Change is scary, and not all risks pay off—especially when marketing dollars and marketing performance are at stake.
We’ve entered a pivotal year for the future of digital marketing, where brands must evolve the methods, media mix, and measurement they’ve typically used to achieve success. But how can they know which new channels to bet their budgets on amidst scrutiny from internal stakeholders, macroeconomic trends, and ongoing data privacy measures?
That’s what PebblePost’s Director of Revenue Marketing, Allison Borrow, and BBQGuys’ Channel Manager Programmatic & Affiliates, Allie Wooster, discussed during their eTail West fireside chat “How To Approach New Channels to Ensure Growth and Performance” last week. BBQGuys is an e-commerce brand offering one of the largest online selections of premium grills, BBQ smokers, and backyard essentials. They recently began diversifying their marketing strategies with PebblePost. Here are three main takeaways from their conversation with us that any brand can use to invest in new marketing channels this year.
To watch the full Fireside Chat recording, click here.
1. Know what makes a good partner for first-time channels
It’s all in the numbers. But the numbers aren’t everything.
As Wooster put it, “I think, obviously, we’re looking for partners that perform. We’re looking for partners that drive our ultimate sales as e-commerce marketers.” However, other criteria guide her and her team in their evaluation process.
One is a strong customer service or support team, which Wooster said will make you a better marketer. Given the industry’s constant change, these teams should foster an open dialogue through which brands can ask the right questions. The second is an excellent user interface.
“Being able to tap into my metrics daily to really be able to dig in and look at how things are performing, how things are changing—that was another big differentiator for a new partner like PebblePost.”
Allie Wooster, Channel Manager Programmatic & Affiliates at BBQ Guys
2. Test—and even fail—to succeed in new channels
You can’t succeed if you never try. A big callout from Wooster is that brands shouldn’t be afraid to test new channels—or fail at them.
“At BBQGuys, we very much are always looking for innovation,” she said. “We’re always looking at trying new things, and I designate some of our budget to test on…You’re going to learn whether this new partner or this new test works or not.”
This doesn’t mean you stop prioritizing tried-and-true channels that deliver results for your brand. Get those baselines to ensure you achieve your overall goals while testing other channels.
3. Don’t pursue apples-to-apples measurement
Like humans can’t be everything to everyone, neither can our marketing channels. Marketers pursuing new channels must understand where the main KPI lives regarding their different approaches. For instance, upper-funnel channels can’t always drive revenue at the bottom line, but they still support the overall marketing strategy—almost like a sports team driving to the same goal.
“There’s a channel that pushes the ball into the court,” Wooster explained. “There’s a channel that touches and passes to the next person…There’s a channel that touches the next person. Eventually, we hit the goal, right? All of those played that part.”
So, understand those main KPIs while also considering how a new channel supports the overarching campaign so you can accurately assess whether or not it’s doing its job.
To read the full story of our partnership success with BBQGuys, check out the case study here.
