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Moving communication campaigns into action |
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How to keep the objectives in mind during a marketing project Here is a back issue of Marketing Booster, the email newsletter that Richard Groom writes and sends free every fortnight to subscribers. You can subscribe here or read over 60 back issues using the back issues index page. In the years that I've been involved in producing marketing and other communication materials, I've realised that it's easy to get complacent - and easy to get stuck in a rut. One symptom of this is when all you seem to talk about is the PROCESS of producing the materials. You know what I mean: you and your colleagues talk about print deadlines, approval systems, which photo to use, proof-reading and the rest. When the item itself is published there's a sense of relief that you got it finished. Then you move on to the next project (or by now you've already started the next one). I've been there and done it many times, particularly when I managed other people in the communications department of a large organisation. Sometimes it felt as though the number one objective was to GET THE THING PUBLISHED! But lately I've been making more of an effort to worry less about the process, and to care more about the finished product. Here's one way that I achieve it. What I do is set a VISION for each new piece of campaign material that I produce. I do it right at the start of production. Each vision doesn't have to be long or complicated. You don't have to fill out a form or get anything signed. You just need to clarify what the end product will be like. Here are a couple of examples. Vision for a direct mail item: "The item will show readers that we put a great deal of care into our service - more than they realised. It will be obvious that we are experts. It will also make it clear that our products are available in three new locations. Most of all, it will give people good reasons to visit our web site." Vision for a customer magazine: "People will be glad they received the magazine. Right from the front cover they will realise that it contains articles of genuine use and interest. It will also raise the profile of our products, but in the context of making it clear that we are experts in our sector. There will also be three different reasons for potential customers to contact us." As you can see, these are very simple vision statements. The important thing is that you link them to the objectives of your overall sales and marketing strategy. So when you are producing the material - and particularly when you think it's finished and ready to publish - you can go back to your vision. Does the end result really live up to the vision? If not, it could be because you got hung up on the process, instead of what you were trying to achieve with the material. In these cases, you need to put in a big last-minute effort to meet the promise of the vision before you publish, or all your hard work will be wasted. If you do already have some kind of briefing and approval process in place, check that it records the type of information seen in the example visions above. And definitely make sure that you go back and compare the material with the briefing BEFORE you publish. Why not give this a go with your next project? I hope that you see the sense in spending as much time as possible talking about the VISION and the END PRODUCT during the production schedule. Copyright 2003 Richard Groom |