You may be overwhelmed with countless campaign management software out there. To narrow down your search, we’ve made a list of what to consider when choosing the right campaign management tool for your business. But first, let us explain what to do before, during and after a campaign management.
The Before Step
The first thing you need to do is plan. You need to create what we call S.M.A.R.T. goals that motivate you. It stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-bound, according to YourCoach.
To be specific, you need to answer the questions What, Where, Who, When, Which and Why. It gives you a clear definition on what to do on your goal and helps you focus on it. Asking “what” is for finding out what you want to achieve. “Where” is for what type of campaign tool you are going to use or where you are planning your target location. The who is for your target market and the team members that will participate in your campaign. “When” is the timeframe you are willing to partake in. “Which” is for identifying what’s needed and any restrictions you might face. Lastly, the “why.” State your purpose or reason plus the benefit as to why you’re doing it.
Having measurable goals will help you keep track of your goals progress over time. You can track them by using a campaign management tool.
Attainable goals are realistic goals. You should be able to achieve it step by step. You have to make sure you’re able and willing to exert any efforts in working on it. These helps you improve your skills and abilities as you progress.
Relevant goals should be related to your business objective. It will provide you an answer as to why you are willing to fulfill this goal.
Time-bound goals are timelines for your campaign. There must be a start and due date. It is recommended you set a schedule to avoid any conflicts in the future and make a To-Do list to make sure you remember important details. Always set your goals positively. Make action plans and follow it.
Think about your target audience. Find out what their interests are, their age, area, ethnicity, et cetera. This would help you create a more specific strategy on your campaign based on their preferences and their profile. Select a dedicated campaign management platform that suits your business needs.
You also have to choose the Best Campaign Management Tools that you’ll be using for your campaign. It’s best if you try out one or two tools at first to get a feel if it’s right for your business or not. Each tool is unique and try to research beforehand on them and understand how they work. Selecting the wrong ones can destroy your reputation while the right ones will help you achieve your planned goals.
The During Step
This is where you’ll get busy in conversing and monitoring participants in your campaign. They will provide feedback and let you know if anything is wrong. Once you know there’s an issue, resolve them as quickly as possible. Record everything for future use.
Using SEO Campaign management tools, you can use analytics to track your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and monitor your campaign’s popularity. Make sure that everything is working fine.
During this time, encourage people to participate. If they ask a question, take time to answer it. Engage in their conversations and give feedback. Personalize their experience by calling their name or remembering what they’ve said.
The After Step
It is important to thank everyone that participated in your campaign. Gather all your data and make a list of your prospective clients. You can use marketing campaign management software to easily make a record of Even if they weren’t what you’re looking for, you might need them again for future campaigns.
Review the results of your campaign. Pay attention to what went well and what didn’t. Talk to your team to get more ideas for the next campaign, focus on the main highlights and improve on the things that did not go well.
To get a more comprehensive overview on what to do on a campaign management strategy, read Hootsuite’s article here.
Understanding Your Business Needs
So you now know how to do a campaign management. What happens next? The next thing you need to focus on is finding out what your business needs in a campaign management. You need to decide which tools are best for your company based on what features they have to offer. Some tools are effective in generating leads while others are mainly used for monitoring traffic. Some have analytic and reporting capabilities. Some have provided real-time interaction capabilities. Find out the campaign management tool that works well for you.
There are three main features most businesses are looking for in a campaign management tool. First is reliability and security. You would like to use a product that can deliver. It should also be able to keep to its promise and have minimal downtimes or flaws. You shouldn’t worry about deadlines and getting information, let the tool do the job for you. It should provide a seamless experience that will make your tasks easier.
The second is that it should be easy to use. It has a simple design and has a step by step instruction or tutorial. You are able to manage your campaign anytime and anywhere. They should be able to support your needs in the future as technology is constantly changing.
Lastly, customer support. You should be able to get help from customer support if you encounter any problems. Most support nowadays have 27/7 service and you can either contact them via phone, email or by chatting them online. It’s best if they can provide you answers in real-time and if they can resolve technical problems immediately.
No tool has it all. There is no perfect platform but you can choose a tool that caters to most of your needs. You can read reviews of campaign management tools by CrowdReviews to find out what’s best for your business.
Find Out Your Metrics
Key Performance Indicators or KPIs will help you find out if your campaign is successful or not.
The most common metrics are your leads, reach, engagement, sentiment and competitive data.
Leads are people that participated in your campaign and by finding out what they’re interested in, turn into prospective clients.
Reach is how many people you would be able to connect with. It’s determining the size of your audience.
Engagement is the number of people that is actively participating on your campaigns. This would help you in knowing where to focus and to make sure we are providing the right content.
Sentiment is the feedback that you’re getting. It could be negative or positive.
Competitive data is finding more about your competitors. It’s best to do research about them and why people are involved with them. Once you know what it is, you can also apply their strategies to attract customers.
Budget
There are some campaign management tools that have monthly fees while others are free campaign management software.
Your budget would depend on what you need your campaign management. It’s how much information you need to gather and archive. The bigger your business, the higher the chance of your budget would be. Don’t just invest in the most expensive tool out there, or those claiming to be the best campaign management tools. Ask yourself first if it’s really necessary for you to have it.
Like what I’ve mentioned earlier, there are some campaign tools that don’t require a big budget if you are tracking on your channel growth or just need content performance analytics. If you have to purchase one, make sure that there are no hidden costs. Discover if there are any setup fees or overages you need to pay.
Just remember that no tool has everything, so you might need one or two to effectively enhance your campaign management.
Other Key Factors
Other key factors you have to ask yourself before getting a campaign management tool. Below are some questions that will find out what you’re looking for and how much you need to invest.
- How many team members would need accounts to monitor your campaign?
- Have I picked the right campaign tool for my clients? What platforms do I use? Are they compatible with my target market?
- How long do I need to keep track of my data? How regularly do I need reports, is it on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly or yearly basis?
- How much will I invest for results?
- What types of customer support you can provide?
- Do you need integration of other tools?
- Does it have scalability?
- Is it suitable to my business?
- Does it need regular updates?
- Do I understand how to interpret its analysis and reports?
- Can you export the data and is it compatible to my system?
- Does it provide the information that I need?
- Can it track my ROI (Return of Investment)?
- Can it help my business in the long run?
- Can you run it even offline?
- Can they provide a demo before I purchase?
The takeaway here is making sure that the campaign management tool you choose is beneficial to you. You business needs, budget and metrics are important things to consider in getting the right software. To know what’s best for you, make sure they are capable of achieving the goals you’ve set up in your campaign.
Interested in getting campaign management tools for your company now? Check out CrowdReviews.com’s reviews of campaign management tools.
Keith Moore
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