If you’re reading this, I assume you’re either a designer or marketer who is already using Campaign Monitor. If not, then you’re probably wondering why you should consider using this tool. Let’s dive into how to use Campaign Monitor to organize your marketing projects and campaigns.
Why use Campaign Monitor for Marketing
Let’s be honest—organizing your campaigns into projects is not something new. You’ve probably been doing it for years. Maybe you even use Excel to keep track of all your campaign metrics. But what sets Campaign Monitor apart from other project management tools is the combination of Lean Startup methodology and design thinking. This integration makes it much easier to plan and execute your marketing campaigns. Here’s a quick overview of how it all works.
The Role of Design Thinking In Marketing
If you’re reading this, you’re either a designer or marketer who is already accustomed to using CorelDRAW, Photoshop, or similar design tools. If not, then you’re probably wondering why design thinking plays such an important role in digital marketing. This role is all about the process, from the very beginning to the end. Which brings us to the next point.
Starting From Scratch
Unlike other tools that require you to have a functioning campaign already set up to utilize their capabilities, Campaign Monitor allows you to start from scratch. This means you can tailor the experience to suit your specific needs and workflow. You don’t need to use their default templates or settle for the tools they offer. For example, if you’re a video marketer who doesn’t use HubSpot, then you’re probably wondering why you should use their video campaign builder instead of using tools like Vidyard or TwentyThree. While these tools offer similar features, you won’t find a community of video marketers using Campaign Monitor. Instead, you’ll find designers and marketers who are either already using other tools or are looking for a new approach.
What Is a Marketing Project?
A marketing project is any type of campaign or initiative that you undertake to promote a product or service. It could be as simple as creating a Twitter account for a clothing brand, or as complex as launching a new product line. The most important thing to keep in mind when defining your project is that it should have a defined purpose. This purpose should be tied to a specific goal and the metrics you’ll use to measure your progress. A simple project can be to increase website traffic by getting more people to sign up for your newsletter. The more complex the project, the more you’ll need to define what success looks like.
Organizing Your Campaigns Into Projects
Organizing your campaigns into projects is simply placing them in a row on a canvas. You can then add more details, such as due dates, notes, and project members. Essentially, projects serve as an easy way to organize your activities and manage your responsibilities. You can create multiple projects if you have more than one type of campaign or task to manage. For example, you could have a marketing project and a sales project. Placing these two projects onto a single canvas allows you to easily track and monitor both campaigns. You can create as many projects as you need to help you manage your workload. While it’s not necessary to have projects to utilize this tool, it is extremely useful when structuring your work flow. Projects serve as both a reminder and a timeline that you can refer back to. This is why they’re such a popular tool among marketing and design professionals.
Which Areas Should You Focus On?
When structuring your projects, you must first decide which areas you’ll focus on. This is especially important if you have different team members assigned to various projects. If you decide that you’ll focus on SEO, then you should place that project first. This ensures that all areas of focus are accounted for and no detail is missed. For example, if you have an SEO project and a content project, then you should make sure that both are completed before moving on to the next one.
Once you’ve established the areas you’ll be focusing on, it’s time to decide what specific projects you’ll be completing within those areas. Remember—you’re working towards a goal. While it’s not always necessary to complete a project right away, setting a due date will ensure you don’t forget about it. If you find that you’re constantly postponing projects because you never seem to get around to starting them, then it’s time to re-evaluate why you’re doing marketing in the first place.
How Do You Plan Your Campaign?
So you’ve decided to try Campaign Monitor. Great! Now it’s time to plan out your actual marketing campaign. What type of materials will you use? Which platforms will you use to reach your audience? How much will you spend on each channel? These are all valid questions that you must answer before executing your campaign. After all, you can’t move forward without a clear idea of what you’re trying to achieve. The answers to these questions should drive the decision-making process that leads you to formulate a plan of action. Without proper planning, you’ll end up with an ill-conceived campaign that wastes your time and the time of your team members. This is why we’re talking about planing out your campaigns—so you can properly execute them. Once you’ve created a plan, you can add tasks and due dates to it. This ensures everything stays organized and you don’t end up with any unfinished business at the end. If you find that you have a tendency to forget about your tasks or lose track of them, then projects may not be the best choice for you. If that’s the case, then maybe try using a more traditional approach.
Who’s Responsible For What?
This is a fundamental aspect of project management that applies to all areas of responsibility. Within any particular project, you must define who’s responsible for what. This is especially important if there are different team members assigned to different tasks. If you decide that John is going to be responsible for social media and Jill is going to be responsible for SEO, then you should clearly define what those responsibilities entail. Similarly, you should also clearly define the goals for each area. This ensures that everyone is accountable for their work and no one is left out. Everyone on your team must understand what their specific role is and what they’re responsible for. This is such an important point that we’ll discuss it in more detail in the next section.
Who’s Going To Manage Which Tasks?
An important question to consider when structuring your projects is who’s going to be managing which tasks. Ideally, you want to have a lead person or team responsible for each project. This is especially important if you have different team members assigned to various tasks. For example, you might have an SEO person, a copywriter, and a social media manager. If all three of them are assigned to the same project, then someone must be in charge of making sure everything gets done. The ideal person for this job is someone with specific expertise in each area. Having a team of specialists for each area ensures that quality work is always done and that timelines are met. Tasks can then be assigned to the appropriate person. The more complex the project, the more people you’ll need to assign to it. For example, if you’re creating a new product line, you’ll need a project manager, a content strategist, a marketing strategist, and a community manager. Each of these roles can be assigned to one person or, if necessary, a team. The important thing is to have someone in charge of making sure all the details get taken care of. Otherwise, things will quickly fall through the cracks and you’ll end up with an incomplete, or perhaps even a faulty, project. This is why it’s essential to define who’s going to be managing which tasks within each project. If you decide that you’ll be managing the content of your social media, then you should make sure that everyone understands what that entails. Which platforms will you be using? What kind of content will you be creating? Having answers to these questions will help you plan out a content schedule that you can follow. It’s important to be consistent when posting to social media because this is how your audience knows when to expect new content from you. Consistent, engaging content keeps your audience coming back for more. It also gives your brand authority, which can lead to better SEO rankings and increased sales. Authority comes from creating quality content that is both relevant and helpful to your audience.