How to build effective adv campaigns

Summary

There is no universal recipe for building an effective adv campaign, because everything depends on the brand, the product, the service, the objectives, and the target.

Yet, there are some elements that are always valid. In this post, we identify 8 of them:

1) Analyze the sentiment and, therefore fit into the context in the most functional and natural way;

2) Ensure the best positioning on search engines;

3) Measure results, interpret them, and recalibrate your campaigns accordingly;

4) Segment your target audience in a data-driven way;

5) Aim for personalization;

6) Choose the right channels and the right media;

7) Always focus on quality;

8) Create a community around your campaign, turning customers into the first ambassadors.

What is the secret to building effective adv campaigns?

Let’s clear up any misunderstandings right away; there isn’t just one. And to claim the opposite is to sell a miracle remedy, the solution fit for all businesses and all times.

This just doesn’t exist.

It all depends on the identity of your brand, on the general objectives, and the more specific ones (which must be well identified), on the channels, the tools used, on the target you have in mind (or, better, on the targets – plural – that you must learn to monitor), but also on the context in which you are going to operate, which can change very quickly and suddenly.

In short, there are many variables. Does this mean, then, that they are all uncontrollable and that chaos and luck must reign over everything? No, far from it!

For us it means that there is no universal recipe valid for all brands and all situations, of course, but also that there are very solid and recognized pillars around which to build an effective strategy for any type of company and for any sector.

It’s all about keeping your eyes peeled, never forgetting these ingredients, and mixing and applying them in the right way. We will identify 8 of them in this post.

1. Watch out for sentiment!

The “sentiment” is the index that measures what is “said” about a brand, a product, a service, and whether it is evaluated positively or negatively by public opinion.

It can be very general or specific, depending on the metrics that are set and considered (in other words, it can range from the analysis of alternative fuel automobiles throughout the western world, to the creation of an urban area in a district of Milan by a construction company).

The first factor to consider for an effective adv campaign is this. And the reason is very clear: you cannot ignore the context.

Beware: sentiment can change slowly and over the long term, but it can also undergo sudden and decisive shocks. This is something we have all experienced throughout the pandemic, where health issues have taken the limelight worldwide.

All brands have adapted because there’s nothing worse than appearing “out of touch,” either as a brand or as a product or service.

2. Take better care of SEO

Search Engine Optimization indicates the strategies for optimizing the positioning of content on search engines, increasing its visibility.

What is important to underline, however, is that you should never forget to take care of this aspect, relying on specialists to do so.

Attention: you must know the most functional keywords for your business, depending on your actual or – above all – your potential customers. There is no effective adv campaign that is not first visible!

3. Measure, calibrate, update continuously

There is no such thing as an effective adv campaign that is not visible first. Good. But after that? What happens in the post-launch phases?

Digital is the realm of fluidity, where everything changes: your marketing strategy can’t be an exception. So you have to learn how to measure the results of your campaigns, as broadly and deeply as possible, and with the most efficient and cutting-edge analytics tools, customized to your needs.

Try to understand what worked and what didn’t (but also for whom it worked and for whom it didn’t; we’ll come back to this in the next point).

Based on this data, recalibrate your campaign, modify it, target it differently, update it continuously, but don’t lose the initial consistency.

Of course, perfection does not exist: but everything can always be improved.

4. Segment the target

The effectiveness of a message – let’s say it loud and clear – depends on the target it reaches, whether it is the “right” one or not.

In marketing terms: it’s all about the target audience.

The good news is that today, brands have an unprecedented awareness of the characteristics and behavior of this target audience. The key theme is: Big Data analytics. This is the starting point.

The next step is to interpret this data in order to segment your audience into specific clusters of people who share the same characteristics, in terms of geography, social, psychological, behavioral (and the metrics can be so many: again, it’s all about setting them right).

These segments should then be targeted with tailored operations, which are much more effective than those targeted toward a general audience.

It’s something that happens all the time: if you often shop for sporting goods and you live in London, for example, you’ll receive an advertisement from a store in the city; or from a major brand in the sector, which refers you to the online shop. This is what we mean by data-driven marketing.

But the most effective strategy is one that goes beyond segments and clusters. We’ll get to that in the next point.

5. Nothing is more effective than personalization

Personalization is the ultimate goal of any data-driven operation. And it’s the most advanced way to create an effective advertising campaign.

The future comes from here. We’ve already talked about it: thanks to data collection, you can go beyond segments and target individuals. No longer a one-to-many campaign, but many one-to-one campaigns.

This doesn’t mean you’ll have to build a different communication for each of your customers from scratch. That would be a huge waste of time and money!

But there are some cutting-edge tools, such as the Babelee personalized video platform, that do the work for you, automatically, with systems capable of adapting your campaigns to the characteristics of each individual recipient and their browsing choices, in real time.

In addition, there is another really powerful lever, in terms of effectiveness: interactivity. So you can move from a one-way communication to a two-way one.

6. Choose the right channels and the right media

Effectiveness depends on the target audience, as we pointed out above. But that’s not all. In fact, you need to know how to intercept the right people through the most functional channels and tools.

First of all: smartphones, tablets, and personal computers are used in different ways. So, if you want an effective advertising campaign, this must be optimized for each device.

And it’s only the first step. You must reach people in the digital places that they frequent most. SEO positioning or AdSense can’t be enough.

For example, you have to structure a well-planned strategy on social media. And here too, each social network has its own technical standards, its most effective language, its written or unwritten rules.

You can’t communicate in the same way on Twitter and TikTok. Nor even on Facebook and Instagram, to name the most famous platforms.

So, learn to calibrate your campaigns by paying close attention to the channel through which they will be conveyed. Aim for an omnichannel perspective as much as possible, to capture your customer’s attention “where they are.”

But, at the same time, take care to maintain an underlying consistency, in order to keep recognition of the brand and the product or service at the heart of the campaign.

7. Quality never expires

There is no effectiveness without quality: especially if your objectives are medium-to long-term. There are no shortcuts.

Qualitypays in the long run because it is clearly perceived by the recipient of an advertising campaign, even in an unconscious way. It makes them feel respected and not treated as just a number among numbers.

Quality in storytelling boosts the reputation of brands and their associated products.

Finally, quality builds customer loyalty. Aiming at quality means knowing how to best manage content marketing. We have given you some valuable tips in this post, which you can refer to for more information.

8. Create a community around your campaigns

A campaign can and must be effective immediately, in the short term, and it must be clear, engaging, and able to capture the attention of individuals (and the challenge, today, is harder than ever).

But it can and must also be effective in the long term, creating loyalty, and even better, creating a sense of belonging and advocacy. This is the most ambitious objective to aim for.

To achieve it, it’s a matter – as we’ve seen – of starting with digital data and transforming it into relationships of trust with real people.

The final result of an effective adv campaign is to transform the “consumers” into “prosumers,” or the first ambassadors of their brand and message, into authentic witnesses with the utmost credibility.