What Integrated Marketing Means to Me -- Eric Overman
	Posted by Eric Overman at Feb 13, 2012 07:02 AM CST

The term “Integrated Marketing” is a hot one these days, although the exact definition isn’t always clear. Let’s look at integrated marketing in terms of two overarching concepts:

1. Providing a multichannel platform and program that maximizes donor/supporter/advocate engagement and options.


2. Launching well-rounded campaigns that utilize the appropriate channel(s) to optimize conversion.

Successfully integrated campaigns have consistently proved their value -- increasing donor value and loyalty, maximizing revenue, increasing retention, driving conversion throughout donor life cycles, increasing average gift amounts, and so on. But these successes can only be achieved through analysis and strategic planning based on which channels match each campaign.

Multichannel Platforms
What does a multichannel platform look like? Current integrated programs consist mainly of the following channels: Direct Mail, Web, Social Media, Mobile, Search and Telephone. I know, I know, this is starting to sound expensive and complicated (and these are only some of the channels!). Yes, it does require a fair amount of investment to develop multiple channels. A phased approach, based on goals and budgets, is the course of action for achieving multichannel success –- it will not happen overnight. Prioritize your approach, then plan on spending 24-36 months to fully fund and develop programs across all channels. Unless, of course, you are one of the lucky few with big budgets and lots of staff, and then things can move much quicker!

Well-Rounded Campaigns
Just because it might take between two and three years to build a multichannel program that is firing on all cylinders, you don’t want to stop campaigns until they are fully “integrated”.  When creating integrated marketing strategies, it is important to build upon your existing channels, budgets and resources as much as possible. Then, look to your goals to guide the development of additional channels, and prioritize the timelines for new and existing channels. 

While messaging and brand consistency across channels is a baseline, different strategies may be optimized with varying levels of channel integration. For example, a “Match Grant” appeal offer going out to the current file in direct mail might be best optimized with a three-part email series synced with the mail drop, a Match call to action on the Homepage, custom donation pages with Match information, and a follow-up campaign about reaching the Match amount (thanks to your great donors). Unless mobile and social media channels already exist within the organization, they might not be worth investing in exclusively for this type of campaign.

On the other hand, when looking at a similar scenario for a new donor acquisition campaign, sending out integrated emails to the Direct Mail recipients is rarely impactful. However, a combination of social media, SEM and advocacy actions might work well here to drive immediate revenue and build a list of supporters to cultivate later.

Of, course, each case varies based on the channel and the campaign, so the key is to be on top of your metrics. Ongoing analysis is always important, even with the growing list of integrated marketing best practices to provide a starting point. Also, make sure to analyze behavior by universe (i.e., those that received the direct mail piece and email vs. those who received only the mail version), instead of just looking at the last touch point by channel analysis. Like I said, it can get complicated! But when properly executed, an integrated marketing program is well worth it. Good luck!