In August, I shared some things I learned from wedding planning and how those same things applied to marketing campaign planning.
But, now that the vows have been said, let me tell you about the lessons I’ve learned that I didn’t see coming before the wedding. And just like in the wedding planning process, these tips absolutely apply to building successful marketing campaigns.
Lesson 1: Coming down to crunch time is stressful
Married me would have some choice words for the pre-wedding me. The August me was so chill. So relaxed. So nonchalant. I learned the home stretch, however, is not a walk in the park. The same goes for the moments right before launching a marketing campaign. You’re wrapping up those final details. Making sure nothing is missed.
It’s important to remember your end goal and take moments of peace for yourself.
Lesson 2: Communicate your plan
This sounds like it deserves an immediate, “Duh.” But people often forget to communicate.
I made a beautiful timeline for the wedding, with detailed instructions and a precise time breakdown. I emailed it the morning of the ceremony to our officiant, photographer, videographer, venue manager and coordinator. I also printed 10 copies with the intention of handing them out to people in the wedding party. Did I give them out? No. I got too busy and forgot.
I’ve seen the same thing happen during campaign execution. A plan has been made but isn’t communicated down through the ranks. People get confused about the mission, what they’re supposed to accomplish and why they’re doing it. Even the best plan is useless if no one knows about it.
Lesson 3: Surround yourself with good people
We hired amazing vendors and had an amazing support system. But before we hired anyone, we made a point to meet with all of them in-person. There were many vendors with whom we didn’t see eye-to-eye. They didn’t get hired. You could liken this to hiring awesome employees or agencies for your marketing campaigns.
I worked tirelessly leading up to the wedding but faced a predicament—Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to clone myself before the big day. I realized that I wouldn’t able to set up decorations and have my hair done at the same time. When I came to terms with it, I looked to a friend who went to school for event planning. Before the wedding, I handed everything over to her because I knew she’d kill it.
Marketing campaigns are exactly the same. You can’t do your tasks well if you take on everything. There are only so many hours in the day and if you tried to do it all, why’d you ask for help in the first place?
Lesson 4: Trust your team
If you hired them, you brought them on for a reason. Trust them to do what you brought them on to do. Sure, if something occurs that raises suspicion, check on it. Had things not been getting done at the wedding, that would’ve been a problem. But that wasn’t the case. We had surrounded ourselves with good people whom we trusted.
I trusted my friend to do her job. My Maid of Honor, bridesmaid and mom were all there to take care of things so I didn’t freak out. They all saved my butt and I will appreciate that forever.
Lesson 5: Show your appreciation to your team
A thank you goes a long way, whether it’s a simple note, verbal or accompanied by a gift. Just think about it—when was the last time you worked really hard on a project at the office and your boss genuinely said, “You did a great job on this. Thank you for putting so much effort into it.” It’s a great feeling, right? Acknowledging the hard work people do is so easy, and really appreciated.
At the end of the day, your campaign will wrap and the stress will lift. Just remember to be in the moment, let people know the plan, have a good team around you that you trust, and show your appreciation to everyone involved.