Advertising Strategy
Amanda Evans
From the very beginning, Closed Loop has operated under the belief that for a successful program—the strategy should inform tactics, and tactics should inform strategy.
When tactics and strategy are decoupled, growth is limited.
Over the last 20 years, Closed Loop has grown from a small search marketing practice to a full-service digital agency. We’ve held onto that belief that strategy and tactics go hand in hand.
As we grew and added new media channels to our offerings, we quickly realized that some advertisers were wildly out-performing others, even with the same tactics.
We would go to conferences and hear the same feedback: what worked in one campaign failed miserably in another. Something was missing.
After deep analysis, it became—successful digital ad campaigns integrate marketing strategy, creative, data and media. Each component “talks” to one another.
Sophisticated advertisers who operated this way were the ones that achieved strong growth. Those who failed thought of these factors in siloes.
At Closed Loop, we integrate these areas of focus in every client relationship. Our creative strategy is informed by media, data, and marketing strategy. Our media strategy is also informed by data, creative and marketing strategy and so on.
Here’s how this works together. Let’s say you’re a CMO of a company planning a shift to move further up-market. Where do you start? You could start with a media plan, but do you have the creative to support it?
You could start with creative, but which creative works best? And which formats? None of this can work in a silo—creative will impact media, media will affect data collection, and strategy will influence media.
Strategy requires strong execution, but it’s aimless without goals in place. Before embarking on a strategy, meet and align with stakeholders to decide on your objectives. Having a solid plan with specific intent will always help make your campaigns more effective and efficient.
All decisions for your campaigns should rely on data. Remember, numbers don’t lie. Instead, they tell an accurate picture of how things are performing and what opportunities lie beyond the horizon. Never make a move without having data to support your reasoning or next course of action.
With your data and strategy in place, develop creative that leaves a lasting impression with your target demographic. Consumers today are experts at ignoring ads, so it is essential, now more than ever, to stand out and provide value to reach them.
Your customers aren’t in just one place. In digital advertising, advertisers have to meet their customers where they are. In the famous words of Marshall McLuhan, “The medium is the message.”
To have a balanced, full-funnel strategy, incorporate a good media mix to maximize return. There are multiple channels outside of paid search and social at your disposal, so test and see what works best for your needs.
Advertisers who take the time to truly integrate creative, data, media and strategy during early planning enjoy faster growth, better results and ultimately happier internal teams.
My new book, “Average is Losing” is finally here! I created this playbook to help savvy advertisers close the gap between winning and run-of-the-mill paid advertising campaigns.
It’s filled to the brim with the latest strategies, tactics and tips our Closed Loop experts use to help our clients seek exponential growth.
Are you ready to rise above average campaign performance? Start your business on the path to PPC domination today!
– Lance Loveday
