🎯 Your campaign's missing piece

A no BS guide for your next marketing campaign.

Author

Ian Ito
August 23, 2024 • Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

Issue #243

Your next marketing campaign is missing something crucial.

Spoiler alert: It's not another tool or tactic.

Before diving into channels and KPIs, the most important element to land is the narrative (my hot take 🍵). Here’s why.

1️⃣ It defines your objective (What are we actually trying to achieve here?)

2️⃣ It pinpoints your audience (Who are we talking to, and why should they care?)

3️⃣ It frames the context (How are we positioning this campaign?)

In other words, it's the roadmap for your entire marketing initiative.

In today’s email, we cover:

  • The big picture: Start with the strategy, then design your marketing plan

  • The strategy: A framework for building your next marketing campaign

  • The tactics: A no-BS campaign checklist

Let's dive in!

Ian at SaaS Weekly

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This week in SaaS

• TechCrunch | AI sales reps are seeing rapid growth. But despite the boom, VCs remain cautious about investing due to concerns about long term sustainability and competition from incumbents (Link)

• CIO | Salesforce is releasing two autonomous AI agents in October. These agents go beyond AI copilots by executing tasks like answering inbound lead questions and booking meetings (Link)

• GeekWire | Dropbox has acquired Reclaim.ai, a Portland-based startup that uses AI for task prioritization and schedule coordination (Link)

• Clouded Judgement | GenAI could potentially increase software's share of IT budgets from ~25% to ~50%, mainly at the expense of headcount and outsourcing expenses (Link)

Bookmarks & timeless classics

• The CMO | 15 SaaS marketing campaign examples that totally transformed the game (Link)

• Yellow Chili Campaigns | 🟨 Mailchimp: Email is dead. Long live spam! (Link)

• Notion | How Notion launches brand campaigns (and a template you can use) (Link)

• Startup GTM | Strategic play of marketing channels across different GTM strategies (Link)

End-to-end marketing campaigns

Most B2B marketing plans fail due to a lack of clarity and misalignment with revenue goals.

To avoid friction in the funnel, design a marketing plan (template linked inside) that balances these two execution pillars – 1) regular operations (80%) and one-time programs or experiments (20%).

This 80/20 split strikes a balance between stability and innovation, allowing you to maintain consistent actions while exploring new bets.

Once you have a clear marketing plan, the next step is to build campaigns that support the execution of your strategy. Usually centered around a theme, these initiatives aim to move the needle on one or two growth metrics.

Here are key questions to ask when planning your next campaign.
👉 1. What's your campaign goal? Define success criteria using the GACCS brief (Goals, Audience, Creative, Channels, Stakeholders).

👉 2. Who's your target audience? Identify specific segments or accounts you're aiming to reach and influence.

👉 3. What's your campaign fuel? Determine the content, messaging, or creative that will resonate with your audience.

👉 4. Which channels will you use? Select the right mix of channels to reach and engage your target audience effectively.

👉 5. Who's the DRI? Assign a single directly responsible individual to coordinate across marketing functions.

This campaign playbook is a cheat sheet for running quality marketing campaigns.

It breaks down the entire process from pre-planning to post-launch analysis, giving you a step-by-step guide to keep your team aligned and your campaigns on track. No fluff, just the essentials to execute campaigns that drive real growth.

SaaS Weekly resources

1) The SaaS Weekly Database: Search Thousands of the Best SaaS Articles and Resources

2) Generative AI Tracker: B2B SaaS Companies Adding GenAI Capabilities

Social posts

Last issue’s most clicked-on links

• The ultimate guide to B2B marketing in 2024 (Link) 🔥🔥🔥

• State of private markets: Q2 2024 (Link) 🔥🔥

• The future of content marketing (Link) 🔥