In today’s competitive market, most professionals require more information and innovation in order to run a successful marketing campaign effort. The need to launch campaigns faster and cheaper can certainly be a challenge for most. Unless a marketing manager has access to a full support team or marketing automation tools, several initiatives can get lost.
In any circumstance, there are some key factors that successful marketing managers should know in order to effectively run a successful campaign. This can be achieved in four major steps:
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Work preparation
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Planning the work
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Estimating the project
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Tracking the progress
When a marketer can successfully manage these steps, he or she can be rest assured that any campaign will go off without a hitch.
Work Preparation
At the start of the campaign, the manager should define the objective and identify the overall desired results. Along with assessing the success criteria, one most also clearly outline the strengths, weaknesses, limitations and degrees of freedom of the campaign. You should also define at what point to consider the marketing campaign a success; for example after meeting certain number of leads are generated or volume of new traffic to your website. You should also negotiate for commitments that will not let you down.
Planning the Campaign
Come up with a work plan of how different activities in the project will be carried out and how. Break huge tasks into smaller chunks so that they can be easily executed. For the tasks that cannot be broken down, develop worksheets. Take adequate precautions to manage potential risks. If you do not manage the risks, the entire campaign will slow down or even collapse in the long run.
Estimating the Campaign
The best way to estimate the time it will take to complete a campaign is by basing your assumptions on the effort of your team and not on time. Use estimation tools to record the assumptions and how you arrive at them. Respect the training time and the learning curve. Do not allocate excess work hours to the project team members. You must identify possible risks and plan for unforeseen situations by putting in place risk mitigation strategies.
Tracking Progress
You can track your progress by recording tasks have been fully completed. Record task completion time estimates separately from the actual time taken. As the manager, be honest and open to yourself. Report the progress of the campaign to the director and other stakeholders if any.
Successful campaigns require extensive planning and implementation. Using the right tools, managing employees effectively and ensuring optimal use of resources are key to executing a project successfully. The above tips will give you a foothold of your campaign and help you every step of the way.