Develop a Roadmap
Learning Objectives
After completing this unit, you’ll be able to:
- Create a strategic roadmap.
- Identify SMART metrics.
Strategic Roadmap
Your next mission is to create an impactful roadmap that truly resonates with your organization. Good news: You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. We share tried-and-true tips for getting the most out of your roadmap in this unit.
If the idea of creating a roadmap sounds like more business jargon, we hear you. We promise, it’s worth the effort. In order to track goals (and show off your work to management) you need to have a plan for your current and future marketing efforts. This helps guide you as you come up with new ways to evolve, test, and fine-tune your efforts. So let’s get that right-brain warmed up and get creative around strategy!
Draft One
Let’s follow along with Yasmin Ahmad as she drafts a Cloud Kicks roadmap. She starts by following these steps.
- Identify a time frame for her plan (3 months, 6 months, 12 months). Yasmin selects a 6-month strategy, as she presents twice a year.
- Next, write a long-term vision statement for Cloud Kicks. This can be focused on digital marketing or a goal for the company as a whole. Yasmin decides to combine her goals with overall company goals.
- Next, list specific business objectives or success metrics that Yasmin wants to achieve.
- Finally, Yasmin lists the business impact of each metric.
Here is the first draft of the roadmap.
Cloud Kicks: 6 month Strategic Plan
Vision Statement: Provide a seamless omni-channel customer experience in order to become the number 1 seller of comfortable, great-looking shoes.
Success Metrics | Impact |
|---|---|
Improve conversion rates. | More conversions lead to more sales. |
Document the current customer experience lifecycle and identify areas of improvement. | Cloud Kicks can improve customer experience and reduce customer support tickets. |
Improve data hygiene: Remove bad data, organize existing data, and evaluate data collection. | Clean, accurate data is key to successfully reaching our customers in the channels they prefer. |
Expand beyond single-channel sending. | Connecting with customers in the channel of their choice will increase engagement. |
Not a bad first start, but Yasmin knows she needs to share this strategy with management and it’s not quite ready just yet. Let’s review a potential strategy to help her strategic roadmap be presentation-worthy.
Make Your Metrics SMART
Management theorist and consultant, Peter F. Drucker (of Drucker-School of Management fame) used the acronym SMART to define and structure success metrics.
- Specific—You can define the goal in a clear and precise manner.
- Measureable—You can assign a number or checkpoint to the goal.
- Achievable—You can actually attain the goal.
- Relevant—You can apply the goal to your work.
- Time-based—You can set a certain time period to achieve the goal.
Let’s reevaluate Yasmin's success metrics to make sure they follow these guidelines. Here is a follow-up draft from Cloud Kicks.
Cloud Kicks: 6-month Strategic Plan
Vision Statement: Provide a seamless omni-channel customer experience in order to become the number 1 seller of comfortable, great-looking shoes.
Impact | Specific | Measurable | Achievable & Realistic | Time-bound |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Improve sales. | Increase conversion rates by 2%. | Percentage |
| End of fiscal year |
Improve the customer experience and reduce customer support tickets. | Audit and document the full customer experience lifecycle. | Completion |
| End of quarter 2 |
Improve data hygiene to reduce the cost of bad data. | Review and document data architecture. | Completion |
| End of quarter 2 |
Reach customers in the channels they prefer. | Create and release a new customer preference center to gain channel preferences. | Completion |
| End of fiscal year |
Gain new customers by adding a new channel. | Research and determine a strategy for adding the mobile channel. | Completion |
| End of fiscal year |
Looking for expert help with your assessment and strategic roadmap? Contact your account executive to learn how our Strategic Services team can take your planning to the next level.
Once you’ve completed your roadmap, it’s important to come back with fresh eyes to review and tweak it to ensure customer experience is at the heart of your plan and that your goals are SMART.
Now that you have a clear roadmap that puts the customer first (woohoo!), how can you make sure it is successful? We cover that in the next unit, where we talk about gaining buy-in on your strategy.
Resources
- Trailhead: Personalized Email Marketing
- Trailhead: Learn Drucker School MBA Essentials
- Salesforce: 50 Best Practices for Email Marketers (PDF Download)