Eddy Wouters, VP Logistics Europe, APL Logistics gets many laughs and lots of good feedback as he speaks on '3PL Branding & Marketing' at the 7th European 3PL Summit in Brussels, November 25th 2009. To download all of the slides from the conference for free visit www.3PLsummit.com/eu_2009ppts

1. 3PL Branding & Marketing
25th November 2009

2. Company Introduction
NOL
Founded: Singapore 1968
1997: Acquisition of APL (Oakland 1848)
2008
Turnover: $ 9.3 bn
10,000 staff in 115 countries
Business Units
APL (Container Shipping, $ 7.4 bn)
APL Terminals (Container Ports, $ 0.6 bn)
APL Logistics (3PL, $ 1.3 bn)
1

3. APL Logistics (3PL)
International Logistics Services
United
Kingdom
Canada
Supply Chain Solutions & Forwarding Germany
Benelux
France
USA
(850,000 TEUS)
Portugal Italy
Spain Turkey South Japan
Lebanon China Korea
Tunisia Israel Jordan
Morocco Bahrain
Pakistan
Bangladesh
Mexico Egypt
UAE India
Dominican Republic Myanmar
Honduras Oman
Guatemala
Nicaragua Thailand Vietnam Philippines
El Salvador Malaysia
Costa Rica Colombia
Panama
Contract Logistics Services Kenya
Sri Lanka Brunei
Singapore
Indonesia
Peru
Brazil
Warehousing & Distribution Madagascar
Mauritius Australia
Fiji
Chile
APL Logistics Argentina
Uruguay
(1.7 million sqm) South Africa
Worldwide Presence
Offices / local partners
2

4. 3PL
Branding
&
Marketing
3

5. Marketing: It's all about competing…
…for the ultimate goal:
getting to the RFP
&
retaining / winning the business!
4

6. 10 minutes to go… you can do it!
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7. 3PL Market – Recent Developments
• Crowded and fragmented market
• Fast growing demand for 3PL services
• Customers of all sizes and industries with fast changing needs
• Many providers have expanded rapidly, geographically and in
services scope
• Growth through acquisitions and mergers
• Brands disappear, new brands emerge
• Greater pressure to gain and retain business
• Buyer confusion leading to commoditisation and price
compression
BRANDING IS REQUIRED TO DIFFERENTIATE
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8. Brand
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9. Brand
• A name, term, sign, symbol or design that identifies the services of
a seller and differentiates them from those of competition (Kotler &
Armstrong)
• A brand reminds the marketplace what a company stands for and
what it does
• A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn
reputation by trying to do hard things well
• A brand name is more than a word. It is the beginning of a
conversation
• Brand value is very much like an onion. It has layers and a core.
The core is the customer who will stick with you until the very end
UNIVERSAL AGREEMENT ON BRAND VALUE
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10. Differentiation
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11. Differentiation
• Define and select unique areas of differentiation
• Internal process
Global Yet… customers expect
Footprint local flexibility
Superior Yet… we need to differentiate
IT from pure IT providers
High Quality Yet… customers expect to get prices
Customer Service in line with "no frills" 3PL's
Excellent Yet… need to remain
Execution asset light
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12. I was losing you… Stay focused
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13. Communication
Customers CHANNELS
MESSAGES Mass Media
Investors
Media Specialty Press
Direct (E-) Mailing
Compelling
Website
Consistent
Integrated Conferences
Memorable Communication Contests/Awards
Succinct Plan
Surveys
Executive
Interaction
Employees
Suppliers / Partners Customer Facing
Government / Regulators
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14. Marketing Challenges In The B2B 3PL Industry
• Poor market share data
• Lack of research on marketing effectiveness
• Message or medium?
• Limited articulated differentation between providers
• Focus on short term / tactical actions
• Easy target for cost reduction programmes
• Still an operations & sales driven market
• Marketing functions low on the organisational food chain
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15. Influencing The Purchase Decision
Awareness
MARKETING
BRANDING Acceptance
Preference
SALES
Choice
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16. Don't let me down – hang on in there
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17. Some Good Practices (In A Depressed Market)
• Strategy before tactics
• Invest in an effective CRM application – enhancing control and
measurement of marketing efforts and results
• Apply search engine optimisation (SEO) on your website
• Maximise your marketing efforts in industry vertical specific
messaging
• Invest in identification of the decision makers and influencers
• Never move away from your basic messages – unless your
strategy changes
• Stimulate intense interaction with external stakeholders about your
company's reputation and perceived differentiation
CREATE STAKEHOLDER INTIMACY
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18. BUT most effective of all…
Let your customers do your marketing
through word of mouth!
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19. CONGRATULATIONS, YOU'VE MADE IT! ☺
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20. Thank You
(Bon Appétit ☺)