Setting your marketing program up for success

Looking at the most successful projects I’ve worked on to date, two common threads emerge: a focused goal and a clear definition for what success looks like. Whether it’s driving web traffic among a target demographic or increasing a client’s Facebook community, a clearly defined objective makes all the difference. But that’s often easier said than done. Figuring out where to start and understanding how to get there typically require some upfront strategizing that can make or break your ultimate success.

Know Your End Goal

The best strategies start with a clear understanding of the problem (e.g. your sales team is breathing down your neck for more qualified leads) as well as your available assets (i.e. your internal resources and what kind of budget you have at your disposal). To get at those answers, we recommend that clients first meet with internal stakeholders (i.e. CEO, head of product, someone who leads up account management or your animated director of sales) to determine what exactly they need, what success looks like for them and what is realistic within the confines of your budget and resources.  You’ll want to get a full understanding of the challenges they are facing, the competitive landscape (i.e. what are their competitors doing on the marketing front) and the metrics available to show progress toward your goal.

Define Your Audience

Now that you’re all on the same page, focus next on understanding your target audience. This may seem intuitive, but go deeper in determining who exactly would be most receptive to your messages. Are they C-suite executives at mid-level companies in the Mid-Atlantic? Is it a purchasing manager at a Fortune 1000 technology company? Could it be a stay-at-home mom in a rural community? You obviously would market to these folks in different ways, and while you may have a product and service that appeals to a wide demographic, you need to exert some discipline on the targeting process and prioritize your audience segments.

That’s where your sales and client services teams, who are in the trenches and interact with your target, can help. Work with them closely to help you define your primary audience. Ask them:

  • Who are their best customers and what makes them so? (i.e. how is your product/service helping solve their problem?) Who are the decision makers or influencers at these client companies?
  • What publications, industry outlets or bloggers do they regularly read? What social media sites do they use?

The answers to these questions will give you a clearer sense as to the tactical elements that would be most effective in reaching these audiences. And they also should help inform your core messaging – how to best talk about your targets’ problems and your solutions to them. You might determine that your prospects have a high penetration on LinkedIn or subscribe to the same industry publication. Knowing that will help you focus the direction you provide to external partners.  It should also lend some efficiency to your budget…because why spend money on Snapchat if your most important audiences aren’t there?

Success is Iterative

While the first two steps will focus your efforts, there’s nothing like being in the real world and executing against theory to inform your best strategy.  The work and research you do upfront will allow you to present a thoughtful first stab to your audience.  However, during those early days, through reporting and analysis, you may find that your predictions need further refinement.  For instance, maybe the messaging needs to be tweaked to reflect a nuance within your audience or the advertising spend increased because your audience is narrower than you expected.  Allow time for these strategic or tactical adjustments by building them into your project timeline.  And most importantly, set expectations and communicate your process to senior leadership so that they understand where you’re headed.

Lending focus to marketing programs is a practiced skill that requires patience.  Investing time at the beginning to set clear goals, identify the right audience and iteratively execute will allow you to launch strong, build momentum throughout your campaign and hopefully exceed your goals.

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