1. DIGITAL MARKETING CAMPAIGN TEMPLATE
ABOUT THIS TEMPLATE
We’ve created this template to help marketers plan a campaign and also brief colleagues and agencies in a
way which really integrates digital marketing into their campaigns. Agencies may find it useful for reviewing
their campaign processes. We also hope it will help prompt you to think of different ways of integrating new
digital marketing approaches into your campaigns.
It’s created by Dave Chaffey and Danyl Bosomworth of the digital marketing advice site, Smart Insights.
If you want to download it, you can find this document on our site at: www.smartinsights.com/digital-
marketing-strategy/campaign-planning-template
TEMPLATE STRUCTURE
The marketing campaign planning template is available in Word format so that you modify it to best suit
your marketing campaigns.
The stages of marketing campaigns and key issues covered are:
1. Campaign goals and tracking. What are we trying to achieve through our campaign and how will we
know when we achieve it?
2. Target audience, customer insight and targeting. Who are we trying to reach and influence?
3. Key campaign messages and offers. How are we trying to position our company, products and
services? Which campaign or product offers will engage and convert our audience?
4. Strategy or strategies. How will you reach and engage your target audience.
5. Online media mix selection and budgeting. Which media do we think will be effective? Typically an
agency will recommend this, but clients will have suggestions based on past campaign performance.
6. Media schedule and campaign integration. What is the sequence of deploying media and what are
the waves of message/offer during the campaign?
ABOUT SMART INSIGHTS
Smart Insights is a digital marketing portal and consultancy sharing advice to help marketers get more
value from their investments in online marketing and analytics.
Our expertise is in developing winning digital marketing strategies and improving commercial results
through Web Analytics (in particular Google Analytics). These are the main focus of blog updates featured in
our Emarketing Essentials Enewsletter where we have regular practical advice on the digital marketing
tactics that matter most in delivering better results to most companies, i.e.
‣ Digital strategy and campaign planning
‣ Actionable analytics for site and campaign optimization
‣ Search Engine Marketing (SEO and Pay Per Click)
‣ Social media
‣ Persuasive site design and web analytics
‣ Email marketing
Signup to our Enewsletter at www.smartinsights.com or our Facebook Page at
www.facebook.com/smartinsights.
© Smart Insights (Marketing Intelligence) Limited www.smartinsights.com

2. If you have any questions or comments, please get in touch via www.smartinsights.com/contact-us.
© Smart Insights (Marketing Intelligence) Limited www.smartinsights.com

3. CAMPAIGN TEMPLATE
Campaign Name Campaign
Campaign team Target live date
1. Campaign goals
SMART goals: Keep these tied to measurable KPI’s, ideally
linking to a monetary value - it’s far easier to justify spend!
2. Campaign targeting
Target audiences - primary and secondary
3. Campaign messages
and offer
“The Big Idea”
What do you want your audience to do, think, or feel - and
why would they, what is in it for them, where is the value
exchange?
4. Strategy
What is the strategic approach you’re using - think about how
you will connect with and convince your audience. It’s
important to define this so that you can get aligned to the
wider business and ensure you choose the right
communication channels, promotional tactics, offers and
5. Media mix and
budgeting
Recommended %age investment in digital media, e.g.
• Paid search
• Display advertising
• Social media
• Online PR
Total budget available:
• Planning & research
• Creative & content assets (e.g. videos)
• Media
• Testing and in-campaign optimisation
6. Media schedule
Key milestones, campaign wave start dates and deliverables
© Smart Insights (Marketing Intelligence) Limited www.smartinsights.com

4. 1. CAMPAIGN GOALS AND TRACKING [Delete or Add as appropriate]
General aims
for campaign
• General marketing aim of campaign and context:
• Product categories or services targeted:
• Sales and lead generation goals: (these are key!)
• Positioning and brand communication goals:
Conversion model
goals
(SMART)
• Reach (number of prospects reached on third party sites):
• Incremental unique visitors or visits to site:
• Incremental social engagement (target number of ‘Likes’ on
Facebook, Twitter follows or Email signups:
• Marketing outcomes (and conversion rates to goals):
• Campaign response – leads or sales ( %), Value £, Allowable
CPA
• Email sign-up ( %), Value £, Allowable CPA
• View where to buy ( %), Value £, Allowable CPA
• Repeat for other sites where microsites hosted
• See spreadsheet models at
www.davechaffey.com/Spreadsheets.
Branding objectives • Brand awareness – how will the campaign increase brand
awareness?
• Brand familiarity – which products are featured in campaign,
what is the emphasis?
• Brand purchase intent goals – how is the campaign intended to
directly and indirectly influence sales
Engagement goals How will you assess audience engagement and campaign
momentum?
• Bounce rate and dwell-time
• Return visits during campaign
• Engaging with different content types - which?
• Registration?
• Participation in commenting, rating, submitting ideas
Response mechanism Landing page URLs:
• Pages to be tagged with ‘Spotlight tags’ to highlight
conversion goals - if possible configure your analytics system
to campaign track
• Campaign specific phone numbers
Profiling Define the data collection required on response forms.
• Customer database fields updated according to click
response:
SEO goals Type of sites targeting for back-links:
• Target anchor text:
• Target landing pages (deep-links to product and services
pages are best, not home page):
© Smart Insights (Marketing Intelligence) Limited www.smartinsights.com

5. 2. CAMPAIGN INSIGHT: CUSTOMER INSIGHT AND TARGET AUDIENCE.
E-MARKETPLACE ANALYSIS [Delete or Add as appropriate]
Target audience
(personas)
Target audience segments and personas.
• Demographics (Age, gender, social groups or B2B
demographics – members of buying unit, company size and
sector, etc)
• Psychographics (Develop personas)
Audience motivations
(scenarios)
Typical customer motivation and/or scenarios for responding
(personas):
Competitors Example direct competitor sites and core value propositions:
Indirect competitors:
Online intermediaries Different types of site that you could use to increase audience
reach:
· Horizontal portals and mainstream media
· Niche or vertical industry sector media sites
· Niche social networks
· Aggregators and super affiliates
· Small affiliates and blogs
Media consumption
and buying process
Which media sites or portals do your customers typically use,
how web savvy:
What is the process by which they select products (search
keyphrase sequence):
© Smart Insights (Marketing Intelligence) Limited www.smartinsights.com

6. 3. OFFER AND MESSAGING
Campaign “Big Idea” The hook, theme or main message you want the audience to
recall and act upon
Unique Value
Proposition
Benefits of ultimate marketing
outcome, e.g. purchase, attending
event, etc.
Corresponding features
that deliver these benefits:
Online Value
Proposition:
Specific benefits of responding / buying online compared to
other channels or competitors - this is the UVP translated online
and applies specifically to your web site
Ideas for main
creative concept
What attracts attention and proves relevance to potential
customer?
Reasons not to click? Why might the customer not think the message/offer/brand
is relevant?
Reasons to click? Include key messages and calls-to-action for online and
offline media to
‘Drive to web’. Include both rational and emotional benefits.
Credibility How do you prove what you say is valid?
Key brand messages Not all prospects will be familiar with your brand. What are the
brand values or the brand essence that you want to
communicate? (e.g price, convenience or quality based)
Tone of Voice How do you want to sound? For example: Straightforward,
Friend or adviser. Serious. Energetic. Dynamic.
Creative Opportunities and collateral available for:
• Rich media and video
• Content and guides
• Viral effect - what will be the viral agent?
4. STRATEGY
Strategies for each
objective
How - will you address the audience with the offer, message
and positioning that you have created. Use any research/insight
for section 2. Think about:
• Are your audience online? Is digital the lead or support to
traditional offline broadcast media
• Are there times of the day when your audience is most likely to
be receptive - timing is everything
• Are you looking to interrupt with advertising or build
relationships
• How can you add value so that the audience is motivated
(directly or indirectly) to spread your message for you
• Do you want to create excitement with prizes and give-aways
or maybe you need to incentivise transaction to a deadlines
© Smart Insights (Marketing Intelligence) Limited www.smartinsights.com

7. 5. MEDIA PLAN AND BUDGET
ONLINE – Potential media
sources & sequence. Approx.
budget split
OFFLINE – Potential media source
& sequence. Approx. budget split
Advertising • Paid search ads:
• Display ads:
• 3rd
party e-newsletter ads:
• Web site downloads:
• Press:
• Broadcast media:
Direct communications • 3rd
party rented list:
• Co-branded campaigns:
• House lists:
• Communications on web site.
• Additional content.
• Data capture (standard?)
• Direct mail:
• Telemarketing:
PR and social media • Blogs and RSS
• Social media marketing
• Viral marketing
• What generates a buzz
• Which traditional online media
outlets?
Available budget Total budget available:
• Planning & research
• Creative & content assets (e.g.
videos)
• Media
• Testing and in-campaign
optimisation
© Smart Insights (Marketing Intelligence) Limited www.smartinsights.com

8. 6. CAMPAIGN MEDIA SCHEDULE AND INTEGRATION
Integration How will integration between different media channels be
achieved?
Media plan Sequence of waves of campaign
© Smart Insights (Marketing Intelligence) Limited www.smartinsights.com