Set up a marketing campaign? Follow these three steps

Setting up a good marketing campaign is of great importance for organizations. By using different forms of marketing in the right way, you can attract new customers to your organization. Marketing also helps you to retain existing customers: loyalty marketing. After all, as an organization you want to prevent customers from switching to a competitor. When using marketing it is very important that you work according to a fixed plan. You start by determining your target group, setting goals and choosing your strategy. If you address the wrong target group with your marketing campaign, this results in high and unnecessary costs.

In this article we will discuss how you can set up a marketing campaign. The most important question is: do you sell a product A for which you are looking for target group X? Or, do you focus on target group X and see which products fit in with that? Example: as a greengrocer in the city you have a certain catchment area in which your audience appeals. You are on the route and people in the neighborhood come to you. Then you want to offer a wide range that everyone will find something in. But you can also turn it around: as a greengrocer you choose a certain target group, for example with a higher income, and bring specifically forgotten vegetables into your assortment.

Step 1: Analyze your target group

Before you start setting up your marketing campaign, you must therefore determine your target group and associated objective. Which target group do you want to reach with your campaign? Which products do you want to grow in popularity during the marketing campaign? Do you want to work on improving your overall image? You can then prepare a suitable marketing plan based on your goal and target group. Remember that marketing only means one thing: bringing your product to the market. How you think you are doing is up to you.

Make sure that the purpose of your marketing campaign is at least SMART is. This means that the goal must be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound. A goal that isn't SMART is often difficult to achieve.

Step 2: planning, strategy and budget

How can you best reach the target group? More and more sales start as a Google search. Do you then use SEO (search engine optimization) with which you are found in Google, or advertisements in search engines, called SEA (Search Engine Advertising))? (Here you can read what you choose when: the balance between SEO and SEA) Do you choose to use channels on social media? (then read the Social Media starter guide) These are questions that you really have to answer in your marketing strategy. It is also important to determine for yourself whether the marketing campaign should be successful in the short or in the long term.

The biggest problem with marketing? Your resources are always limited. You have to look at the available budget and the time schedule in which the campaign must be carried out. After all, you do not have endless time. Planning plays an essential role in the introduction of a new product. After all, you want the product to be known to customers before the launch actually takes place. You also have to deal with your competition. Therefore, ensure realistic but also ambitious planning.

Step 3: implementation and evaluation

Once your marketing campaign strategy has been worked out, you can start implementing it. Make sure you have the right people. That sometimes means that you have to send your people on course, and sometimes that you even have to outsource parts of your marketing campaign.

Consider creating stimulating content that scores. And yes, that is difficult. The best thing is to simply put down the best that you can. Then, after your marketing campaign has been live for a few weeks, you can evaluate it. It is possible that the marketing campaign does not work or seems to become too expensive. In such a case you can adjust the marketing campaign in the meantime to still achieve the set goal. Even after the marketing campaign has been successful, it may be wise to evaluate it. You can take success factors to the next marketing campaign. There are three points to focus on in an evaluation:

1. Effect: Do you see the results you want to achieve? What is the cost-benefit analysis?
2. Product: Are you satisfied with what your expressions look like? Your social media posts? Your content?
3. Process: How did everything go? Could your people succeed immediately? Was there a delay? What went well and what could be better?

Curious about what a marketing strategy can do for your company? Take Contact on or book your 1-on-1 Marketing session directly below to set up your marketing campaign in a planned and efficient way.