What’s on your 2021 learning agenda?
While the first month of 2021 has flown by, we’ve still got 11 months left to hit those annual sales goals. Looking ahead, now is the perfect time to focus on and nail down your Learning Agenda for the year. What do you want to test? What knowledge are you hoping to gain? What areas need new thinking? Setting yourself up for 5 to 10 solid marketing tests is a great way to ensure you’ll feel successful come next January.
A Learning Agenda should act like a high-level roadmap. You needn’t have every detail mapped out. What you want is the hypothesis you’ve identified, the marketing channel to test in and a rough timeline to execute. It’s best to pick both shorter and longer-term tests, so that you have enough instant gratification to keep you going all year.
Here are a variety of marketing test ideas to get you started:
Go streaming. Connected TV represents 25% of all TV viewership (according to Nielsen Q220). If you haven’t yet tested CTV, now is the time. No matter who your audience is, no matter how old, young or unique, they’re watching streaming TV. A smart, first-step approach is to try one or two platforms. Also, be sure to have IP matching measurement turned on.
Auto-boost SEO to maximize TV. If your TV is driving Search, which it should be, try aligning the two to better capture interested consumers. Consider looking at methods that auto-boost your search and social bids at the exact moment your TV spots air. This can be terrific way to help increase conversion and deliver greater return on your TV investment. So why not test it?
Expand nationally and find hidden revenue. No nationwide footprint? Stringing together local markets and states? Here’s something to think about: try going national. You might be surprised that you don’t need as much coverage as you think to gain major efficiencies. If you’re worried about waste, consider selling out-of-footprint leads to an aggregator. That revenue can certainly add up. Now who’s a hero?
Try different TV spot lengths. If you’ve been running primarily :15 and :30s, consider testing a longer-length ad. The extra time can benefit your brand in a variety of ways. It’ll give viewers greater education of your product. It will help your brand stand out in a crowd of 30-second spots. And it will likely drive a more knowledgeable and qualified lead.
Get creative with push notifications. If you have an app for sales or as a communication tool for your customer base, try testing ways to engage via push notifications. Perhaps it’s a special sale price, a reward they’ve earned or news about a product launch. Test when to release and how frequently. Also, use the results to inform your other marketing efforts.
Listen to your customer. Have you engaged with consumers lately? Now’s the year to do it. Consumers have a lot to share about how brands should engage with them in the post-pandemic world – from retail to healthcare. Whether it’s analyzing online reviews and social conversations, or actively conducting research via online surveys and focus groups, it’s a great time to spend a little time listening. Insights can impact product, distribution, pricing, customer services and creative messaging.
There’s a lot to get excited about when it comes to testing. Just remember, whatever you have planned, don’t forget about measurement. A test without measurement is meaningless. As you build your Learning Agenda, make sure you map out how to measure each test against your KPIs and goals. After all, it’s better to test and fail, than to test and not know.
If you’re interested in hearing more about testing opportunities or performance marketing strategies, feel free to connect with me at: Delia.Marshall@eicoff.com