLEMENTING THE
MARKETING PLAN
Following the campaign marketing plan laid out on pages 84-86 of the textbook I put
together the following plan for BSPCA:
Form a focus group made up of representatives from each of the target market
groups. This group would be composed of the following:
President of the BSPCA
Secretary/treasurer of the BSPCA
2 of the most heavily involved, long-term volunteers
2 of the primary benefactors
1 member each from the following organizations; British Club, St Christopher’s
Auxiliary, U.S. Navy, Lion’s Club, and Rotary Club.
1 representative each from major corporate benefactors BATELCO, BAPCO,
and BBK
1 or 2 local pet store owners
1 or 2 local veterinarians
A representative from the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs
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DEVELOPING AND IMPLEMENTING THE
MARKETING PLAN (Cont)
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Send out surveys to each member of this group in
which the core strategies are laid out, including a
discussion of the mission, objective and goals. The
survey would solicit focus group members to
contemplate the three-fold objectives of increasing
volunteer involvement, increasing donations, and
increasing awareness of services.
Sponsor a “retreat” at a local hotel or meeting hall
devoted to brainstorming the three objectives.
DEVELOPING AND IMPLEMENTING THE
MARKETING PLAN (Cont)
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Formulate. Use the results of the retreat to formulate a specific plan.
Some anticipated results of the retreat might include;
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Hold periodic open houses
Direct mail to specialized mailing lists for donations and volunteers
Host free pet health exams at various locations like malls and other
community gathering places
Place advertisements in local media (newspapers and radio)
Involve the US Navy Community Relations coordinator
Organize a “blessing of the animals” event at St. Christopher’s Cathedral
Place posters at pet stores and veterinary offices
Form small teams to visit schools and social clubs
Hire a marketing director
Sponsor fundraising events like 5K “fun runs” and “Walk a Dog Day”
Improve the organization’s site on the World Wide Web.
DEVELOPING AND IMPLEMENTING THE
MARKETING PLAN (Cont)
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Prioritize the list of ideas in order of cost vs. benefit.
Send the prioritized list back to the focus group
members soliciting feedback on their prioritization
and suggestions/methods for their implementation.
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Schedule.
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Look at the calendar and start planning.
Consider which of the ideas can be implemented right
away and which will take more time to plan and execute.
Select only a few so focus and energy can be maintained.
Implement the plan!
DEVELOPING AND IMPLEMENTING THE
MARKETING PLAN (Cont)
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Monitor
 Keep close track on which of the ideas/programs are working and
which are not.
 Consider modifying or eliminating the programs that are not
meeting the objectives.
 Reinforce the programs that are working.
 Reconvene the focus group as the “campaign committee” after
three months and conduct a thorough assessment of the
campaign.
 As new volunteers come into the organization ask them to
complete a survey describing their experience and explaining
what prompted their involvement. Incorporate this feedback into
ongoing or planned programs.
 Continuously review the objectives to determine if they have
been met or if they need to be modified.