It was the Monday morning after the Phoenix race. Erica Jackson, chief marketing officer of the Mendoza Marathon Corporation, had risen early to watch people line up to register for next year’s event and expected an enthusiastic crowd. But when she walked into the field, she saw only dour looks and slumped shoulders.
Case Study: When You Have to Choose Between Core and New Customers
An extreme sports company considers a VIP tier.
June 26, 2017
Summary.
In this fictional case study, the new CMO of a company that runs extreme races, combining aspects of ultramarathons and military-style obstacle courses, is on the hook to come up with a way to further monetize the underexploited brand while also fixing customer pain points around the registration process. The solution she and the COO have come up with – a premium membership that allows diehard fans to buy early access to race registration – isn’t being well received in initial online tests. Should the company pull the plug or move forward potentially upsetting the company’s small group of most loyal customers?