YOUR CAMPAIGN IS ALL OVER THE PLACE.
Working Paper No. 6
Integration doesn’t happen by magic. It needs work – your work.
This paper is more of a working session with a focus on developing a process which results in an ‘integrated campaign’ that connects with the target audience in more interesting but relevant ways.
Let’s take this work on a night out:
And in order to understand integrated work, there’s nothing better than to work it through with a brilliant and interesting idea. Now, before reading on, have a look at these two case studies centred on going out. Cole Haan’s campaign was for the stylish yet comfy Chelsea Pump range of shoes fitted with Nike technology. The difficulty they faced was that younger audience perceived the brand as a ‘Mom’s shoes. They flipped the problem on its head by showing that they are actually the perfect shoes for a night out.
Secondly, Puma’s Ode to Athletes, not on the pitch, but ones on a night out
In the following we will guide you towards an integrated campaign that surprises people, by thinking about it differently.
COLE HAAN: Don’t Go Home
1. WHAT INTEGRATED MEDIA ISN’T
Clone cLOne clONE CLoNe clONe...no one wants to see variations of the same, the same, the same, the same – don’t match it across all media and touchpoints: It’s not taking the same creative and message then simply reformatting across each media touchpoint. – you’d never wallpaper and decorate your house using the same pattern across the walls, carpet, curtains, sofas – picture a room fully decorated in a tartan pattern. Do not do the same with your ads.
Avoid being out of context – you would not place Christmas adverts throughout July. It’s about customer expectation – factoring in timing, location and their mindset.
Approaching it in this manner could result in the work literally being ‘All over the place’ and not for the right reasons. As the phrase suggests, we want to avoid the work being ‘all over the place’ - appearing chaotic, disorganised and confusing the target audience. Therefore, your campaign might be everywhere but not aligned with the brand, message, creative or customer journey. Turning up in the wrong place and/or out of context, could either be seen as intrusive and forced into a target audience's life and/or bland and most likely ignored...or worse, completely missed if placed in the wrong location.
There is a solution though... Comms Planning.
2. WHAT IS COMMS PLANNING?
Comms planning = Customer Journey with Context
Comms planning gives rigour to the brand, the message and the creative by targeting in places where the customers will be.
It’s a connections strategy that puts:
→ The right message
→ In the right place
→ At the right time
It’s about solving the customer problem by placing (or even creating) media where the target audience will be. This is achieved by adding context using the creative/message, the environment and customer mindset (as seen on a benefits ladder below).
Treat the customer journey like a story. You never want to ruin the ending and you always want to create an emotional connection with the character. For example, leading with a discount message in a TV ad when you actually want to evoke an emotion/feeling so that it connects with the audience and prompts them to want to find out more and search out for the brand. Whereas a discount CTA / offer at the point of purchase will prompt and encourage them to purchase with the support of the salience created from your ATL. You can see how this journey connects along the benefits ladder.
The aim of Comms Planning is to become more: Relevant, Memorable and Effective
You can reference this across Julian Cole’s benefits ladder and some examples:
How do we get there?
Let’s start at the end, read the below from right to left:
But what exactly goes into a Comms Plan?
Julian Cole states that there are 4 critical elements to a comms plan:
1. Customer Journey
2. Comms Framework 3. Campaign Ecosystem 4. Campaign Blueprint
3. COMMS PLANNING IN PRACTICE:
Example 1: Cole Haan: Don’t Go Home
Let’s run through a Comms Plan with using the BBH/Jay Chiat Awards example. To give context we shall review the brief, the insight and the creative idea which leads into the comms planning process.
Brief – Insight – Creative Idea: CHALLENGE:
BRIEF:
INSIGHT:
CREATIVE IDEA:
⋅ Cole Haan is known for conventional brown shoes, made for an older target audience who value
comfort over style
⋅ Grow the business by driving reappraisal with a younger 24-45 consumer with the launch of the
Chelsea Pump
⋅ Strategic Insights:
o Audience Truth: “Day to night to the next morning, for a 20hr day”
o Product Truth: Classic, stylish but made to move
o Cultural Truth: Uncomfortable pumps make some women go home
o People go home because their footwear doesn't transition from day to night
⋅ The Proposition: The Chelsea Pump is made to move you through the 20-hour day, into the
New York City night
⋅ The Creative Idea: Encourage young New Yorkers to stay out and experience more of the
night DON’T GO HOME
COMMS PLANNING PROCESS: STEP1: Develop a Customer Journey
⋅ Audience Aim – Research with an understanding as to How, Where and Why they shop
⋅ Comms Aim - Informs Where and How we meet them
Example – Journey Plan: https://www.group-think.co.uk/blog/customer-experience-map
STEP2: Create a Comms Framework
⋅ Using the customer journey research to create a comms framework.
⋅ This framework moves the audience through a funnel – Awareness, Consideration and
Conversion
⋅ It lays out the audience barriers, comms tasks to overcome these barriers and which channels
(based on the customer journey) will best reach them with the relevant funnel stage message.
Example: Julian Cole – What is Comms Planning?
STEP3: Map out the Campaign Eco-System
⋅ The comms plan is placed into a visual campaign eco-system to showcase the campaign flow
STEP4: Plot the Campaign Blueprint
⋅ The Campaign Eco-system is placed in a Campaign Blueprint to map out key campaign timings and costs, roll-out phases and key cultural moments / sales points.
COLE HAAN RESULT:
⋅ Challenging, incentivising and rewarding the target audience to stay out.
⋅ Being relevant by solving real needs throughout the customer journey with interesting media
engagements.
⋅ Campaign results can be found in the 4A’s Case Study listed in the below sources.
Sources:
⋅ Case Study Video: Cole Haan: Don’t Go Home
⋅ 4A’s Case Study: Presentation
⋅ Julian Cole: What Is Comms Planning
EXERCISE:
Time to practice:
Puma Social:
⋅ Try develop a comms plan using the below case study video and presentation.
⋅ Use Julian Coles presentation as a guide / reference.
Sources:
⋅ Case Study Video: Puma After Hours Athlete
⋅ Case Study: Presentation
⋅ Julian Cole: What Is Comms Planning 2
4. HOW TO ‘THINK DIFFERENTLY’
The presentation to this paper can be found here: http://tiny.cc/30MinuteUniIf you want to learn more on applying or being inspired by integrated thinking, please follow the link to the presentation, there you’ll find a list of sources at the end of the presentation which show you what to do and who to follow.
A Quick Note:
I am a member of the Planning Dirty Academy and highly recommend it to anyone looking to fast track their way to becoming an all-round strategist.
The comms frameworks and examples shown in this session have been developed by and shared with permission from Julian Cole.
The Planning Dirty Academy is an online course and private community for anyone who wants to become an accredited strategist. To learn more about Julian Cole and the Planning Dirty Academy please follow this link: https://www.planningdirty.com/