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Information gathering

In this step the learner will understand the importance of the first step in communications planning: information gathering.
In order to understand the requirements you will need to gather as much information as you can.

Here are a few steps to get you started:

  • Look for planning processes: Ask yourself, are there any previous planning processes designed to support a campaign like this one?
  • Find previous examples: It’s likely that another part of your organisation has carried out a similar activity in the past. Find the communications and assets to see what the final output looked like.
  • Dig out old campaign documents: Look through the marketing team folders for the information you may have been previously directed towards.
  • Reflect on previous learnings: Always document lessons learned, these will help you avoid mistakes that have been made before.
  • Use your insights: Look into the insights from the last time a similar campaign was launched, this will help you to see what was effective in helping to reach the campaign objectives. *Understand your audience: Examine your audience personas, understand who your audience is so you can determine whether the creative you are signing off is suitable.

Join the discussion

What sort of information would you expect to gather in order to help you plan a marketing strategy? How would you use this information to shape your campaign? Write your thoughts below.

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Introduction to Marketing: Fundamentals of Marketing

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FutureLearn - Learning For Life

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