Every marketer has a project wishlist. You know, the ones that start with “If I had time I would…” or “our company needs…” Most of the time these projects never come to fruition because other tasks are a higher priority, time is limited, or the proper resources or unavailable.
Here are 5 steps to help you check off your to-do list and finally make your #marketinggoals a reality!
Step 1: Determine the value of a project
Start by asking yourself these thoughtful questions and have a genuine conversation with the marketing team to figure out if a particular goal is worth pursuing.
- How much would it change your business if you completed this project?
- Would the completion equate to 1-10% increase in conversions?
- Will there be at least a 10% lift in revenue?
- Will there be at least a 15% decrease in product cancellations and returns?
Always make sure you tie a project’s impact back to monetary value. By converting the impact to a monetary rate, you can place your projects by priority rate and have an easier time convincing other departments it’s a worthwhile investment.
Step 2: Research
I cannot stress enough how important research is in the planning process!
Figure out how likely you are to have success, how much work it’s going to take to achieve this success, and what other competitors are doing. Researching involves more than just a simple Google search! Check out these other ways to thoroughly examine a marketing goal:
- Research best practices
- Register for industry webinars
- Join a User Group and ask for advice
- Read case studies
- Look up competitor sites
- Join technology demos
- View presentations on Slideshare
- Watch YouTube videos
- Read marketing blogs, ebooks, and books
- Network with others in your industry
Step 3: Figure out how much time it takes
Time is your most valuable asset, and it’s most likely the reason why you haven’t started a new project yet. Break down the time it will take to complete a project into sections with each segment specifically outsourced or delegated. For example, a new email campaign will need allotted time for meetings, copy, design, testing, and developing. Ask every department what their expected turnaround time is to gain the best estimate.
Step 4: Create a plan of action
Now that you’re finished with all the preliminary research, it’s time to get organized! Your plan is bound to change as your move through a project, but it’s ideal to stay on task with a general idea of what needs to be done. Within your plan add projections and desired results so you can identify progress and time.
Important considerations:
- Create campaign codes or thank you pages to track conversion
- List out useful resources
- Allocate specific tasks to each teammate
- Devise a list of all the content needed
- Write down your desired results and projections
- Identify target audiences and stakeholders
Step 5: Join forces
All successful projects involved a little help from friends!
It’s time to start collaborating with other departments and recruit teammates to work on your project. Get a group of coworkers excited about the prospects of these new marketing goals and you’re bound to achieve fruitful results. The benefits of collaborating:
- Increases productivity and revenue
- Teammates share a sense of creation and achievement
- Workloads become lighter
Start implementing these tips for your next project and you’ll realize taking on a new task isn’t as hard as it seems! Please comment below and let me know what you think?
