If you are as old as I am, you may recall those early days of Personal Computers. I was in sales with IBM at the time, and PCs were all the rage…until that dreaded point when the system would “freeze,” and nothing could unlock it…not a stroke of the keyboard or a click of the mouse.  

So, the user was left with no choice but to hold down the CTRL+ALT+DELETE buttons simultaneously. All unsaved work on the computer was lost, the user would complain incessantly, but at least the computer would work once again.  

Which made me thinking about digital marketing --

“Is it time to reboot your digital presence?”

“Is your online presence stuck and frozen  –  unable to move forward?”

If your following isn’t growing and your messages aren’t converting, this may very well be the time to change things up. Let’s look at each function individually and determine what should stay and what needs to go. 

CTRL

Are you trying to control everything? Over-controlling marketers try to orchestrate everything and “freak out” when things don’t go along perfectly. The problem is you may be seeing the messaging through your lens, not through the person reading or engaging with the content. 

Empower and trust your agency to make the campaign more powerful. Let them have a voice.  Give up control and be open to new possibilities.

ALT

I always say for every problem, there are many solutions. That goes for digital marketing – there are hundreds of ways to coordinate, plan and execute campaigns and messages, and all of them are valid. The key is to deliver the proper online presence to the right audience at the right time.

If your marketing is stuck and the current format is not working, you have to take a Mulligan. Here are a few ways to think differently: 

• Empower your agency to plan and execute the content calendar. Only serve as an advisor and approver; let them run with it.
   
• Listen more and talk less. Ask at least three questions before you make a statement.
   
• Get to know your employees, clients, and suppliers. We are all human and have families, hobbies, and interests. Get to know each other – you might have more in common than you think. 

DELETE

This is one behavior you can implement right away: Delete those channels and messages that are not reaching your attended audience. Just because it worked in the past or you always have completed something a certain way, get rid of it if it doesn’t serve your company any longer. 

Mulligan Management Group is here to help with digital consulting and strategy services!