In our ninth B2B marketing step we decided the marketing mix elements to execute our strategy and achieve our objectives. We have some momentum now. We know what we’re going to do, we have to get into the specific, measurable detail.

In the tenth B2B marketing step, then, you need to map out the specific marketing activities you will undertake for your specific project. If this is an ongoing marketing strategy, then I recommend you do it on a quarterly basis, as a quarter is a reasonable B2B timeframe for your efforts to bear fruit, and it’s the fruit you’re measuring. All of your specific activities should have measurable targets against them, which, when added up, get you to your overall target for the project or period.

I suggest you put together a table with each numbered activities listed down the left side, and the following 12 headings across the top. You then need to populate your table:

  • Campaign – that the activity relates to
  • Audience – the segment or sub-segment you’re targeting
  • Launch date – so you can work backwards and figure out when you need to start it
  • Call to action – the thing you want them to do
  • What – what are they getting for completing the action (eg registering for an event)
  • Medium – what do you need to build to allow them to complete the action, eg email, web site landing page and piece of content
  • Who – who in your organisation and /or partner ecosystem is on the hook for delivering this work
  • Target Leads – target number of marketing qualified leads for the activity (eg webinar registrations which marketing then qualify)
  • Target opportunities – of the target leads, the amount of sales qualified opportunities that you plan to generate
  • Target pipeline – the total pipeline this activity will generate
  • Total deals – the total deals or that should result from the activity
  • Total business – the total deal amount that should result from the activity

Leave extra columns for the actual leads, opportunities etc that result from these activities once the project or period is over, but that’s a topic for another post.

Make sure you build in buffer, so that you plan to exceed your target with the sum of your activities, even though you’re only promising or are being held to the target itself. Over time, and with successive efforts, you should get better at forecasting the results of your activities.

Notice too that these are all demand generation activities. You will do other activities that may not generate specific demand, like brand awareness initiatives, but you should still attempt to survey and / or measure the results. If a demand generation activity does not generate one SQO with a value that covers your activity investment by a multiple that you feel is appropriate, don’t do the activity.

Once you have an activity plan that looks reasonable, you need to cost the plan, which comes up next :-).