Planning For Social Media

Neil Major, Strategy Director (@neilmajor) and Matt Butler, Junior Planner (@mattbutler07),

Yomego

About this session

Two parts…

• What is strategy and planning?

• How does it apply to social media agencies?

What is planning?

In 1968 planning was born in the UK

Stephen King (JWT) and Stanley Pollit (BMP) are the ancestors of account planning

Aims “It aimed to expose and dismantle stifling and unhelpful research methodologies.

It devoted itself to developing a real and rounded understanding of the consumer, rather than simply selecting and polishing selling propositions.

It sought to place thinking about the response of the consumer at the heart of strategic and creative thinking.

It shifted the focus of advertising development from finding ways of selling people stuff, to finding ways of making stuff buyable.

And it placed the quest for effectiveness above all other agendas, both internal and external (it was strategic)”*

*Reclaiming Planning’s Radicalism, Martin Weigel, Planning Director W+K, 2014 http://martinweigel.org/2014/04/22/reclaiming-plannings-radicalism/

3 definitions of traditional account planning

"The account planner is that member of the agency's team who is the expert, through background, training, experience, and attitudes, at working with information and getting it used - not just marketing research but all the information available to help solve a client's advertising problems.” - Stanley Pollitt

"Planners are involved and integrated in the creation of marketing strategy and ads. Their responsibility is to bring the consumer to the forefront of the process and to inspire the team to work with the consumer in mind. The planner has a point of view about the consumer and is not shy about expressing it." - Fortini-Campbell

“The account planner: the customer’s representative within the agency.”- Drayton Bird

What makes a good strategy?• Able to evolve• Able to cope with uncertainty• Doesn’t fall apart in extremes• Makes resources go further (generates power)• Provides insight into conflicts/blocks• Other stakeholders are complementary to its objectives

(shared ideal)

Process in account planning

Receive Brief from client

Carry out research related to

consumer and brief

Write creative brief and

present to creative team

Process in account planning

Rationalise advertising

and messaging to

client

Pre-test ads following

clients approval

Evaluate success of campaign

Yomego’s planning process

There’s a lot here. Let’s take a look at how this means that the way we approach planning differs from a traditional advertising agency

We’re not an ad agency

What does planning mean for us?

We certainly have no shortage ofinformation to process

Where we differ

We don’t have creative teams

(copywriter and designer)

We are creative as an agency….we do have designers though

Where we differ

Media types are not defined – and may not even be media

Digital work is often unique, bespoke and new

Where we differ

We don’t have to just focus on the end user. We have to think about how we reach them(propogation)

Our planning frameworkNetworks

Brand User

All three must be takeninto account

1. Brand success criteria

Something the client can contribute in – be a valid part of the conversation

2. User success criteria

The activity has to be something that the user will want to interact with (and ideally share) and be something that alters their relationship with the brand in positive

3. Network success criteriaThe activity needs to be both technologically appropriate for the media and also something that will be welcomed by the community there

… We can’t just buy our way in

What’s missing?

What is an insight?Lots of definitions. Here’s mine.

“Information that can be leveraged to strategic effect (effectiveness)”

…Three types

Something new

Something old, used in a new way

Things combined in unexpected ways

New things

Brand Pebble Watch

User Selfie

Network Facebook Connect

Criteria Examples

Old things, new ways

Brand Pabst Blue Ribbon

User Planking

Network Hashtags

Criteria Examples

Unexpected combinations

Brand Diet Coke/Mentos

User Steampunk

Network Mashups

Criteria Examples

The brief is where these end up

…and hopefully lead to effectiveplanning (and creativity)

Recent successfulcampaign for Tefal(for full campaign details get in touch)

Thank You!