Communication and accountability are key to executing campaigns.

• Author: Triplett, Ted
• Position: CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS/RETENTION

ACCORDING TO FORTUNE, LESS THAN 10 PERCENT OF STRATEGIES that are effectively formulated are effectively executed.

Why? Failure to generate real, meaningful business results typically stems from a disconnect between the development and formulation of strategy and its implementation. And that breakdown can have a big impact on customer retention.

Think of it as an internal wiring problem. If marketing, sales and your frontline staff aren't communicating with each other, the strategy gets lost way before it ever impacts the customer.

Implementing a strategy needs to begin with educating the people who must execute it. If they don't understand the campaign objectives, there's no way they can be expected to act upon them.

That adage, "You can't manage what you can't measure," becomes especially significant when it comes to effective marketing campaigns. Without measurement, your bank has no idea how well a marketing strategy is working.

And when you don't know how the staff is performing, it's very difficult--or maybe impossible--to hold them accountable, to reward achievement or to take corrective action when performance fails to meet expectations.

The ability to execute and deliver positive results is directly tied to accountability. Your staff needs to know the goals of the campaign, understand what part they play in making the strategy succeed and what actions they need to take, and the metrics being used to measure their success.

New checking account acquisition campaigns, for example, can be more effective when the details of the strategy and goals are communicated with the staff. Say the goal is to open so many accounts per week, month or quarter. It might surprise you to find that staff will perform better when they're kept in the loop.

Recognition helps

You can dramatically increase your accountability when everyone understands your campaign goals, the strategy for achieving those goals and the metrics used to measure success. If you're going to hold your staff accountable for reaching your marketing objectives, make sure to recognize them when they reach the bank's individual, team and overall goals.

Rewards should be often, be made public and be given for...