Through the years, I have seen many marketing frameworks. Very rarely have I come across a framework that I think is concise and complete. Often they are textbook in style, or they are too fluffy to execute against. But all of this changed in 2005. This was when I began to work with Organic on our digital advertising campaigns. In their pitch, they put up two slides that encompassed the essence of what makes a great marketing campaign.
To this day, I utilize their framework to guide all of my marketing activities. It is simple yet robust. Over the next few articles, I will take you through what I consider to be the best marketing framework to guide your efforts. Why? Because I have decided that 2007 will be about the fundamentals of successful marketing.
There are five main components in the first section of a two part framework:
- OBJECTIVE
- GOAL
- INPUTS
- SUCCESS FACTORS
- EXECUTION
Objective: You must set a quantifiable (measurable) objective BEFORE you begin your planning. You can refine this target as you work through your planning activities, but you must lock it down before you launch. It is important that you establish what you consider to be a "success." I would recommend the traditional approach of creating a pessimistic, base and optimistic scenario. You should consider the "base" case scenario the minimum hurdle for success.
Goal: This should not be some lofty proclamation like "We want to become number one in our category." In my opinion, that is just assumed - otherwise why are you in the game? What the term "goal" refers to here is a set of tactics that detail how you will ENGAGE, INFORM, INSPIRE and ACTIVATE your customers.
Inputs: This could be one of the most important and detailed parts of the marketing framework. We will spend an entire article on this section. For now, what you must know is that your inputs should break down between four main disciplines: STRATEGY, TARGETING, CREATIVE and ANALYTICS.
Success Factors: Your inputs must generate a TARGETED, RELEVANT, DESIRABLE, COMPETITIVE, URGENT and ACTIONABLE marketing program. You must ensure that key elements such as OFFERS, SEGMENTS, BRAND DRIVERS and CAMPAIGN CONCEPTS are crisp and well defined.
Execution: This is where you earn your pay. There are 5 simple steps: PLAN, LAUNCH, MEASURE, LEARN and OPTIMIZE. Remember, you are not done once you go to market. You must track your metrics against your objectives, determine what is working and what is not - and then fix it fast.
Next up, a deep dive into the INPUTS component.