In the first part of this blog, I spoke about the first four key elements to define in a communication plan, that is to say: the context, the stakes and objectives, the public target as well as the axes of communication and messages. That served me as a basis to evaluate the presentations submitted to Claude Malaison and myself within the framework of the course entitled “Interactive Communications of companies”.
I acknowledge that some of my comments could be perceived as negative, but as mentioned by Virginie, my goal was to formulate constructive criticism with an aim of optimization. And mea culpa; when continuing my analysis of the work, I noticed that another team had indeed proposed messages, my apologies!
I would like to mention the quality of the elements analyzed in the second part of the communication plan. Indeed, the means and tools presented online proved very relevant. In addition, the majority of the teams took the initiative to determine a realistic schedule and means of evaluation.
5. Means and tools
According to the established objectives, one must determine here the best media, tactics and support to reach their target. Obviously, even if some teams preserved more traditional tools, the majority of the means suggested were of a numerical type. Also, two teams presented models of the proposed tools, which can prove to be a good tactic to make it possible for the customer to have a better idea of what they are.
Similar to 2013
Among the tools proposed, the redesigning of the site, including a company blog, the publication of a newsletter, the importance of being present in social media and even creating a community or a group following an inbound marketing strategy appeared in each plan of communication. More emphasis was placed on the importance of being accessible anywhere and on any platform – mobility.
New in 2014
Personalization of content in sites, collaboration by ideagoras, intensive use of video and web TV are among the trends and new ways mentioned. One team even included the notion of “gaming” to increase website traffic and retain audiences. A bold idea. In terms of technology, WordPress has been cited repeatedly as the web development platform of choice.
6. Planning or Billing schedule
Now that the means or tools are selected, they should be placed in a strategic way, according to the given billing schedule and especially, according to the planned budget. To aim for this, it is important to consider human resources and financial and material resources to carry out the plan.
Highlights
A schedule over a period of three years was favored by teams that included this element in their plans, or the majority. In addition to the idea of testing tactics for the implementation of pilot projects with major investments, I liked the idea of cutting the calendar phases. This tactic can reassure the client, schedule downtime to make the point, adjust the budget, revise the schedule and carry out the assessment and optimization plan based on the results obtained at the end of important steps within the project.
7. The evaluation
What is the purpose of a plan if we do not install evaluation mechanisms to assess the success of the various initiatives suggested? According to the objectives, indicators of performance, or KPI, must be set and evaluated on a regular basis. If the results are positive, all is well. But it is possible that the results have not met the expectations. In this case, one should not regard this as a failure, but react quickly to optimize the strategy without delay.
Strong points
Although only one team had formulated a quantifiable objective of communication, I was impressed to see that the majority of the teams had included means of evaluation. Among the most popular, mentioning the surveys of satisfaction, the analysis of traffic on the sites and the conversion rates, as well as the number of divisions or comments emitted by the target audience in social media.
It’s always a rewarding experience to carry out the assessment of student work. Also, I would like to clarify that the criteria for evaluating communication plans presented in the course are the same as if you were to evaluate those made by an agency, be it the quality of the presentation – the pitch, relevance, realism and originality of the plan and proposed tactics and tools, the integration of seven elements of a communication plan and what is essential to improve the means envisaged to evaluate the success of the plan.
Congratulations to the students I met. I wish them the best of luck in their career and I hope to have the privilege to repeat the experience next year and share with you my discoveries and observations.
