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Assuming you are clear about what objectives you are you are trying to achieve, I’m going to show you my Tactical Matrix which is designed to trigger some discussion about which tactical tool/s is/are best for you. Firstly we look at how good each tactic is at moving your prospects/customers through various stages of the Lifetime Buying Process:
- Awareness
- Consideration
- Purchase
- Post Purchase Relationship Building
- Post Purchase Repeat Sales
The need for segmenting your customers or prospects by stage of the buying process emerges again. Now, depending on what stage of the buying cycle you are trying to move your prospects/customers through, you can consider how good each tactic is across these 9 criteria:
- Reach (how big an audience can reach?)
- Speed (how quickly can it reach that audience?)
- Time (how long to create &deliver this tactic?)
- Message Volume (space to fit message in?)
- Targeting (how granular or precise can the targeting be?)
- Personalisation (can the tool personalise messages?)
- Cost – is it expensive on a Cost Per Thous&(CPT/CPM) basis?
- Control – can you control the message with this tactic?
- Credibility – some tactics have more credibility
The last 3 criteria (cost, control & credibility) are sometimes used initially when choosing which tactical tool. We know that some tools give you more control over your message (advertising as opposed to PR or even social media), while some tools cost a lot more (direct mail v advertising) in cost per thousand (CPT/CPM) reached. NB they compare a bit better when looking at cost per eventual conversion & some tools have more credibility e.g. PR, or editorial, has arguably three times more credibility than a message in an advertisement in the UK while reviews on social media platforms have, for many, the most credibility.
The Tactical Matrix
So this Tactical Matrix tries to encapsulate all of this – the 10 comms tools, the 5 stages of the buying process & the 9 criteria to help you to choose which tactical tool is best for your plan. It was developed with the assistance of Mohamad Sameh, marketing manager of IT Vision in Cairo. I apologise that this is probably difficult to read here in this ebook but you can download it here from my PRSmith Marketing Blog. It is something of work in progress so I welcome any comments.
Thanks to Mohamed Sameh from ITV Agency, Cairo, for his help in developing this matrix.
Message Volume means size of message or how much space is available.
This Tactics Matrix is designed to stimulate discussion about which tactical tool (or suite of tools) is best in helping you to achieve your objectives.
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Although the table has promise I struggle with it’s vagueness. By that I mean that “high, “medium”, “short” and “large” are meaningless, and just lead to further questions
It is work in progress Stephen and designed to highlight several dimensions worth considering and discussing when selecting which tactical tools. I see how the terms can be vague in isolation of context. Hopefully, when comparing a particular dimension of one tactical tool against another, you might find the comparative rating more helpful?
You have done a great job, BTW is that still in “work in progress” status? That would be great if you release an update.
Thanks Reza – no updates as yet. All feedback is most welcome. Really glad you like this initial version of the matrix.
Thanks Reza, yes still work in progress. All comments ans suggestions are more than welcome.
Hello, as a student in Marketing, can i combine this with the RACE framework to recommend a digital tactical mix?
Yes I think it works reasonably well in the Tactics section as it can help you choose which tactical channels.
I would bump/extend SEO into Awareness. There are people that become aware and build trust in the Hubspot name years before they need a CRM solution, because of HS great SEO/content work. Or as soon as someone starts looking up topics related to GDPR or CCPA, then they can become aware of issues they hadn’t thought of and solutions to those issues, if SEO has been done by the privacy consent tool providers.
Nice matrix. I see value, but I also agree that with every label, it begs questions, so it’s a table of about 9×20 questions, and can quickly turn into a “let’s boil the ocean” discussion, which CEO’s and VC’s don’t enjoy. I’m not sure how to build it down in a way that’s useful to many, vs each company carving into themselves. Also, on the surface, it appears like something most digital veterans know, i.e. nothing new, but then the question, okay how can I use this to more quickly or more accurately drive towards a bespoke strategy. But still, it’s helpful for those not thinking in these terms, and to start refining a path.
Fair comment Don. Will modify the matrix when I update it.
A great tool to help marketers to make decisions!
Is there any update for this tool coming up? An update for 2021 would be great.
All the best.
No Lucas am flat out writing the 6th ed Digital Marketing Excellence with Dave Chaffey.
Meanwhile, if you have any suggestions for improvement – please do let me know.