You can mess up a project in the last mile.
And you can turn a mess into success during money time!
We all know that there is no such thing as overnight success… but perception is the most overlooked component of success.
What makes a successful Salesforce Marketing Cloud project?
The definition may vary from one stakeholder to another, but the main point is: nobody likes to put in sweat and tears for nothing.
The Go Live is the Moment of Truth.
It’s that moment when everybody will be standing on the deck looking at the rocket and waiting for the launch.
All you did will be judged at this moment.
There are 3 rules for a successful launch.
Rule #1: Warming up an IP is NOT a Go Live
Warming up an IP is one of the most painful tasks during an SFMC Project.
It can be long.
Even unfair sometimes! (I bet some can feel me about this!)
However, during this phase, you won’t be using Salesforce Marketing Cloud Engagement in the way it’s meant to be used.
You’ll need specific reports, segmentation, and preparation and the only outcome will be: “you’re ready not to fall in the Spam Box”.
There will be no perceived added business value. But effort and pain will be crystal clear.
Warm up and then program your Go Live.
Rule #2: SFMC demands a Business Go Live
There’s no such thing as a Sandbox on Marketing Cloud.
No Dev environment.
You can use a different Business Unit during a project, but the truth is, you’re live from day 1.
You’ll have to create Momentum.
Business Momentum.
What are the components you’ll need:
- The When: choose a moment when everybody will be on-board. Don’t launch a welcome journey during the Summer holidays. The best moment would be a few weeks before the hot season for your client industry.
- The What: Launch one (or up to 3) journey(s) fulfilling 3 pre-requisites
- Targeted: you shall address precise segments
- Personalized: personalize communications, send time and offers
- Omnichannel: increase engagement using multiple channels
- Not done before: never replicate a journey that the brand is already running for a launch.
- The Who: make sure everyone is involved. The best scenario is that all stakeholders contributed to at least one journey component.
Rule #3: Make your own show
Create a set of communications during the launch day.
You have 3 objectives during launch day:
- Communicate about the launch
- Thank people
- Drive Adoption
Here’s an example of Launch Day “show”.
At launch time (early morning): Successful Launch Communication.
A few moments later: Praise the Tech team for their efforts and remind business that everybody is on-board to deal with any issue.
One hour later: Link to Send reports. Praise the team’s efforts during warm-up.
Two hours later: Journeys Brief reminder and details. The reminder of an upcoming webinar with Key Users about Salesforce Marketing Cloud project and what’s possible now.
After Lunch: Webinar with Key Users (1 hour) 2 hours later: Wrap-up: Announcing daily reports, links to training for users, links to Trailhead for Business Sponsors.
See you next week!