Example of a tactical “Marketing Blueprint” for events

What is a “marketing blueprint”? This continues to be a good question and a source of confusion amongst marketers because blueprints are often confused with Excel spreadsheets of Microsoft Project. Here are 4 things to know about blueprints and a tactical example to shed some light.

Example of a tactical marketing blueprint for events.

1. Blueprints can be strategic or tactical

A strategic marketing blueprint illustrates a programmatic view for achieving a specific marketing communications objective, such as a generating leads from “new customer acquisition” integrated marketing program. And, strategic blueprints should have a set of metric goals associated with it, for example: to generate 500 qualified leads with new prospects every quarter. There are 7 types of marketing programs, and each are illustrated  in a strategic blueprint a in my book Marketing Campaign Development. A marketing campaign is comprised of multiple marketing programs.

Tactical marketing blueprints, on the other hand, are operational in focus. They take a more granular look at part of marketing program. For example, the tactical blueprint shown here is about events. Events are often referenced within the strategic blueprint of a broader program. But this tactical example focuses only on the event as the centerpiece, with pre-event, at-the-event, and post-event customer interaction highlighted. The magic of the tactical marketing blueprint is that it forces to think logically about the engagement flow we want to have with our prospects around the event. Without the blueprint context, we fall victim to producing marketing popcorn. It is too easy to think of the event as an isolated activity.

Click here to see marketing blueprints in action.

2. Blueprints are flowcharts

The concept of the blueprint is literally a flowchart of marketing activities and offers and how they fit together and in which order. Blueprints help us connect the conversation and engagement dots with our prospects. They help remind us of how we need to guide them through their buying process.

2) Blueprints are not job descriptions

However, marketing blueprints are not intended to be Gantt charts or job descriptions. Sometimes people confuse the concept of the blueprint with a very tactical view of listing every step or every duty a marketer needs to perform.

4) Blueprints are guides

It’s best to think of marketing blueprints as guides that remind everyone in the marketing organization about how and where their individual contribution plays in the larger marketing program. More so, blueprints can help a global marketing team execute their regional marketing activities with tighter alignment and cohesion.

Review this tactical blueprint

As you review this tactical blueprint example, notice the following:

* The blueprint illustrate 3 timeframes: before the event, at the event, and after the event.

* There is a theme for each stage.

* The emails and interaction unfold in a logical sequence.

* Themes, vehicles, and offers are indicated.

* It’s a snapshot that shows how the pieces fit together.

Want more?

For more information on how to create, critique, and apply effective strategic and tactical marketing blueprints, contact Mary Gospe or Mike Gospe. The KickStart Alliance team has more than 12 years of designing a variety of blueprints that bring integrated marketing campaigns to life and deliver results.