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Sales & Marketing

Failure is Part of Success: 5 Important Lessons You Can Learn From an Unsuccessful Marketing Campaign

Marketing campaigns don’t always work; sometimes even the most brilliant campaigns fall at the final hurdle. In 2017 alone, we saw dozens of high profile marketing fails, with the Pepsi/Kendall Jenner “Black Lives Matter” attempt topping the list. The campaign that was supposed to convince more black people to purchase Pepsi, the campaign which featured Kendall Jenner magically settling a standoff between protestors and public policy by offering an officer a Pepsi backfired big time, becoming a laughing stock on social media and attracting widespread public backlash.

And that’s just one example. There were many other high profile epic failures in 2017, costing marketers millions of dollars.

It’s possible that you too have experienced similar failures, even if not on a similar scale. Perhaps you dedicated the chunk of your marketing budget to a TV commercial and all it did was embarrass you with zero returns on investment. Or, if you haven’t, you could experience such a failure in the future.

You need to know that what matters most under such circumstances is what you learn from the experience. In order to avoid a repeat of the same mistake, you need to take a close look at the failed campaign and extract useful information from the experience to help you make better decisions in the future.

The following are five common lessons you’ll learn from failed campaigns;

  1. Failure isn’t the end of the world

Seeing an entire campaign fail miserably can feel like the end of the road. Yet, it isn’t. After the failure, you’ll learn that there is life beyond any campaign; that irrespective of the magnitude of failure, you’ always have a second chance.

  1. You learn that priorities are everything

One of the main reasons we often fail is getting our priorities wrong. Perhaps you’re beginning at the wrong end. Maybe you’re trying to focus on traffic without first working on your marketing messages. When you fail, something truly strange happens; you’ll begin to rethink your priorities and put things that matter most at the front of the queue.

  1. It improves your perception of finance

Often, especially when you’re getting started, you could be tempted to go all in and commit every cent to that big dream. This isn’t bad at all. But it’s extremely risky. And, again, you’ll only get to better appreciate the risk when you fail. You’ll learn that you have to use your money more wisely, and, as www.ChadFocus.computs it, develop an entrepreneur mindset.

  1. You understand the need to delegate

Another common reason businesses fail is trying to do it all alone. This is especially true for small businesses owners. Pressed by the need to cut costs, you may find yourself trying to run the business on your own. Failure will open your eyes to the importance and benefits of delegating responsibility.

  1. You learn when to quit

Finally, and most importantly, failure will teach you that not all ventures can be successful; that sometimes it’s better to just count your losses. More importantly, you’ll learn whento call it quits.

So, Don’t Quit Now

It doesn’t matter how many times you fail. If you can always learn these five lessons and take them into your next project, your chances of success become much greater.

 

By Ethan Theo

Abe WalkingBear Sanchez is an International Speaker / Trainer / Consultant on the subject of cash flow / sales enhancement and business knowledge organization and use. Founder and President of www.armg-usa.com, WalkingBear has authored hundreds of business articles, has worked with numerous companies in a wide range of industries since 1982 and has spoken at many venues including the Shakespeare Globe Theater in London.