How to set up a marketing campaign
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Jade firmly believes that planning a marketing campaign is something anyone can do! So in this week’s episode of Marketing + Margaritas, she walks you through how to approach setting one up.
Why should I set up a marketing campaign?
Resources are precious in business. If we're doing anything of value, a plan will help you get the most bang for your buck. Plus, it helps take some of the thought out of day-to-day running of your campaign. You get to front load a lot of the thinking so that when it comes to implementation, you can just follow the plan!
What's the difference between a marketing strategy + a marketing campaign?
A marketing strategy is for your whole business. It involves research + identifying what you want to do with your business overall. They tend to be a bit longer term – some are 6-12 months, others up to 3 years. A marketing campaign is for one specific objective. You set out with a goal in mind + give yourself a shorter period to get it done (again, to maximise that resource expenditure 😉).
So, what is it?
In short, a marketing campaign is just informed goal setting. A good campaign should cover off all bases in the marketing trifecta:
What's the goal?
Who is your target audience?
What do you need to tell them so they can help you achieve your goal?
But we get that not everyone thinks about marketing the same way we do. So, let's break these questions down together!
What's the goal?
Your goal shouldn't be "To increase awareness"! Yes awareness helps, but without some kind of end point conversion in mind, it won't do you much good 😉
Really, the goal should help define what it is you want to do. If it's recruitment based, the goal might be to get X number of high quality applications. If you're launching a new product, it might be to sell X amount of them or make X amount of money. The specific number doesn't matter too much, the main thing is having a reference point to work towards. Then check your performance against that goal + make a note of it for the future! The data you collect now will make your guesses more accurate later on.
Who is your target audience?
We need to identify who it is that is going to help you achieve your goal. Once you know who your target audience is for this campaign, you need to consider how those people interact with your usual audience.
If you're looking for apprentices but most of your current audience on socials are business owners + adults already in the industry, you might need to use some Meta ads to target that demographic (since your normal audience don't match your target audience).
The other thing to consider about target audience, is not just the audience itself, but who they interact with in a meaningful way. Say McDonalds is launching a new "McHappy Meal", that's probs going to be for kids. But kids can't buy their own happy meals. So even though kids are your end point, you probs want to target parents, grandparents or other carers as they'll be the ones paying for it.
What do you need to tell your target audience to help you achieve your goal?
This is the big one. It ties in the previous two to help you nail your messaging on the campaign.
You need to tailor your message to the audience. Using the apprentice example again, you need more apprentices to help you with your workload. You know you want to target young people (18-24 yr olds) as they're the prime fit for the spot. Now, what do you need to tell those 18-24 yr olds so that they'll join your team + help you with the work?
Saying that you're swamped with work is probs going to scare them off. Telling them that you have an inclusive team with decent benefits (every birthday off, paid) is probably a better way to go about it 😉
So, we've got our marketing trifecta sorted, what next?
Once you've nailed down the answers to your marketing trifecta, try + do a little market research. Unless you are part of your target audience (very rare, don't rely on it), you're probs taking a guess at what they want to hear. Sometimes you'll get it right, sometimes, maybe not. If you know someone in your target audience, ask them a few Q's to help refine your messaging. Otherwise, just make do with an educated guess, see how it goes + take note so you can adjust next time.
It's important to do this stuff early on before you spend a tonne of money on getting things printed or paying for ads. Again, the plan is to help maximise every cent that you spend on the campaign. No use paying for ads if they're not appealing to the right people.
Marketing channels?
Okay, so your goals are sorted, you know who your target audience is + you've refined your messaging through market research and/or some informed guestimates. Now, you have to think about where they hang out + where they go to find out more info. Are they on Facebook, Instagram or YouTube? Do they drive past a specific billboard every day? Do they read the newspaper or listen to the radio?
The answers to these questions will help shape what marketing channels you select. This is where you put your message so that it's seen by the right people.
Finalise the plan.
Now that the channels are decided, you have all the info you need to finalise the campaign strategy. First, figure out your timeline. For example, with TV, get their schedule + ask when they need your ad by. Pencil that date in. Then book in someone to create the ad, make sure they have enough time to develop the artwork/video/recording, have you proof it + THEN finalise it so that it can be sent to the TV station. Now do this for ALL of your chosen activities on the list.
Pencil all those dates into a calendar.
Then, get together a list of all your costs. If you want a radio ad, get a quote, if you need artwork or video done, get a quote, if you want Meta Ads, decide on how much you want to spend. Figure out all the things you want to get done, + note down any prices.
Lastly, pencil in any extra things you'd like to do. Maybe you want to run a Facebook live event during the campaign. Make sure you note the day you want to do it + set yourself a reminder a few days beforehand to figure out a rough guideline of what you want to go through.
Throw all of this stuff into a word doc on your computer + hit save. Make any calendar reminders you need to keep on top of it all. These will be your plan of attack for the coming weeks.
Implement + analyse!
Campaign time has come around, your artwork is done, the ads are running + it's all autopilot from here on out, right? Nope! Now you need to monitor your marketing channels to see how it's all performing. Is your Meta Ad getting clicks? Are people calling the phone number from the radio ad? Is your website getting more traffic from that billboard in town, etc.
RECORD. EVERYTHING.
Do things go well? Do things NOT go well? Make note of it all. If your email campaign accounts for 50% of your ticket sales but you only did one eBlast, maybe it's worth looking at doing more of those next time. Did that socials ad not do as well as you thought it would? Maybe scale that back or spend less on those in the future.
Wrap up tip
Keep good records. All that info from your previous step, is a gold mine when it comes to running future campaigns. BUT, it’s useless if you can't look at it again later (or if you don’t write it down at all!). That data should be your guidepost for future campaigns. While you probably won't do the exact campaign twice, there is likely to be some overlap between them. If you have good, easy to find records, it will make comparing notes + crafting new campaigns so much easier!
So go ahead + give it a go, we think you'll be surprised by how easy it is once you get that ball rolling!
Campaigns Jade mentioned in the episode
To Australia, from Mailchimp
McDonald’s Monopoly