Strategic Marketing Analysis: Hootsuite

Dr. Greg Fisher

MKT 415

Emmie Anderson, Stephanie Bachtell, Abby Baum, Olivia Murphy

Proposal
Hootsuite is a social media management tool that helps businesses successfully operate several social
media channels and analyze metrics with ease on one single platform. Even though it is rated as one of the
top social media management platforms, Hootsuite has an overly complex interface that causes confusion
for consumers, particularly small businesses. We propose to simplify the interface, as well as generate a
new, lower pricing strategy that will allow Hootsuite to remain a strong competitor in this field. In order
to successfully employ this strategy, we recommend that Hootsuite utilizes in-house software developers
to reengineer and simplify the platform as a whole, including the interface and the analytics.

Industry Trends
Hootsuite is a popular choice among businesses looking to expand their social media presence through the
use of a third-party tool. It allows integration for several social media platforms, including Facebook,
Twitter, Foursquare, LinkedIn, and many more. It encourages team collaboration and is compatible
among all browsers. However, these features do come with a high price tag. While Hootsuite offers a
“freemium” plan, it does not come with all of the equipment a company may need to enhance their online
presence. In order to get access to all of what Hootsuite has to offer, businesses pay a hefty fee. There are
alternatives on the market that companies may choose to try because of lower monthly charges. Sendible,
SocialPilot, and SproutSocial all offer tiered payment plans based on the needs of the company. While
Hootsuite offers other subscriptions that are priced more affordably, they do not present the same
necessary features that a business, specifically a small business, may need. Hootsuite needs to be
accessible both financially and analytically, to allow users to easily navigate the software at an affordable
price. Social media management platforms are an increasingly popular tool. There is a huge emphasis on
social media in today’s business world because of the easy accessibility to customers. Almost everyone
has a social media account of some kind, so reaching people in this digital age is important for a
business’s success. For this reason, social media management tools will continue to be important and
continue to grow as new social media platforms are created.

Proposed Target Segment

Hootsuite targets an extremely broad range of customers, but they specialize in serving large corporations.
Our marketing team proposes that Hootsuite continues to target this key market segment while improving
pricing strategies to make them a more appealing choice to customers. By bettering Hootsuite’s pricing
strategy and simplifying its interface, our team believes the company can now focus on targeting smaller
companies to increase their customer base.

Decision Criteria for Proposed Target Segment

Hootsuite is a successful company and has helped a large number of clients with social media
management. The company’s current problem, as recognized by our marketing team, is the complexity of
its interface. Reviews of the company constantly highlight the convoluted nature of Hootsuite’s services
and how the pricing strategy is more favorable for a larger companies. Larger companies currently make
up almost all of Hootsuite’s current customers, even though they offer a service that is applicable to any
company with social media accounts, regardless of size. The decision to expand Hootsuite’s current target
market will allow the company to increase profits by turning non-customers into customers.

Measurability
There are a number of ways to measure Hootsuite’s target market segment. It is possible to measure the
number of social media accounts held by companies (i.e. Instagram, Twitter and Facebook). From there,
our team could measure the number of followers coinciding with each of those accounts or even the total
number of social media users. These measurements would show the number of companies Hootsuite
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could attract with their services as well as the number of social media users who could be made aware of
Hootsuite.

Accessibility
The market segments that Hootsuite currently specializes in are achieving success with their social media
platforms due to Hootsuite’s services. Hootsuite has already reached this market segment, which proves it
is accessible. Our marketing team’s proposed goal to reduce prices and simplify the interface will help to
attract additional customers in this market segment as well as customers in our proposed target market,
which we have identified as being smaller companies. As social media usage continues to grow,
companies will realize the importance of managing all their accounts to create more efficient marketing
strategies.

Substantiality
Hootsuite’s current success in marketing to large companies proves that it has substantial reach and helps
many different businesses. Already having reached 10M+ users in 175+ countries provides us with an
opportunity to create testimonial videos to further market to our new non-customer segment. This market,
small businesses, is massive. This means that the potential for adopters of Hootsuite is extensive as well.
The need is there, so it is up to us to take advantage of it. The growth of the importance of social media in
marketing creates a need for Hootsuite’s services that will only become increasingly crucial for the
success of a company.

Responsiveness
Small businesses will be responsive to our proposed market action because Hootsuite’s social media
management services are a tool that small businesses need to better their social media presence. In
addition, they can enjoy benefits of understanding how customers are using and navigating their sites via
the analytics that Hootsuite provides. If the importance of social media was declining, we may be worried
about the responsiveness of our new target market, but this is not the case. Social media is becoming
progressively important, so the ability of companies, both large and small, to efficiently manage their
accounts is critical.

Product Positioning and CVP

Target Customers
Hootsuite is a social media management platform that generally targets large customers in financial
services, healthcare, higher education, and government services, but also works with companies in media
and entertainment, CPG & retail, professional services, travel and hospitality, non-profit, and technology.
Hootsuite proves that its client and consumer base is broad and that any company that manages multiple
social media feeds at once and wants to see them all on one platform can use its interface.

Frame of Reference
The goal of Hootsuite’s users is to be able to easily and successfully manage and analyze metrics of all
channels of their company’s social media channels (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, etc.).

Point of Difference
A big point of difference for potential and current users of Hootsuite is that, according to its website, it is
“the most widely used platform for managing social media.” With over 10 million users across every
country, Hootsuite can be seen as far superior compared to its competitors, such as SocialPilot,
SproutSocial, and Sendible. As the most trusted brand, Hootsuite can enjoy relative advantage over its
competitors.
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Reasons to Believe
With this amount of users comes success stories with major companies who have household names. Case
studies on Hootsuite’s website exemplify success with The Rockefeller Foundation, Five Guys, and the
Australian Open. For The Rockefeller Foundation, Hootsuite enabled a single media post that was able to
reach over 190,000 people. Five Guys was able to keep its brand identity and enhance its personality by
letting over 1,000 franchisees engage on its social media channels. Finally, because of Hootsuite, the
Australian Open was able to generate its highest tickets sales ever (Hootsuite ​Featured Customers​). These
case studies are evidence of the success of using Hootsuite compared to other management tools, and,
because of its success rate, was named a leader in The Forrester Wave™: Social Media Management
Solutions of the Quarter 2 in 2017 (Hootsuite ​Newsroom).

Strategy Canvas (Exhibit I)

To better visualize the blue ocean that Hootsuite encompasses, we compared it to its competitor
SocialPilot. For price, we reasoned that, although SocialPilot is “cheaper” it does not mean that customers
get the same value as the steeper price of Hootsuite. Hootsuite has a longer free version than SocialPilot
and more features.
Eliminate​: ​Need to sign in to separate social media accounts to see metrics
Reduce​: ​Time in reaching consumers, time to react to consumers,
Raise​:​ Tracking the results of various activities, reach of consumers, campaign mentions,
employee engagement, multi-account management, trialability (longer free-trial), usability, better
customer service, more features, in-depth analytics
Create​: ​Ways to monitor discussions within a certain mile radius

Potential Barriers to Adoption

Relative Advantage
Hootsuite’s new interface will create relative advantage for the brand due to the simplicity it offers for
different market segments. Competitors in the field currently utilize a more complex interface, similar to
Hootsuite’s current interface that we intend to reengineer. This relative advantage gives non-customers an
opportunity to take advantage of the service that Hootsuite offers to make their social media management
more efficient, as well as sets Hootsuite apart from customers who may not have chosen them previously.
The lower pricing package we will offer in parallel with the simplistic interface will ensure even further
relative advantage for the brand.

Compatibility
The new, clean interface will increase compatibility within all companies, especially small businesses.
Small businesses may not have the resources or employees to understand the in-depth and complex
analytics that are given with the current Hootsuite interface. If our recommendation is implemented,
Hootsuite’s service will be compatible with a wider range of businesses.

Complexity
The proposed marketing action is centered on decreasing complexity, and our plan will reduce this
complexity in many different ways. This includes the analytics and navigation of Hootsuite’s platform in
general.

Trialability
Hootsuite is successful in offering a free 30-day trial, and this option will continue to be offered with the
new interface, just as it was with the prior one. This trialability is important so customers can see in what

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they are investing. This will be particularly important for new prospective customers so they can see for
themselves how easy to use the service can be. Hootsuite’s current customers will also be given the option
to “test drive” the new interface before they update their account to show the changes.

Observability
For Hootsuite’s new interface, we will share testimonials and case studies from customers who have had
success with Hootsuite. Hootsuite makes managing social media efficient a gives customers the ability to
understand how people are using their website. This lets the company know how it needs to change its
operations to become more profitable. These success stories will give customers a “reason to believe” in
Hootsuite which will further increase the rate of adoption.

Price Strategy and Objective

In its current state, Hootsuite offers three different pricing plans as well as a free 30-day trial. Each
pricing plan is meant to service a different type of business based on their needs. Their professional plan
is $19/mo, the team plan is $99/mo, and the business plan is $499/mo. The business plan allows users to
connect 50 social profiles, permit up to 10 users, and provides unlimited scheduling. It includes all of the
features on the team plan, plus analytic data exports, publishing approvals, premium app integration,
custom branded URLs, and several other benefits that clearly make it the best option. However, many
small businesses that may need this plan the most may not be able to afford the high price tag. Lowering
the monthly subscription prices will allow more business to use Hootsuite, which will compensate for its
losses.

Financing
By lowering prices and reengineering Hootsuite’s interface, customers will have better access to the
software. Initially, it may seem that lowering prices will reduce revenue and profits. However, it is
essential to look at the slope of the demand curve in order to understand how sensitive the market is to
price changes. Social media management has an elastic demand curve, meaning that raising prices will
lower demand and lowering prices will raise demand. Demand may also increase due to the reengineered
interface that will simplify the use of the software. However, this research and development will generate
cost, even with the use of in-house software developers. Reducing the monthly subscription prices will
ultimately increase demand, and acquiring new consumers will help Hootsuite compensate for the
potential losses caused by lowering prices and redesigning the interface.

Impact on Stakeholders
Hootsuite serves the publishing and data needs of numerous stakeholders in different departments.
According to Hootsuite’s marketing executive, Kieron Casey, these stakeholders can collaborate to
publish messages “without trampling over each other’s toes”. Simplifying Hootsuite’s interface and
lowering prices will allow more business to access the software, thus giving more people the opportunity
to interact and connect. Stakeholders will have broader networks and be able to reach more people with
ease. While prices will be lower, Hootsuite will take care of the cost by acquiring more noncustomers.

Call to Action
In conclusion, we have determined that Hootsuite needs to be accessible to businesses financially,
analytically, and in terms of navigation. In order to continue being the market leader in this industry,
in-house software developers must redesign and facilitate Hootsuite’s interface. It is also essential that the
company lowers its monthly prices in order to remain competitive and allow small businesses to
effectively use its services. Implementing these strategies will give Hootsuite the competitive advantage
among opposition within the industry.
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 Citations

Anderson Gray, Ian . “7 Reasons why you should NOT use Hootsuite.” ​Seriously Social with Ian
Anderson Gray​, 15 Mar. 2017, iag.me/socialmedia/reviews/7-reasons-not-to-use-hootsuite/.

Bivin, Kaitlyn. "Hootsuite vs. Sprout Social: Social Media Management Showdown | Blog | Social Driver
Is a Digital Agency in Washington, DC." ​Social Driver​. N.p., 30 Jan. 2017. Web.

Escobar, Mauricio. “TOP 20 REASONS WHY YOU MIGHT NOT USE HOOTSUITE.” ​EDigital ​, 26
May 2017, www.edigitalagency.com.au/social-media-strategy/top-20-reasons-not-use-hootsuite/.

"Hootsuite." ​Featured Customers​. N.p., n.d. Web.

"Hootsuite Harvard Case Solution & Analysis." ​TheCaseSolutions.com​. N.p., n.d. Web.

Inc., Hootsuite Media. "Newsroom - Social Media Marketing & Management Dashboard." ​Hootsuite​.
N.p., n.d. Web.

"Will Lowering Your Prices Increase Profits?" ​Marketing MO​. N.p., 03 May 2017. Web.

Exhibits

I. Strategy Canvas