There is nothing worse than working for weeks on a campaign that no one wants to take part in is there? Earnestly watching your hashtag and realising that, somewhere along the way, something hasn’t computed and the disinterest of your audience starts to eat away at your heart, like that really sad episode of Scrubs where Kim and JD break up the day their son is born. It’s almost too much.
The likelihood is that a stage of your planning process has been missed or wasn’t fleshed out enough.
Of course, for future learnings, it’s essential to look back and reflect on what can be done next time around, so things never pan out this way again. But that doesn’t help you right now when you have targets to meet and your boss breathing down your neck.
While you’re looking into the root of the problem, here’s a few quick things you can do to perform a little campaign CPR.
1. Cut the fluff
Is the process to take part in your campaign too complicated for your audience? When you go to write out the instructions, do you have to pause to get your head around it? If so, it’s probably too complicated.
Simplify it. Cut all the fluff. Try it on a few unsuspecting friends/family members, and when you find a simple formula re-do as much of your marketing messaging as you can and re-send it all out (to whatever extent you can without getting on people’s nerves).
A few things that can over-complicate a campaign for your users include:
- Too many signup portals
- Redirecting to a landing page unnecessarily
- Being pushed from one social media platform to another
- Unclear entry instructions
Cutting the above out isn’t always an easy decision. It may lead to sacrificing web traffic, for example, if you need to stop redirecting your audience from Twitter to your site, then back to Twitter. Focus instead on how you’re tracking your entries, and plan follow-up comms that push them to your site for a good reason.
2. More social media
Feeling like your campaign promotions on social media are a bit sparse? Load up some extra updates – particularly if you don’t have an advertising budget for your campaign. Due to the algorithms of almost all channels, just a tiny percentage of your audience is ever going to see it.
Up the frequency of your posts without being spammy, and intersperse them between your other content. There’s nothing wrong with doing this.
3. Mailshot
If you haven’t sent out a tonne already, a nice, concise mailshot can really turn things around for you if you’ve got a reasonably engaged data list. Utilise good design, graphics, sharp copy and one clear call to action that’s mentioned and linked near both the top and bottom of your email.
4. Incentivise
Freebies are a good way to get more participants on board, but that’s not always the shape an incentive has to take.
Muster your greatest storytelling skills and start really delving into why your audience should take part. What makes it important to them, as well as to you? What will they take away from the experience of being part of your campaign?
The outlets on which to do this are endless, but your time isn’t. Measure up your one or two most effective channels or platforms to carry this out on, and start storytelling.
5. Extend
If you are able, there’s nothing to be lost by extending the campaign deadline. Sure, it feels a bit like a failure, but actually, by moving the goal posts, you’re giving yourself the best opportunity to use what you have and drive closer to the targets you’ve been set.
You don’t have to be too evasive around your messaging either. Your updates can be as simple as, “We wanted to give our wonderful fans more time to be a part of this fab campaign, so do XYZ by X date.” In your brand’s special tone of voice, obviously.
What tips can you share to save a dying digital campaign? Share in the comments below.
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