“How can I tell if my marketing campaign is working?”
Is hands down one of the questions I get asked most.
This can be a difficult question to answer in a B2B context where the sales cycle moves slowly – typically taking months – years to see the payoff of marketing efforts.
These are the 7 core questions I work through to guide whether something is working.
1. What does success look like?
Simple – but if we don’t know what we’re aiming towards nothing will feel like progress.
Are we clear on what we want to achieve?
Do we have clear & measurable marketing outcomes, tied back to business goals?
Go back to basics with this and make sure you have SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic & Time-Bound) goals in place.
2. Have we noticed any change?
To answer this we need to bring together the data we can see & real-world feedback.
Are we noticing an increase in conversations?
Are people seeing more of us?
Are more people reaching out without us really knowing where they’ve come from?
Pay attention to the data points + anecdotal feedback from prospects, customers and your team.
3. Are we being realistic?
By that I mean:
- We know the vast majority of our target audience is not in market looking to buy what we’re selling, today.
Are our expectations aligned with our buying cycle? I.e. do we have a 6 month buying cycle, but are expecting to see results from marketing in less than that time? - Is our resourcing aligned with our expectations? If we’re expecting big results, have we actually invested the time, budget, and people to make that realistic?
- Are we comparing like for like — same channel, audience, or season to previous efforts, to accurately judge whether something’s working or not?
4. Is our marketing hitting the right people?
Even if we can’t feel a tangible difference yet – are we confident we’re getting our business in front of the right people via our chosen marketing channel?
If no – we need to reassess.
If yes – great. This is a sign we’re on track.
5. Is our creative right?
Have we missed the mark with our message?
Are we putting our best foot forward?
If we’re running digital, can we introduce new creative to see if it gets better cut through?
Is there a way we can test the waters without abandoning our existing creative too early?
6. How are trends tracking over time?
Relevant to the goals we’ve set.
If trying to increase brand awareness – how is engagement with our brand, website visits, branded search – tracking month on month?
Even if we haven’t had an increase in sales qualified leads – have we had an increase in conversations more broadly?
If yes – it’s a sign you’re on the right track and it’s about building on the foundation you’ve started.
If you’re not – revise and re-build.
7. Are we learning?
There is huge benefit in testing something in the real world, and getting plans off paper and in action.
I am a huge proponent of progress over perfection and I believe that having something over nothing is a much better place to start.
Asking yourself these questions will put you in good stead to understand when to pivot, V stay the course.
