So you’ve got a super new strategy and a quite frankly brilliant EPIC creative idea for your campaign…now what? These things won’t mean a fig unless there’s a suitable go to market plan that identifies the most effective channels to use and how to get the best out of them. Sure they’ll look pretty, but they’ll just be sat on the shared drive gathering dust.
Getting this third stage right is the business end – linking all the great ideas and bringing them to life through the right choice of tactics, and the consistent implementation of these. We believe it should be given just as much focus and care as what’s gone before it, even if it might not be as exciting as choosing a creative idea. Because the right go to market plan can really light the blue touch paper under a campaign. Turning what could be modest results into a stellar performance and sure-fire fame for you.
We use the COIN (collate, optimise, implement, never ordinary) process to deliver campaigns for our clients, a proven structure that allows us to be commercially focused in what we devise and consistent in quality delivery.
Collate
It’s tempting to rush straight into selecting a few tactics and pushing stuff live, understandably because we all want results yesterday. But remember the 6 Ps – Proper Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance. Modern B2B campaigns are complex beasts, not only in terms of audiences but also the sheer range of tactics at your disposal. So it pays to take a step back, collate all the information you need and assess what’s going to deliver maximum bang for buck.
We have a briefing format for this to ensure we can collect all the information we need to make the best recommendations. That ranges from budgets to lead definitions, through to a deep dive into the martech that’s likely to be included. This last element can be a major reason campaigns don’t go as expected, and it’s important to consider not only what you could do with the technology available but also what you should do given other factors at play that might mean you can’t in reality avail yourself of your platform’s 10,000 features.
Optimise
With a practical approach in place, if you want optimal results it’s key that tactical plans are both laser focused on the commercials and follow a clear line from the strategy work you’ve done previously. Of course, not all tactics should be geared towards the direct creation of a lead or sale – but you should have a clear plan as to how it will influence a commercial outcome.
So yes, you’ll need to make sure there are clear metrics for the likes of reach and engagement, but make sure they’re considered in the context of how they’re going to generate money for your business. That should be the case even for campaigns geared towards increasing awareness, with metrics like excess share of voice offering an effective way to link the more fluffier end of marketing into a commercially-focused strategy.
Implement
It’s tempting to rush straight into selecting a few tactics and pushing stuff live, understandably because we all want results yesterday. But remember the 6 Ps – Proper Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance. Modern B2B campaigns are complex beasts, not only in terms of audiences but also the sheer range of tactics at your disposal. So it pays to take a step back, collate all the information you need and assess what’s going to deliver maximum bang for buck.
We have a briefing format for this to ensure we can collect all the information we need to make the best recommendations. That ranges from budgets to lead definitions, through to a deep dive into the martech that’s likely to be included. This last element can be a major reason campaigns don’t go as expected, and it’s important to consider not only what you could do with the technology available but also what you should do given other factors at play that might mean you can’t in reality avail yourself of your platform’s 10,000 features.
Never ordinary
With a practical approach in place, if you want optimal results it’s key that tactical plans are both laser focused on the commercials and follow a clear line from the strategy work you’ve done previously. Of course, not all tactics should be geared towards the direct creation of a lead or sale – but you should have a clear plan as to how it will influence a commercial outcome.
So yes, you’ll need to make sure there are clear metrics for the likes of reach and engagement, but make sure they’re considered in the context of how they’re going to generate money for your business. That should be the case even for campaigns geared towards increasing awareness, with metrics like excess share of voice offering an effective way to link the more fluffier end of marketing into a commercially-focused strategy.
There’s no replacement for doing the groundwork here, making sure you’ve got the raw materials to put into the process of selecting and implementing tactics. Revisit the strategy work completed earlier in the project to understand how, when and where to best reach your audience. Think about who do you need to influence and at what point in the customer journey. What role is marketing playing not only to generate awareness but also to support lead generation and getting deals across the line?
In tandem with this, think about the practicalities of how a campaign could be delivered. What martech do you have at your disposal and how could this be married up across the customer journey? It’s important here to think practically about martech. Although it’s easy and very tempting to imagine what could be done with more time and resources, you need to be realistic. What are your team currently capable of in terms of skills and bandwidth? What elements of your tech stack are a fit for this?
Set clear objectives before you dive into tactics
Mix your media
Don’t just report
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