What tactics you use form a key part of your lead or demand generation campaign. But, is it more effective to use the same tactic multiple times or to use different tactics fewer times each to increase response rates. For example, should you send 5 emails to the same target list or should you send an email, send a direct mail piece, run a Facebook ad, run a Google PPC ad and do a webinar targeted at the same audience?
It's well understood that targeting the same list multiple times does increase response rates. However, are you still limited if you rely on only one tactic or channel to reach your audience?
I believe that you definitely need to use multiple tactics for better lead generation. At the same time though, these tactics need to be implemented as part of an integrated campaign. You need to use the same messaging, imagery and related calls to action across these tactics so that you are in effect hitting the same audience multiple times.
Basically, the best way to increase response rates would be to do a combination of tactics but use some of them multiple times, depending on your budget of course. If we look at the example used at the outset, instead of 1 email being used 5 times or 5 different tactics being used once each, we should send 2 direct mails, 2 emails and host one webinar for example. That way, we are hitting the same audience multiple times but also using different tactics and media for the widest possible effect.
While I've focused on outbound marketing tactics so far in this blog post, you should always make search part of your marketing campaign so that people can always find you. What I mean here is not just the SEO of your web site but adding terms and corresponding landing pages that are campaign specific. You should also consider including some social media tactics such as Facebook, Twitter, and others, if your audience spends time on these social networks.
The beauty of search and many of these social media tactics is that they will not take up the same budget that many traditional tactics may have cost. Granted they will take up a lot more of your time but in many companies this is easier to get than additional budget. Therefore, you can add even more of these tactics to the mix we outlined above if you budget is small but you're willing to invest more time.
Whatever the tactics, this marketing mix is a crucial part of the planning of your marketing campaign so don't sell it short. Make sure you find the right tactics that fit your audience and not just jump on the latest trend or what you did before. And, make sure you measure and look at the results of previous campaigns using these tactics so you can continue to improve your mix.
Integrated marketing campaigns are very effective and I'll talk more about this in subsequent posts. To increase response and ROI though, these campaigns need to use multiple tactics and media and run multiple times so the message and call to action hits, and gets through, to your audience.
Comments