Themaritime industry ishighlydynamic
withaconstantdemand forgreater
productivity,efficiencyandsuperior
customerservice.Howaportchooses to
meet thosedemands iscrucial to its
profitabilityandsustainability.
TheMarketingDepartment inaportplaysa
crucial role in securing theseandother
demands.Yet,marketing is sometimes seen
byoutsidersasanaddendum to themain
portbusinessofmovinggoods–a“nice-to-
have”rather thana“must-have”in theworldof
maritime logistics.
When it comes toensuringcustomer
satisfactionand retentionat thePortof Port
Spain, clientsare remarking theMarketing
Department isdefinitelya“must-have”. In fact,
marketing is integral to thedevelopmentof
theentireorganisation– theplacewhere the
overall strategiesarebrokendown intoa
numberof innovativemarketing initiatives.
Internally,MarketingManager, Sandra
Henry, is supportingefforts toengagewith
employees.“Wewantour staff to forman
emotional connectionwithwork,”she says.
“That is thekey togetting them tocare, to
instillingattention todetail andultimately to
improvingproductivity. Andwecanachieve
thisbygivingourpeople theopportunity to
be innovative, togrowand todevelop.”
While this contributes toacompetitive
advantage, Henryacknowledges that it isnot
thewhole story. Several other factorshelp
formaprofitableand sustainable future for
thePort of Port of Spain.
Improving the relationshipwithall
stakeholders, from small hauliers toglobal
shipping lines, andpartneringwith them is
vital. This currently forms thebackboneof
theport’smarketingefforts, andwill do so
for the foreseeable future.
The successof theprogrammecanbe
seen in the4% increase involume in2013.
Efforts in this areawill be intensifiedwith
increasedclient visits. Feedback ispositiveon
theworkbeingdone to improve the image
and serviceof theport.
Anumberof supportingprogrammesare
beingdone to further thePort-Client
relationship. In2013, theportheld itsfirst
CustomerAppreciationDay, a funevent that
alsoenabledclients tonetwork.TheMarketing
Department took the time tovisit major
customers to thank them for theirbusiness
andpresented themwithplaques,whichwere
well received.Theeventalsocemented
existingbondsandcreatednewconnections
between stakeholdersalong the supplychain.
Acontemporaryapproach isalsobeing
pursuedand theport isdevelopinga
comprehensive socialmedia strategy. “For
example,we’veusedour Facebookpage to
explainhow todobusinesswith theport,”says
Henry.“Weareconstantlyupdating thepage
to remain relevant. For example, before
Christmas,weprovidecustomerswhouseour
OneStopBarrel Shopwith informationon
how toclear theirbarrelsand theextended
openingandclosinghours, so theyaremore
informedandcanbetterplan their visits.”
With the futureof theport lookingbright, it
isonlynatural thatmarketing is lookingat
ways to further improve its service toan
increasingvolumeof customers.Oneaspect
of this isattracting the right talent.Theport is
engagingwith thecommunityby sponsoring
anational spellingcontest and isactively
engagingwith schools to showcase theport
asacareerpath.“There is still a legacymindset
aboutwhatworking inaport is like,”notes
Henry.“Themodern reality is that thePortof
Portof Spain isvibrant andexciting, offering
thechance toworkonaglobal scaleaswell
asdeveloponapersonal level.”
According toHenry, the linkbetween the
variousprojects inwhichmarketing is
involved, is the imageof thePortof Portof
Spain.“Central to this is the roleaportplays in
amoderneconomy.Weareamajor employer
andcontributor to theeconomy inourown
right andalsohelp to facilitatebusiness
growth forour stakeholders. A seaport
delivers inmoreways thanone.
“This is agreat business,well-runand
crucial to thecountry’sprogress. Ifwecan
get everybody tounderstand that,wewill
havedoneour job.”
l
Asenseofpride
Marketing
Portof Portof Spain
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Handbook&Directory2015 - 2016
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SandraHenry–MarketingManager
