Tips for a successful cross-media campaign

In the digital age, there are many channels to reach the desired target group. The right combination increases the chances that the impression will have a lasting effect.The broad-based Digital Marketing Monitor 2015 study by Deutsche Post documents the German advertising landscape in 2014 from the perspective of marketing decision-makers. In a total of 2727 interviews, these decision-makers provide detailed information about their advertising activities. The results show: On average, one in six companies advertises cross-media. Among large companies with annual sales of 25 million euros or more, on the other hand, almost one in two does so. Thanks to the enthusiasm of large companies, the budget for cross-media accounts for almost a third of total advertising expenditure on average.Most popular combo: ad and websiteAdvertisements and the company's own website are combined most often (see chart). However, if we look at cross-media use in relation to overall use, another form of advertising is ahead: 30 percent of users of fully addressed direct mail also use personalized mailings cross-media. For advertisements, the proportion is only 18 percent, and for the company's own website, only 15 percent. The triple combination of print, online and trade show presence is also often used. On the other hand, companies are still rather neglectful about measuring the success of their campaigns. Only two out of five companies make an effort to gauge the impact of their campaign. The vast majority (81 percent) attempt cross-channel measurement, while around half as many (38 percent) focus on channel-specific effects. Just under 20 percent of the companies measuring success look at both effects, i.e. check both the channel-specific and the cross-channel impact of their combined campaigns.Six cross-media success factorsWhat does a cross-media campaign have to look like to be successful? Six success factors were identified in 2014 as part of a research project at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts:1. Extended target group consideration: Cross-media approaches require precise target group knowledge due to the interaction goals.2. More differentiated target group approach: Based on the expanded target group approach, differentiation is made into sub-public-specific storytelling for the various user segments as well as subdivision into different target phases.3. Process-determining storyline and dramaturgy: The basis of good cross-media campaigns is a storyline that realizes the creative central idea.4. Communicative bracket: To ensure that the campaign is recognizable, it is essential to focus on a few design elements, such as a key image or a protagonist and a claim.5. Systematic campaign planning and provision of resources: Already in an early planning phase, it is important to bring all disciplines - strategic planning, media, creation, IT - to a "round table" and plan the campaign together.6. Success control: It is also important to plan the evaluation of the results right from the start of the campaign planning.System solution necessary?When implementing a cross-media campaign, the question arises as to whether a cross-media publishing system solution should be used. With the Censhare solution, for example, it is possible to orchestrate cross-media campaigns on an interdisciplinary basis. The system support already begins with the collection of ideas, the collection of deadlines and resources, content preparation and management, right through to product implementation with project managers, authors, designers, translators, the editorial department and so on. Censhare also takes care of the output to the various media channels, including scheduling, response evaluation and management of user-generated content. "At first glance, the use of a publishing system solution is not absolutely necessary for the implementation of a cross-media campaign," says Censhare CEO Jürg Weber. "At the beginning, you only see the initial expenses that arise in the first phase of communication creation. But if you think further, you quickly realize the advantages that the use of a comprehensive system solution can bring for planning, resource-budget control, coordination, and production and output control with all clients, right through to response evaluation."