1. Needs
Analysis:
Meet with the client's
management and staff to determine exactly what is needed
to implement a new campaign
. A lot of questions
should be asked, and the client should be challenged as
to why they are doing a particular function, if it
doesn't make sense (or cents). The client's management
and staff participation is critical to ensure the
success of the project.
2. System
Design Review:
Here you review what
has been done in the past, and how the new campaign will
be used, when, and by whom. Procedures and
presentations now in use may need to be changed, or you
may need to design an interface from the new campaign to
an existing process.
With any of these
alternatives, it is important for management to
understand what the campaign consists of and how it will
function within the client's organization. Therefore the
systems design review phase is considered to be the most
critical part of the project. It must be thorough and
complete, providing an extensive understanding by the
client of what the package provides, and by the agency
of how it is to be used in the organization.
3.
Implementation Meeting:
In an implementation
meeting, the agency meets with the client's management
and staff to determine what has to be done, by whom and
when. Present at the implementation meeting should be
anybody who has a part in implementing the new campaign,
i.e., sales management and staff, administrative folks
responsible for controlling the campaign, marketing
staff, product or service managers, and anybody else who
will benefit from the campaign.
The meeting should be
2 - 4 hours in length. The goal of the meeting is to get
a buy-in from all parties, and to be able to prepare an
implementation plan (see Sample Implementation Plan),
which outlines all the steps necessary to successfully
implement the program. This plan becomes the guide for
project management of the campaign. Management and staff
participation is critical to the success of the project.
4.
Implementation:
Next comes the
physical implementation, i.e., collateral pieces,
advertisements, direct mail, etc. and the testing to be
certain the campaign will fit in the client's
organization.
5. Testing
Procedures:
The agency and the
client must establish suitable test data which will test
for all possible conditions and for the detection of all
possible errors in the campaign. Our recommended testing
procedures includes:
a. Obtain data from
the sales force as to who they approach, how, and what
results are expected. You must account for as many
different combinations as possible. Ten to twelve cases
should suffice.
b. Record the existing
procedure and expected results in a step-by-step format,
and the left side of a page.
c. On the right side
of the pad, record the new campaign and how it replaces,
supplements or does not affect the existing process.
d. Test the new
campaign on either an existing account, or a similar
account as one that was visited with the old process.
e. Record the results
of the new campaign, and adjust the procedures and
campaign as necessary.
It is important to
record the results in order to obtain a visual impact
and to determine a measurement to be used to judge the
effectiveness of the campaign. Once the testing
procedures have been satisfied, the campaign is deemed
accepted and you can begin using the campaign, and
measuring results.
This testing procedure
would allow you to get your campaign up and running in
the shortest time possible, while maintaining process
integrity and guaranteeing adequate results.
6.
Implementation Assistance:
During the
implementation of the project, and the project roll outs
at the various locations, the client needs assistance in
preparing for the conversion to the new campaign, as
follows:
a. Data
Conversion:
If there are data
files presently in use, will they work with this new
campaign? Are new files or programs required? Will the
client need special tools, computer programs, peripheral
equipment, or anything else to implement this campaign
effectively?
b. Forms and
Supplies:
What will the sales
force carry with them? What will the administrator need
to record results? What kind of reporting will
management receive to measure results?
Identify the forms and
supplies that may be required in addition to the
collateral being created. Who is going to create and
maintain these forms?
c. Education:
Without
education as to the intent of the campaign, and how it
should be used, any campaign or project will fail!
To be successful, we
recommend that management and key staff attend classroom
education sessions, preferably at a location out of the
client's office, in order to facilitate the
implementation with minimum disruption.
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