Proteus Marine: Comprehensive Digital Marketing & UX Enhancement Proposal
DIGITAL ADVERTISING
Market Study
The marine electronics market is experiencing significant growth globally, with a projected Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of around 5% from 2023 to 2029. The market size was approximately USD 5.78 billion in 2022 and is expected to reach USD 8.14 billion by 2029.
The UK, being part of the global market, is also expected to witness this growth. The increase in the market is driven by several factors, including the rising applications of navigation, safety, marine communication, and fishing electronics in the marine electronics industry. There’s also a growing market for marine transportation and a surge in the adoption of sonar and radar systems for search and rescue operations1.
The adoption of GPS systems is another significant driver of market growth. These systems are crucial in determining the position of ships and facilitating immediate rescue operations in emergencies2. The increasing deployment of Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs) and advancements in Synthetic Aperture Sonar (SAS) technology is also expected to contribute to the growth of the marine electronics market3.
In terms of product types, multifunctional navigation, and communication systems dominate the market. The increasing adoption of marine navigation and communication electronics equipment to improve marine communication and monitor and control the movement of marine ships is a key factor contributing to this dominance1.
In conclusion, the marine electronics market in the UK is poised for growth, driven by the increasing adoption of advanced navigation, communication, and safety systems. This presents a promising opportunity for Proteus Marine to leverage its extensive product range and expertise in the marine electronics sector.
Next, I will prepare the consumer habits study, advertising, and media planner for running ads on Google, Meta, and Instagram.
Sources Analyzed:
Marine Electronics Market – Global Analysis and Forecast (2023-2029)
Marine Electronics Market 2030 Overview, Growth, Analysis, Trend ↩
Global Marine Electronics Market to Grow by $1.76 Billion During ↩
Customer Research
Based on the most recent data, here are some key insights into consumer habits relevant to our proposal:
Online Shopping Trends: The pandemic has significantly accelerated the shift towards online shopping. As of 2023, online sales account for close to 20% of all global retail sales, and this figure is expected to rise to nearly a quarter by 2026. In the UK, 47% of consumers carry out at least one online transaction a week, and 29% of online shoppers find it easier to track prices online, indicating a preference for e-commerce over physical stores due to the perceived value for money (source).
Brand Loyalty: With increasing living costs, brand loyalty is being tested. A study by Forbes indicates that 82% of UK shoppers have swapped their usual brands for cheaper substitutes when grocery shopping. More than half of shoppers say that deals or offers make them change their minds about what brand to buy. This suggests that e-commerce brands may need to work harder to retain existing customers and attract new ones, possibly through various deals and offers (source).
Social Media Influence: Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram have become increasingly popular places for consumers to discover, research, and purchase products. In 2021, around 96.9 million US shoppers made a purchase through social media, and this trend is expected to continue growing. By 2025, social commerce earnings in the US are estimated to reach nearly $80 billion. This indicates the importance of having a strong social media presence and strategy for e-commerce businesses (source).
Sustainability: Consumers are becoming more conscious about the environmental impact of their purchases. Eight out of ten consumers said that they would pay up to 5% more for sustainably produced goods. This suggests that e-commerce brands that prioritize sustainability could attract more customers (source).
These insights can help us tailor our advertising strategy for Proteus Marine to align with current consumer habits and preferences. We can focus on highlighting the value for money and quality of Proteus Marine’s products, offer deals and discounts to attract and retain customers, leverage social media platforms for advertising and customer engagement, and emphasize the company’s commitment to sustainability.
Advertising Strategy
Our advertising strategy for Proteus Marine over the next three months will focus on driving sales, increasing brand awareness, and growing the newsletter subscriber base. We will leverage the insights from the market and consumer habits studies to tailor our approach, focusing on value for money, sustainability, and leveraging social media platforms.
Channels
- Google Ads: We will use Google Ads for search advertising, display advertising, and shopping ads. This will help us reach consumers who are actively searching for marine electronics products.
- Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram): Given the increasing importance of social commerce, we will run ads on Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and Audience Network – Meta Partners Wesbite. This will allow us to reach a broad audience and leverage the platforms’ powerful targeting capabilities.
Ad Types
- Search Ads: These ads will appear in Google search results when users search for relevant keywords. They are effective for reaching consumers who are actively looking to buy marine electronics products.
- Display Ads: These ads will appear on websites and apps that are part of the Google Display Network. They are useful for raising brand awareness and retargeting consumers who have visited our website.
- Shopping Ads – Performance Max Ads: These ads will showcase Proteus Marine’s products directly in Google search results in the shopping section, making it easy for consumers to see what products we offer and how much they cost.
- Social Media Ads: We will use a mix of image, video, and carousel ads based on website products on Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and Audience Network. These ads can help drive sales, increase brand awareness, and grow our newsletter subscriber base.
Competition
From a competitive standpoint, our primary competition will be in the Search Ads and Shopping Ads campaigns, resulting in a significant increase in cost per click (CPC). Within this particular market, the monthly search volume is relatively low, typically consisting of a few thousand searches per month. Consequently, for broad keywords such as “marine electronics,” the CPC required to secure a top position amounts to £2.04.
To overcome this challenge, our strategy will center around targeting long-tail keywords. These keywords have lower competition and, consequently, lower CPC rates. However, they attract users who are more relevant and prone to make product purchases, increasing the likelihood of conversion.
Budgets
Given the importance of the holiday season for retail sales, we propose a budget of £8,300 per month for the next three months. This budget will be distributed across the different channels and ad types based on their performance and the specific goals we are trying to achieve.
Target ROI/ROAS
Our target Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) will be 4:1 maybe even higher however, given that new businesses often run at a loss initially when it comes to advertising, we’ll set a more conservative target ROAS of 2:1 for the sales-focused phase of the campaign. This means that for every £1 we spend on advertising, we aim to generate £2 in sales. As we gather more information and refine our strategy, we can aim to increase this target over time.
Goals
- Weeks 1-6
- Information Gathering: Our primary goal in the first 4-6 weeks will be to gather information. We’ll use our advertising campaigns to learn more about our target audience, their preferences, and their behavior. We’ll track metrics like click-through rates, conversion rates, and time spent on site to gain insights that will help us refine our strategy.
- Weeks 7-12
- Sales: After the initial information gathering phase, our focus will shift to driving sales. As a new site, we aim to achieve a steady growth in sales week over week. For the first week of sales-focused advertising, we will set a conservative goal of £2,000 in sales, and aim to increase this by 15% each subsequent week.
- Brand Awareness: Concurrently with our sales goal, we aim to increase brand awareness. Our goal is to achieve a significant increase in brand awareness, as measured by brand recall surveys and an increase in branded search queries.
- Newsletter Subscribers: We aim to grow our newsletter subscriber base by promoting newsletter sign-ups through our ads. Our goal is to acquire 200 newsletter subscribers over the second half of the three-month period.
- 4th Quarter: Given the high season and the insights we’ve gathered over the previous months, we aim to significantly ramp up our sales efforts. Our goal is to achieve £100,000 in sales during Q4 with a 4:1 ROI and a 1% conversion rate. If we anticipate a £100 AOV we would be looking at 1000 new customers and 35.000 new email and push notification subscribers. This is an ambitious target, but it should be achievable given the seasonality and the insights we will have gathered in the first 12 weeks.
- To support this goal, we will increase our advertising budget for Q4 and focus our advertising efforts on the products and strategies that have proven most effective during the initial months. We will also run special holiday promotions and campaigns to attract more customers and drive sales.
- In addition, we will continue to work on increasing brand awareness and growing our newsletter subscriber base, as these will be crucial for driving sales not only in Q4 but also in the long term.
This plan provides a comprehensive approach to achieving Proteus Marine’s advertising goals over the next three months. It leverages the power of Google Ads and social media advertising to reach a broad audience and drive sales, increase brand awareness, and grow our newsletter subscriber base.
Monthly Media Planner
Estimated Clicks 8,545
Estimated Impressions 399,904
Total Net Cost £8,300
| Channel | Type | Placement | Creative format | Targeting | Type of Deal (CPM/ CPC/ CPL) | Gross rate | Estimated Clicks | Estimated Impressions | Platform net cost |
| Google Ads | Search Ads | Text Ads | Keywords | CPC | £1.24 | 1,129 | 11,290 | £1,400.00 | |
| Google Ads | Performance Max | All Network | Product Format | Product Targeting | CPC | £1.05 | 1,905 | 95,238 | £2,000.00 |
| Google Ads | Display ads | All Network | Banners | In-Market, Affinity, Custom Intent, Topics | CPC | £0.85 | 588 | 58,824 | £500.00 |
| Google Ads | Shopping | All Network | Product Format | Product Targeting | CPC | £1.10 | 727 | 36,364 | £800.00 |
| Meta Ads | Catalog Sales | Facebook, Instagram, Audience Network, Messenger | Single Image Ads, Single Video Ads, Carousel Ads | Interests, Behavior, Lookalike | CPC | £0.80 | 3,500 | 175,000 | £2,800.00 |
| Meta Ads | Catalog Sales | Facebook, Instagram, Audience Network, Messenger | Single Image Ads, Single Video Ads, Carousel Ads | Retargeting | CPC | £1.15 | 696 | 23,188 | £800.00 |
| Subtotal | 8,545 | 399,904 | £8,300.00 |