An action plan for digital marketing [webinar]

Watch the webinar ‘Winning the Website War: 4 Steps to Mastering Digital Marketing.’

The project manager (PM) is one of the first people to add to the digital marketing team and will be key to excellent results. The PM is the glue that holds all the action items and team members together so the digital marketing strategy can be realized. Don’t take this position lightly. This should be an internal position in the company and you must give them the tools and responsibility to properly manage digital marketing priorities. Those tools include apps like Basecamp, LucidCharts and TeamGantt. These apps manage schedules, time frames and processes.

Project manager’s role in digital marketing team selection

It takes time to find the right people and build your digital marketing team. Digital marketers are in high demand and their skill sets and experience can vary greatly. The PM plays an important role in this area. He or she should be tasked with implementing the legwork and developing a process to find, interview and recruit digital marketing team members. This includes both employees and contractors.

Because digital marketing work is easily measured and results are very transparent, develop a test project for new team members to assess their work ethic, skills and job performance before they are hired. The PM should cover the details needed to make this happen and help build the team. The PM should also make recommendations regarding replacing poorly performing team members.

Digital marketing meetings

A key job function for the PM is the scheduling and organizing of digital marketing meetings. He or she should help prepare the agenda, determine who needs to attend, and track the action items coming out of each meeting. Over time, the PM may even run the meeting and keep team members on track. One of the most important outcomes from digital marketing meetings will be action item assignments and due dates. These are managed and tracked by the PM.

Reviewing priorities and measuring results

The PM may not have the final say on digital marketing priorities and action plans, but should be involved in reviewing those areas and understanding how to measure results. This includes organizing and following up on action plans. Not all the action items are of equal importance, and the team can’t do everything at once. This is where the PM comes in to keep the action items prioritized by their impact on digital marketing goals and implementing the strategy. It is important to keep the PM aware of the big picture, budgets and ROI.

Oversight of the web marketing team

The PM is the taskmaster for communication between each of the team members. This includes communications with contracted team members and other subcontractors as well as employees of the company. The PM looks for inconsistencies in team member action items, and because the PM has access to all the action items, this person is in a unique position to make sure things stay on track. This includes feedback on the performance of each team member.

Website updates and content reviews

The PM should also spot-check the work of the digital marketing team. This includes checking the website for broken links and other technical and design glitches, along with other things, such as grammar and spelling errors. The PM should also work with the team to organize the timing of website content and placement of content on the website and in social media.

Without a PM, digital marketing and website design projects can go haywire very easily. This position manages action items and processes and does not necessarily supervise team members. The PM can report on team member performance, but it is not this person’s role to manage those individuals. Put in place a strong PM as the key driver of the company’s digital marketing projects.

Action items

• Determine a PM for the digital marketing team.
• Provide the proper web-based project management software and communication tools needed for this person’s success.
• Spend time reviewing projects and team member performance with the PM outside of digital marketing meetings.
• Share the book “Winning the Website War” with the PM to help him or her better understand the big picture and strategic nature of digital marketing.

Read more on this topic: Stop wasting time and money on ineffective digital marketing

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