Telecenter Operations and Marketing Plan
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Project DescriptionThe production of this Operations and Marketing Plan is designed as a developmental tool to assess the operational and physical requirements, potential markets, market niches, key partnerships, financial feasibility and operational methodologies for the Klamath Telecommunications Telecenter. This plan is a comprehensive document designed to research, cite and develop the ideas, infrastructure needs, budgets and potential community based uses for a successful, accessible and operational telecommunications facility. The Operations and Marketing Plan are envisioned to be living documents throughout the life of this project. The finished Telecenter facility and programs will grow out of the conclusions drawn by these two plans combined with the visions, goals and needs of the stakeholders.Through the course of this document a logical and detailed procedure is outlined to determine the feasibility of the project as a whole and to thoroughly analyze potential markets, their related products and services, the most appropriate physical layout of the facility and its corresponding technology needs.
The Telecenter outlined in this plan is designed to serve as the centralized communications hub for the greater, countywide Televillage. The Televillage is an overall strategy developed to engender a culture of technological fluency designed to insure Klamath County remains a place in which to do business in the 21st century. The following sections of the plan outline in detail the participants, procedures, goals, methodologies and planned outcomes for the design and construction of the Telecenter.
The Telecenter is designed to be the central focus and physical location of a hub based system of telecommunications reaching out to all of Klamath County. In the final Phase, Telecenter Access Points (TAPS) will be established at geographically dispersed locations, providing all the citizens of Klamath County with access to the cross section of comprehensive services provided by the Telecenter and Televillage. The Telecenter is envisioned to be a user friendly, public access facility, open to all the citizens, businesses and organizations of Klamath County.
In conclusion, this plan will present accurate and detailed recommendations as to the most probable successful service and product mix, size and physical layout of the facility and the most appropriate on sight technologies. The plan will also identify and demonstrate the most likely user profiles, the most responsive manner in which to maximize these markets and the corresponding expected revenue streams. Finally, the plan will recommend levels of staffing, potential partnerships with business and educational institutions and organizational structures based upon the best and most comprehensive research available.
Profile of Participants and Procedures
The Telecenter project is the creation of a partnership between the stakeholders of Klamath County, represented by the Klamath Telecommunications Consortium and the Klamath County Economic Development Association, Oregon Institute of Technology, Klamath Community College and other key partners. These groups, working together, secured the funding necessary to begin the development process for the project. The project evolved from a community, government, education and business based partnership to promote the continued growth and economic viability of Klamath County. Each of these organizations will influence and determine the final shape, location, operations and mission of the Telecenter.
Oregon Public Affairs Research Consultants (PARC), an independent professional consulting firm, has been retained by KCDC and the South Central Oregon Telecommunications Consortium (SCOT) to draft an Operations and Marketing Plan. This plan will focus on specific product and service lines. The Operations Plan will attempt to define the potential products and services to be offered at the temporary location, and the permanent facility. The plan will also make informed recommendations about the physical layout of the facility, the technological infrastructure and staffing considerations. The plan will also seek to balance the interests, needs and projected uses of the Telecenter among the participants. The recommendations provided by PARC, through the Operations and Marketing Plan will be subject to review and refinement by KCEDA, KTC and the stakeholders of Klamath County.
The Telecenter project is the result of important ongoing partnerships in Klamath County region. The full inclusion of the many partners (PARC, OIT, KCC, KCEDA and others) will directly impact the opportunities provided to the stakeholders of this community in the final form of the finished Telecenter. Therefor, it is critically important that PARC act as a facilitating agent to bring together all of the contributors to produce a mutually supporting process and product
Mission of Telecommunications Consortium
The Mission of the South Central Oregon Telecommunications Consortium is to improve the communityŐs access to telecommunications and digital technologies in a coordinated, county wide effort, to enhance and promote the competitiveness of the area work force and area businesses, and to encourage a more informed citizenry.
Through the development of this Operations and Marketing Plan, PARC will work to insure the objectives and priorities established serve to enhance the mission of the Telecenter and Televillage.
Goals of Operations Plan
The Operations Plan has the overall goal of determining the financial feasibility of the operating budget considerations for the Telecenter. Through the research and analysis conducted in the creation of the Operations Plan, critical information will be provided on operating models for products and services, marketing, appropriate technical infrastructure, staffing, budgets and the development of partnerships with key players in the region. The operations plan is intended to provide guidelines for developing the operations at the temporary Telecenter location. Based upon the outcomes at the temporary location, the plan will recommend structures and models and guidelines for inclusion at the permanent facility.
Through the creation of operating models for the Telecenter, the Operations Plan will examine the viability of core products and services as they are established, marketed and utilized in the temporary Telecenter location. Based upon the measured success, or lack of success, of these products and services in the temporary location, recommendations for the enhancement or elimination of the products and services will be made in regards to the permanent product and service mix at TelecenterŐs permanent location. Lastly, the Operations Plan will incorporate the vision and defined needs of the stakeholders of the community to incorporate any products or services omitted in the research process.
As a part of the process to create appropriate operational models, the Operations Plan will seek to identify likely niche customers for Telecenter services through demographic and psychographic profiling. The demographic analysis of the customer base will tell us who the likely customers are. The psychographic analysis will inform us as to why they will buy products or services. To a large extent these two pieces of discrete information will shape the choices for product and service offerings at both the temporary location, and consequently at the permanent Telecenter location.
As a part of the research process, the Operations Plan will investigate and analyze similar successful programs and facilities in other locations and settings. The Operations plan will utilize the information and models from other successful Telecenter locations to inform the product and service mix, operational models, physical infrastructure and likely user profiles for this project.
Based upon the research identifying likely customers, a suitable product and service mix, the characteristics of other successful models, the information will then be available to construct workable operational models, and importantly, a workable pricing structure for the Telecenter products and services. Once a pricing model is established for goods and services, the Operations Plan will have the ability to present a realistic revenue stream projection. The revenue stream will allow forecasting for the activity levels and cash flow characteristics of the new facility. The revenue stream model will then provide the information needed for the production of detailed operational and budgets and goals.
The information provided by the Operations Plan for successful and appropriate operational models, budgets, cashflow models and market niches will allow the creation of the subsequent Marketing plan included in Part Two of this document.
The following eight points will be explored an analyzed in order to develop a detailed description of the process and goals for successful completion of the Operations Plan.
Products and Services Offered
Potential products and services to be provided in the temporary location of the Telecenter will be identified and examined. Based upon this analysis and key partnership feedback, the Operations Plan will identify the proper products and services mix for consideration in conjunction with the Telecenters move to the permanent location. The plan will also seek to identify the key partnerships, resources and opportunities for providing those products and services that may be introduced later in the process.
Customer and User Profiles
The Operations Plan will profile the potential customers and facility users. Utilizing demographic and psychographic measures the Plan will seek to determine the primary and secondary users of identified market niche product offerings. The plan will provide trending information on the identified market niche for each products and services identified for the Telecenter development. The plan will identify perceived market value to aid in the pricing of goods and services offered by the Telecenter.
Market Capture Rates and Revenue Streams
Revenue stream forecasts will be provided based on likely market capture rates for niche market customers for each of the identified products and services offerings. The Plan will also provide trending information forecasting market growth rates, stabilization points and eventual market erosion points. The plan will also seek to identify pricing strategies that will best enable the Telecenter to capture enough market to meet revenue generation requirements. Recommendations will also be made for capturing revenue sources that are not tied to fee for service such as convention space rental or granting support possibilities.
Special Considerations
The Operations plan will outline the equipment, start-up costs and operating budget items that would be required to create a Telecenter assuming there were no strategic partnerships with other participating consortium members. By identifying these parameters as they relate to operating a for- profit business, we will create a baseline for developing the value of services provided by strategic partners.
Partnerships and Innovations
Cooperative partnerships and other innovative operations options that could be developed to provide the expertise, technology and other elements essential to the delivery of identified products and services, will be a major component of this analysis. The Plan will also provide documentation as to the likelihood of the development of such relationships and will define and discover the expectations these partners prior to entering into a partnership agreement. Part of the analysis provided will be to outline the steps required to create these partnerships and an analysis of the impact of such agreements, both financial and logistical.
Budget and Management
Budget and management considerations will be outlined and defined. The Plan will include an analysis of staffing and management requirements. In association with previously defined partners, a model staffing plan will be developed. Hours of operation appropriate for the scope of project and other details that will impact operating budgets and staffing plans will be addressed. The Plan will also define the level of marketing funds needed to maintain market capture rates as defined in the revenue stream forecast, and will project maintenance costs, retooling costs when required and identify the equipment and software costs associated with fulfilling the mission of the Telecenter.
Financial Feasibility
The financial feasibility of the operating budget will be assembled and projected based upon the results and conclusions derived from analysis of the individual components of the Plan. Based upon the products and services mix, customer/user profiles, revenue stream forecast and product service development considerations the economic feasibility and sustainability of the Telecenter project will be presented. The analysis will include most likely avenues and areas of success and the bulk of the information necessary to make a well informed decision of how, where and why to proceed.
Recommendations
Recommendations will include an analytical review of the Telecenter and will clearly identify the steps necessary for successful implementation and operation of the Telecenter over the next six months, twelve months, two years and five years. Based on these recommendations, we will present timelines and measurements to be used to assure the Telecenter is developed within the guidelines and recommendation of the Operations Plan
Goals of Marketing Plan
Assuming the Operations Plan produces a favorable assessment of feasibility for a Telecenter in this community, a Marketing Plan will be produced to attract market niches and potential customers outlined in the Operations Plan. The niche products and services in the Operations Plan and the resulting target audience will serve to position the product and service line of the Telecenter. In other words, the positioning will determine how the product and services of the Telecenter should be presented and what the overall marketing philosophy is. A central mission of the Marketing Plan is to create and outline pathways enabling the key partners to maximize their respective visions and priorities within the framework of identified potential market niches.
As individual products and services are defined and outlined, individual marketing plans will be developed to capture markets, establish price points, asses product longevity and break even points. The Marketing Plan will also serve to identify what distinct population the Telecenter is marketing towards, and what their market interests are i.e. what the customer base will look for in products and what they will be willing to pay for those products. As a result of those determinations individual, specialized marketing plans illustrating specific pathways for marketing the niche products from each phase and part of the Telecenter will be provided. Accordingly, these niche-marketing plans will serve to highlight the best avenues for reaching distinct target markets.
The Marketing Plan is designed to be applicable for each phase of the Telecenter development. The plan will produce positioning statements (what we provide and why), product service philosophies and pricing models for products and services provided at the temporary and the final location. A process of measurable goal definition, projected outcomes, specific actions to be taken and timelines for decisions regarding the products and services offered at the Telecenter will be provided for each phase of the Telecenter. The success, or lack of success, for products and services at the temporary site will act as test marketing settings for products to be included in the final Telecenter organization.
Another objective of the Marketing Plan is to simultaneously identify pathways for marketing success and to determine if those pathways coincide and support existing products, services and programs of the key partners. The plan will work to support and expand existing roles and objectives of the key partners within the framework of identified Telecenter products and services. We will look for ways to produce winning situations for all the interested partners.
Source Document
As an appendix to both the Operations Plan and the Marketing Plan(s) final section will provide a detailed bibliography of source materials used in the preparation, analysis and recommendations of the Operations and Marketing Plan(s). Personal interviews will be cited and recorded by date and time. All surveys and market analysis instruments will be presented, along with their rational for use and development. Statistical tables, demographic information, journals and academic sources will be fully cited along with all other sources, for review by the partners in the development of the Marketing and Operational Plans, and of the Telecenter project.
The references provided in this section are designed to allow anyone to replicate our work by retracing the research steps taken to produce the Operations and Marketing Plans.
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