Plan Your Heart Out
For those who know me well, I am a planner. Doesn’t matter what it is. From deciding what to wear in the morning to planning a promotion for one of our clients, I like to plan. There’s something about working out the details before-hand and knowing what has to be done from one point to the next that gives me a sense of security. I’m definitely not much of a fly by the seat of my pants kind of person. Sometimes I try, but the success rate is not as high.
As many of you know, Julie Stevenson has left MMG. She was my officemate and a great co-worker, but most of all she is my friend. To say she’ll be missed is an understatement.
When she announced that she was going to move across the pond I was happy for her and envious at the same time. Definitely something I have thought about over the years, but never got around to doing. Maybe one day when I’m older and wiser I’ll take the plunge, but in the meantime I thought a trip was in order. A perfect opportunity to go on an adventure!
So, Julie and I started to plan. For those of you who don’t know, Julie is a planner as well. So, we were ALL over it. We started with a list of places we wanted to go and then narrowed it down based on the time we would have. Four countries in 15 days. We booked planes, trains and accommodations and utilized a very useful website to keep track of it all. It was stressful, but exciting at the same time. Sure, we’re expecting there to be bumps on the way and things that we will most likely forget, but all-in-all, we know exactly where we should be each day. And at the end of the trip we’ll have memories that will last a lifetime and we will have learned what worked and what didn’t, so planning the next adventure will be even better.
Creating a marketing campaign works much the same way. You meet and decide the objectives and brainstorm ideas of how you’re going to reach certain goals. Then narrow it down to key tactics. You use tools, such as a stunning design team, a well programmed website and an advertising campaign to reach those goals. You PLAN. Then you roll it out and manage the response. Once the campaign is finished you assess the outcome. Was it a success? Did it meet the objectives? What could be done differently the next time around?
Doesn’t matter what you’re doing. Planning is key.