What do marketing and music have in common?

By Dave Hytinen

Think about your favorite song. Is the tempo fast or slow? Is the rhythm soothing or exciting?

Now think about the last marketing campaign that really resonated with you. Can you remember how many times or how often you noticed elements of the campaign? Though it may be difficult to recall, the cadence of the campaign likely came with a purpose.

Tempo and cadence are interchangeable terms. In music, tempo directs the mood for each artist and song. Music type and tempo preference are personal choices driven by experience, memory and mood. And, as you have probably noticed, music tastes can change over time.

The same can be said about the cadence of your marketing execution. In the same way that tempo dictates your enjoyment of a song, the span of time between each touch plays an important role in the effectiveness of your marketing campaign. A certain cadence may appeal more to one prospect than to another and, as with music tastes, preference for marketing channel and frequency can change over time.

Hitting the right notes at the right time
An important part of creating a successful marketing campaign is to optimize its cadence; that is, to coordinate each element so it will reach each prospect at the right time, reinforce your message and prime him or her to take action.

Age, gender, socioeconomic status, education level and offer type all influence the cadence that will most effectively convert each prospect. Just as your marketing message should be personalized for each target audience, so too should the frequency of your messaging.

Deciding which notes to play, and when, should rely on the measurement of past campaigns and testing of current ones:

Look back at your past campaigns with a similar audience. Did you find most success with a shorter timeline and higher frequency, or with a longer campaign and more time between each touch?
Then, consider conducting an A/B test with a new campaign. First, segment your audience based on the factors that could affect their buying habits (age, gender, etc.) and create messaging that will resonate with each segment. Once your audience is properly segmented and messages created, take a look at each element of your overall campaign and plan two different timelines. As you measure the success of the campaign, compare the two to determine which timeline drew a stronger response.

Remember, a key to a successful A/B test is to have a strong measurement process in place. At Extend Your Reach, we focus on integration with digital tools to help our customers measure their results. However you choose to do it, it’s extremely important to have a process in place.

Let us lend our ear
Like a good songwriter, good marketers should look for the right tempo to most appeal to their audience.

Extend Your Reach can help you make music with your marketing; and like the pied piper we’ll play the song that will help lead your customers directly to you.