September 2021: Digital Campaign Planning
Hi, friend!
Last week, I sat down with the lovely team at We Are For Good to discuss my favorite topic: digital campaign planning for social good.
I asked Becky—one of We Are For Good’s fearless leaders—to name a brand, any brand. She chose Apple, as many of us would.
I said to her...
Imagine if Apple never ran any digital marketing campaigns. No ads, no PR around new product launches or software updates… just a monthly newsletter and perhaps a couple of extra emails around the holidays.
Do you know what would happen? Over time, Apple would become obsolete. Their loyal following would shrink year after year, and other companies would encroach on their (currently massive) market share.
Whether your organization is massive or tiny, the same rule applies to you. Your digital marketing doesn’t need to be on Apple’s level, but it needs to exist—and it needs to evolve. You should be trying something new on the digital marketing front at least once a quarter! In fact, that is my definition of a “digital campaign”: a digital marketing effort with a distinct beginning and end that is different from your ongoing communications. Campaigns are essential to sustain and grow your base. Sending out a few emails is not enough to attract new donors/customers, nor is it enough to keep your existing donors/customers excited about you.
I launched a free workbook last week to help you navigate the process of designing a winning digital campaign. It’s a Google Doc you can download or print. The workbook will walk you through my 10-step campaign planning process.
Download the Free Campaign Planning Workbook >
As you'll read in the workbook, every winning digital campaign is three things:
💭 Memorable
💪 Manageable
📈 Measurable
Your campaign needs to be unique enough to stop the scroll—and ideally funny, heartwarming, or shocking enough that people will share it. It needs to be simple enough that you can keep track of all the pieces. And it needs to have proper tracking mechanisms in place so you know whether it's working.
What I love about digital marketing is, it’s much easier and less expensive than it used to be to design a marketing campaign that hits all three of these criteria. You no longer need to throw up a billboard or place an ad in the paper and hope it sticks. While those marketing methods have their place, there are so many other options available to you online.
If you’re in the nonprofit sector, I have a new workshop on this topic for you!
You can watch my workshop on digital campaign planning by subscribing to We Are For Good Pro, an amazing new learning platform for nonprofit professionals. We Are For Good Pro is like Netflix for nonprofits. They’re adding new masterclasses and workshops every week. It only costs $30/month to subscribe and you can apply for a scholarship if you need one.
If this platform existed when I worked at a nonprofit, I wouldn’t have felt so alone. And I definitely would have been better at my job. It’s incredible what my friends at We Are For Good are doing to revolutionize nonprofit professional development.
With the holidays right around the corner, now is the perfect time to plan a digital campaign.
If you’re seeking donations or selling something, end-of-year is a huge opportunity! If you’d like some help developing a winning campaign for Giving Tuesday or the holidays, fill out this inquiry form and select “Campaign Planning Workshop or Consulting.” I will get back to you ASAP!
Wishing you a great rest of the month,
-Caroline
