As a multi-channel/cross media technology provider, we have witnessed many great and successful campaigns launched by our customers … and then there were some that… I wouldn’t call a complete failure, but are not really a success.

“Then HOW do I launch a successful multi-channel campaign?” you may ask. Well, quite frankly, there is no single correct answer to the “how” question. It is rather a series of answers to a series of other questions that will give you the answer to the “how” question.

More than often, multi-channel campaigns don’t achieve successful results, because not enough questions were answered before answering the “how” question.

Here is a list of questions I have compiled from some of the customers who have launched multiple successful campaigns…

As the demand and limits of variable data publishing (VDP) continue to advance, more questions arise. Most of you understand the concept of VDP, but some of you may be wondering about the following…

One of the keys to succeeding in cross media marketing is “relevance.” If you religiously follow marketing blogs and news sites, you have probably read more than enough articles and posting about “relevance.” If not, here are some postings/articles you should consider reading:

Relevance in Marketing - Rohit Bhargava @ WebProNews
The Importance of Marketing Relevance - William King @ Content Caboodle
B2B Marketing in 2010: Focus on Three Key Issues - Mark Eardley @ The Long Hello
Email marketing content ‘to become more relevant’ - @ DirectNews
This is Getting Personal… - Michael Fleischner @ The Marketing Blog

The thing is, most of them only review the importance of relevance, and very few actually explore the logistics of implementation. I recently came across an article on DM News that focuses on the three biggest hurdles to achieving relevance in marketing…

So often marketers take an either-or approach to marketing channels. Either email or direct mail, either PPC or traditional print ads, either Html or text, either facebook or youtube, you get the point.

The innovative marketers (like yourself), know marketing channels work best when they’re integrated.

The guys at Marketing Sherpa recently posted a campaign case study for a minor league baseball team that were trying to sell tickets to a playoff game. They used email marketing first with a text email message and then with a well-designed HTML message.

They got a tremendous 56.9% conversion from those who visited the static landing page.

The lesson - don’t be fixed on what you think works. Explore new marketing channels and new ways of using old marketing channels to get phenomenal campaign success.

Related posts:

The great email divide

Multi-channel + Interaction = Conversion

It’s all about the channel (Contains IQ Question)

Lifting the lid on 1:1 campaigns

When you build a great application, people expect more from the next. When you market an unfinished product or launch a tasteless marketing campaign, people remember you for it. When you tout features/ benefits that are not what the customer needs, they switch off to your product.

When you find yourself struggling to out-do yourself, change brand perception or change the way people think of your product… You’re struggling with the ghosts of marketing past.

Finding out detailed information about your prospects is made easier everyday. If you are currently using services like Hoovers, Linked In, Jigsaw etc.. You should check out TheOfficialBoard. This new service will provide users with the organization chart to the largest companies. It is basically a report of who the executives are, who reports to [...]

The current economic conditions, intensity of rivalry and reduced consumer spending makes all marketing initiatives seem like uphill battles. As veterans of marketing wars, you are all probably accustomed to fighting uphill battles. Fighting under the overcast of massive media clouds and content contamination, maybe uphill battles are the only battles in a marketing war. [...]

Ever watched an ant trail? After a close examination, most people would probably agree that it is one of the most efficient systems in the world. Despite its efficiency, the slightest disruption will paralyze all efforts. Think of what happens when an ant trail approaches an unexpected crack on the sidewalk or if a leaf falls in the middle of it. Efficiency immediately evolves into chaos and all efforts made will yield no results.

Ever wondered why some of your best marketing efforts did not achieve desired results? Basically, what you thought was the best marketing initiative was just an ant trail that got disrupted by a leaf or a crack on the sidewalk. There was an objective, a plan and an investment of sufficient resources, but there was propably no effort made to anticipate disruptions and a reaction plan. This is why we marketers should value the importance of a follow up plan and make it a part of every marketing initiative.

If the content appears to be too abstract, here is an example to better illustrate my point. With a newly purchased car, I was in the market for modification parts or anything that will put an extra shine on it. About two months ago, while going through my messages in my Outlook inbox, I received an email from Acura promoting OEM parts in my gmail account. At the point of contact I was excited to see what Acura has to offer, but I also had to finish replying to several important messages in Outlook. I saved the message and intended to return to it later that day. As I was finishing up replying to the never ending list of messages, I was summoned to a meeting by my boss, received a couple of phone calls, and got several RSS alerts. I forgot about the offer message from Acura after a series of distractions. I did not recall the message until just now, as I am writing this blog post.

Acura had a plan of targeting all new car owners and the message was appealing to their target, but there was no follow up plan. It has been over two months now and I, as a consumer, am not as excited or motivated to install modification parts on my car. As consumers, we occasionally experience sudden urges to make a purchase that we later realize we can live without. Acura did not anticipate the disruption, a series of distractions, as a barrier to their initiative. If I had received a follow up email shortly after receiving the first offer message, I would probably have some new rims on my new car by now.

Disruptions can be costly to marketing efforts and cannot always be anticipated. Fortunately, unlike ants, we marketers can learn from mistakes and past experiences. We may be startled by a leaf in our path the first time, but we should have a plan of going around it the next time we encounter it. Until we make an effort to anticipate disruptions and have a follow up plan in place. we will not be able to prevent our efforts from falling into cracks it may come upon.

Disruptions will and can occur in any part of your marketing cycle. Check out these links for more insights on follow up marketing initiatives:

Customer service, Customer Relations, & Networking

Just something to think about…