Digital Marketing Implementation: Preparing Grace Trans Strategy on

Tiktok App

Mathew Timotius¹, Dika Djatnika²

Universitas Padjadjaran, Indonesia

mathew20001@mail.unpad.ac.id¹, dika.jatnika@unpad.ac.id²

Keywords

Abstract

Grace Trans, STP, TikTok, Social Media Marketing, Thematic Analysis

Grace Trans, a unit of PT Matari Jelajah Indonesia, is a leading transportation and tour and travel company in Indonesia. The company focuses on providing excellent transportation services for children and adults, including corporate transportation, shuttle buses, and tour buses. Despite its success, Grace Trans faces challenges in international marketing due to limited manpower and lack of optimal social media marketing strategies, such as TikTok. To address this, the researcher analyzed the social media landscape through STP and Thematic Analysis, focusing on content and content pillars to effectively promote tourism in Indonesia through social media marketing. The researcher aims to increase its contribution to the international economy and promote Indonesian culture. By using social media platforms such as TikTok, Grace Trans can leverage its strengths and reach a wider audience, ultimately contributing to the country's economic growth and development.

Corresponding Author : Mathew Timotius

E-mail: mathew20001@mail.unpad.ac.id

INTRODUCTION

Travel and tourism allow people from different countries to interact and strengthen interpersonal relationships. This has the potential to facilitate cross-cultural understanding and promote harmony. Tourism plays an important role in expanding a country's economic base, reducing dependence on specific industries, and generating additional income. Tourism is a vital contributor to Indonesia's economic development and acts as a major promoter of cultural exchange and appreciation. Managing tourism efficiently plays an important role in ensuring the preservation of Indonesia's human and natural resources, as well as the long-term protection of its cultural heritage (Timoshenko & Hauser, 2019).

In today's digital era, social media is used as an important tool in marketing and management of the tourism industry (Asikin & Fadilah, 2024). The evolution of social media from a platform for sharing opinions and interacting with others has turned it into a multi-purpose space for promotions, commerce and transactions (Asikin et al., 2024). As technology advances rapidly, Grace Trans plans to establish a marketing division in the near future which will focus on shuttle services as well as tour and travel operations. The shuttle services department will target corporate transportation and school shuttle services in its marketing efforts. On the other hand, the tour and travel marketing division will concentrate exclusively on promoting services in the tour and travel industry (Rahardja, 2022).

Among the popular platforms, with more than 875 million users worldwide, more than 58 million companies, and 2.7 million companies active daily on LinkedIn (Macready H, 2023), the features of these platforms, such as company pages, content creation, employee advocacy, and community engagement, making it an ideal tool for corporate branding and reputation management (Järvinen & Karjaluoto, 2015). Grace Trans is one of the business units of PT. Matari Jelajah Indonesia which operates in the field of transportation and tours and travel. Grace Trans was founded because a housewife was concerned about the transportation needs of school children, realizing the importance of shuttle services which really help parents to pick up and drop off their children safely while they are busy working (Sawlani & SE, 2021);(Chaffey & Smith, 2022).

Grace Trans strategically prioritizes the best service and customer experience, strategically partnering with multiple vendors to expand its services and transportation network. Initially focused solely on school pick-up and drop-off services, Grace Trans has diversified its offerings to include a wider range of products and services. The latest offerings include a variety of transportation services including corporate shuttles, bus rentals for tourists, buses for school functions, event transportation, and luxury cars for weddings available for daily, weekly, and monthly rentals (De Pelsmacker et al., 2018). Therefore, Grace Trans has developed into a Transportation & Tourism company with a comprehensive service approach.

Grace Trans also maintains partnerships with leading corporate clients, including Suntory Garuda Food Indonesia, with whom they have worked together since 2014 to offer car rental services under contractual agreements (Zainal Arifin et al., 2023). In addition, Grace Trans has established a business partnership with PT CAS for vehicle rental services since April 2017. Grace Trans is not ready to expand into the global market at this time due to labor shortages and an ineffective social media strategy, including the lack of use of TikTok. According to statistics, LinkedIn also plays an important role in marketing strategies and improving corporate branding. Grace Trans has not yet fully exploited the full potential of social media (Gupta et al., 2021).

The purpose of this research is to determine which social media platforms and strategies should be used through STP analysis and Thematic Analysis that will be implemented by Grace Trans as well as analyzing content and creating content pillars to start attracting tourists to Indonesia through social media marketing.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Social Media Marketing Strategies (SMMS)

SMMS is an integrated approach within an organization that, after carefully evaluating what motivates customers to use social media regarding their brand and executing planned engagement initiatives, turns networking and interactions on social media into a valuable strategic tool for achieving desired marketing goals. This definition is simple because it captures the uniqueness of the social media phenomenon, considers the basic premises of marketing strategy, and clearly defines the scope of activities related to SMMS. (Li et al., 2021).

Social media strategic objectives refer to specific organizational goals that will be achieved through the implementation of SMMS (Choi & Thoeni, 2016). These goals can vary from transactional to relational-oriented, depending on the strategic mental model of the business-customer interaction (Rydén et al. 2015).

Social Content Strategy, Social Monitoring Strategy, and Social CRM Strategy

Figure 1. Content Pillar for TikTok Grace Trans

Social Content Strategy refers to “the creation and distribution of educational and/or engaging content in a variety of formats to attract and/or retain customers”. This strategy aims to create and deliver timely and valuable content based on customer needs, rather than simply promoting products (Järvinen and Taiminen, 2016). Social media in this strategy is often used as a communication tool for branding and Word of Mouth (WOM) purposes (Holliman & Rowley, 2014).

Companies produce content through their own efforts on social media, known as ‘enterprise-generated’ or ‘marketer-generated’ content, to actively engage consumers (Li et al., 2021). Additionally, the company also encourages customers to generate content called 'user-generated content', through customer interactions such as exchanging comments and sharing brand-related content. In this way, companies provide valuable content in exchange for network assets and customer persuasion capital, in order to generate positive WOM and achieve trusted and sustainable brand status (Li et al., 2021).

In pursuing Social Content Strategy, companies build capabilities that focus on content design and presentation (expressed in social messaging strategies) as well as content distribution (expressed in seeding strategies) (Li et al., 2021). Understanding customer engagement motivations and the interactive characteristics of social media is important in designing valuable content and facilitating customer interactions that stimulate content sharing.

Social Monitoring Strategy refers to “a process of listening and responding in which marketers themselves engage” (Barger et al., 2016). In contrast to a social content strategy that is more of a “push” communication approach with content delivery, a social monitoring strategy requires the company's active involvement in the entire communication process, from content delivery to customer response (Barger et al., 2016). This strategy is characterized by a two-way communication process, where initiation comes from customers commenting and interacting on social media, while the company utilizes customer behavior data to listen, learn, and react to its customers (Li et al., 2021).

Social media monitoring allows companies to assess consumer reactions, evaluate the success of social media marketing initiatives, and allocate resources to different types of conversations and customer groups (Homburg et al., 2015). Thus, customers in this strategy are expected to be active in social media interactions, providing instant and real-time feedback, which helps product development and experience improvement based on customer knowledge.

Social Monitoring Strategy relies heavily on the importance of listening to and responding to customer social media activities to understand customer needs, gain market insight, and build strong relationships with customers (Timoshenko & Hauser, 2019). Therefore, an organization's ability to detect marketing through effective information acquisition, interpretation, and response is critical to the successful implementation of this strategy.

Social CRM Strategy is designed to combine the benefits that come from social media dimensions, such as customer engagement, and CRM dimensions, such as customer retention. In contrast to the traditional CRM approach which considers customers to be passive and only contribute to the customer's lifetime value, the Social CRM strategy emphasizes the active role of customers who are driven by social media and can contribute to various forms of value. In short, Social CRM strategy is a form of collaborative interaction that involves interactions between companies and customers, between organizations, and between customers. The goal of these interactions is to engage and empower customers, thereby building a mutually beneficial relationship with the company and resulting in superior performance.

Social CRM capabilities are "enterprise-level capabilities that refer to a company's competency in generating, integrating, and responding to information obtained from customer interactions facilitated by social media technology" (Meyliana et al., 2014). Therefore, companies must be very creative in combining social media data with their CRM systems, as well as linking social media big data about customer activity with other data sources, such as customer service records, to generate better customer learning and innovation opportunities (Choudhury & Harrigan, 2014).

Customers at this stage are collaborative and interactive in value creation, such as providing innovative ideas voluntarily and collaborating with brands (Jaakkola & Alexander, 2014). Therefore, in addition to resources such as network assets, persuasion capital, and knowledge, engaged customers also provide their creative resources for value co-creation. Social CRM capabilities, organizational learning capabilities connected to relationship management, and innovation are important prerequisites for building an effective Social CRM strategy (Li et al., 2021).

RESEARCH METHODS

The method used in this research is a qualitative research method. Qualitative research methods are research processes that aim to understand social phenomena that occur. In this method, researchers create a comprehensive picture that is translated into words to report in detail the data obtained from informants. This data consists of views and opinions which are then compiled into scientific background.

This qualitative research method was chosen by the researcher because the aim was to obtain an overview of the facts in the form of a social media marketing strategy approach for the Grace Trans TikTok account, which was obtained through interviews and case studies, not statistical data.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Correlation of Social Content Strategy

Social Content Strategy has a significant relationship with implementing digital marketing strategies on platforms like TikTok. In the context of this research, social content strategy involves creating and distributing valuable and engaging content to attract and retain customers. TikTok, as a highly interactive social media platform, offers Grace Trans the opportunity to develop creative and interactive content to increase brand awareness and user engagement.

By utilizing a Social Content Strategy, Grace Trans can design content that not only promotes their services but also provides educational and entertainment value to users. This approach is in accordance with the findings of Pulizzi and Barrett (2009) who stated that social content strategy must focus on creating and delivering content based on customer needs. In addition, using this strategy allows Grace Trans to actively interact with their audience through comments, likes, and shares, which can strengthen the relationship between the company and customers.

This strategy also allows companies to utilize user-generated content, which can expand reach and increase brand credibility through Word of Mouth (WOM). In this way, Grace Trans not only provides valuable content but also benefits from active customer engagement, which ultimately can generate customer loyalty and improve marketing performance.

Implementing a Social Content Strategy on TikTok also requires a deep understanding of the demographic and psychographic characteristics of the platform's users. This way, Grace Trans can adapt their content to be more targeted and relevant to various audiences. This is in line with research by Malthouse et al. (2013) who emphasize the importance of understanding customer engagement motivations in designing effective and interactive content.

Overall, the relationship between Social Content Strategy and digital marketing implementation on TikTok shows that with the right content strategy, Grace Trans can achieve their marketing goals more effectively, increase brand loyalty and expand their customer base.

Grace Trans TikTok Management

Grace Trans's TikTok account management involves a marketing team dedicated to creating and managing content. This team is responsible for planning, creating, and posting content that is engaging and in line with the company's marketing goals. In the interview, the Marketing Manager explained that TikTok content was created to attract the attention of the target audience and promote Grace Trans' services in a creative and informative way. Foreign words or terms are used in italics (Italic). It is best to avoid using foreign terms for Indonesian language articles. The new paragraph starts 1.15 cm from the left border, while there is no space between paragraphs.

Use of Strategy in the TikTok Grace Trans Application

The Grace Trans marketing team uses various strategies to increase visibility and engagement on the TikTok platform. According to the General Manager, these strategies include using relevant hashtags, collaborating with influencers, and creating trendy content that suits the audience's interests. The Marketing Staff added that they also utilize TikTok features such as live streaming and challenges to further engage the audience. The use of tables and figures must be mentioned in the text by mentioning table 1; figure 1 and so on.

Targets Achieved by the Grace Trans TikTok Account

The Grace Trans TikTok account has succeeded in achieving several important targets since its launch. Based on interviews with Marketing Managers, some of the targets achieved include increasing the number of followers, increasing engagement rates, and increasing brand awareness. The General Manager also mentioned that through TikTok, they succeeded in attracting the attention of new corporate clients and increasing service bookings.

Implementation of the TikTok Grace Trans Strategy using the STP Approach and Thematic Analysis

Implementation of the TikTok Grace Trans strategy uses a Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning (STP) approach as well as Thematic Analysis. In the interview, the Marketing Manager explained that they segment their audience based on demographics, interests, and behavior. After that, they target the segments that best suit the services offered by Grace Trans. Positioning is carried out by highlighting Grace Trans's competitive advantages through authentic and informative content.

Based on the results of the interview above, a pattern emerges which shows that Grace Trans has not implemented a strategy to optimize their TikTok account. The informants indicated that Grace Trans's TikTok account had not been managed optimally and optimally. It can be concluded that the Grace Trans TikTok account has not been fully utilized, lacks a fixed strategy, and the content is still monotonous and less interesting, which could have been optimized better.

Content Pillars

Figure 2. Content Pillar for TikTok Grace Trans

Starting with Functional Content, this type of content includes practical elements such as informative articles, tutorials, and promotional materials. For example, content that explains and details the specifications of vehicles available for rent.

Emotional Content reflects the company's empathy for the global tourism sector, featuring content about the 4 SDGs related to tourism or quotes from well-known international and national figures.

Educational Content functions as an educational tool, providing customers with knowledge about tourism. Examples include explanations of terms such as Sustainable Tourism, Ecotourism, and other concepts related to tourism.

Agile content refers to content that is flexible and adaptable. Examples include posts about the latest tourism trends, compilation videos of customers using Grace Trans services. While testimonial content falls into this category, its use is currently less than optimal, with issues such as TikTok “sounds” and “hashtags” not fully complementing the content presented.

Event Calendar

Based on the interviews conducted, it is clear that Grace Trans does not yet have an Event Calendar to guide and remind the marketing team about the content that needs to be created and posted on their social media platforms. Implementing an Event Calendar will make it easier for marketing teams to organize and schedule content more efficiently.

The use of content marketing portfolios has become popular due to the increasing demand to evaluate the value of content marketers before using their services.

This portfolio not only allows content marketers to demonstrate their capabilities but also allows buyers to assess the quality of the services offered. The Events Calendar proves to be a valuable tool in organizing marketing activities, serving as a reminder, and providing a comprehensive view of upcoming content and the types of posts that need to be developed.

Figure 3. Event Calendar for Grace Trans

In the Event Calendar described, it is clear what content has been scheduled and what type of content is planned by the company/organization for one month. This tool can be utilized on a monthly or annual basis, making it easy for readers to review scheduled activities and content plans.

Content creation is carefully regulated by standards set by the company or organization. Production of high-quality content plays a central role in attracting customer interest. Informative and valuable content increases brand visibility, strengthens trust, and strengthens relationships with customers. Additionally, engaging content stimulates interaction and engagement, facilitates conversions, and increases customer loyalty. An effective content strategy allows companies to differentiate themselves in a competitive environment and achieve marketing goals more efficiently.

CONCLUSION

The current implementation of digital marketing initiatives at Grace Trans has not reached optimal standards and is characterized by a lack of conformity with established concepts. Apart from that, the company also does not have a consistent marketing strategy, which can be seen from ad hoc or direct marketing activities. Deficiencies are also apparent in the management and maintenance of their social media presence. Additionally, Grace Trans also lacks a structured approach to digital marketing, which is mostly limited to displaying video testimonials and photos of rental units. By implementing the content creation strategies and guidelines proposed in this study, the author aims to guide Grace Trans towards future digital marketing practices that comply with established standards. It is hoped that refining Grace Trans' digital marketing strategy to suit the organization's needs will facilitate growth. This research seeks to meet this need and contribute to improving the effectiveness of Grace Trans' digital marketing.

Based on the findings of the qualitative study, there are several suggestions for future researchers. First, it is recommended to involve a wider number of participants with diverse backgrounds and demographics to enrich the data collected. Second, triangulation methods such as combining interviews with observation or document analysis will increase the validity of the findings. Additionally, future research could focus more on specific aspects that have not been sufficiently explored in this study, thereby providing a more comprehensive understanding of the topic. Finally, future researchers must maintain ethical standards by ensuring participant confidentiality and building strong relationships to obtain reliable and in-depth data.

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