Building an Efficient Marketing Campaign

Shownotes

In today’s episode, we welcome Ikram Guerd as she shares her insights on how marketing has evolved and how marketers should be excited to take on the challenge of keeping up with approaches, technology, data, and tools. Listen carefully as she lays out practical steps to building up an efficient campaign and the key points to look for when conducting new business. She notes that it is especially important to take advantage of all the digital channels available to interact with customers.

About the Guest

Ikram Guerd is a B2B Healthcare marketing leader with over 17 years of experience both in Europe and in the USA, including 10 years within Danaher at Beckman Coulter and Radiometer part of the Diagnostics platform. Award-winning marketer, she focuses on implementing and deploying impactful MarCom strategy/initiatives and leading successful teams. From product management through MarCom / MarTech and digital marketing, she is a proven marketing leader with a full set of experience in collaborating and working cross-functionally, driving growth, and making a positive impact with a diverse and inclusive culture, believing that what is making companies outstanding. Passionate about connecting with people, marketing, and innovation for the future, like AI, she enjoys networking and giving back to the community, sharing her experience as a women leader with a multicultural experience.

Connect with Ikram Guerd

Key Takeaways

• The transition to digital marketing has been staggering – now is a time to be connected with your customers more often.
• Having a clear definition of the scope of a campaign is key, and this can be helped by getting everyone on the same page.
• Framing questions and understanding the customer journey are also important factors in building a business case for a potential new partnership.
• The key components that MarTech partners look for in a new partnership are trust and credibility.

Quote

“With trust and transparent communication, [from] both ways and creating an exciting vision as a team and the development plan for each individual, that’s how you build a great marketing team. And it’s not just about hiring them; it’s also retaining them, which is also very, very important.”

– Ikram Guerd

Highlights from the Episode

Can you tell our listeners a bit about your background and career?

Ikram has been in international trade, and she has always loved traveling and speaking other languages. She had the opportunity to join Procter and Gamble in Paris, France, where she was exposed to real marketing and found her passion. She then got her master’s in strategic marketing and communication and found a two-month internship in the healthcare industry as a product manager. The internship turned into a five-year job where she had different marketing roles and responsibilities. She then moved to the US six years ago to work on a go-to-market strategy for their monitoring business in the home care market. She has spent most of her career in product management but recently moved to take over and build a marketing team.

What are your thoughts on the evolution of the marketing landscape since you first started?

The marketing landscape has changed a great deal in the last 20 years, and it continues to change and evolve quickly. This is due to the vast information and technologies becoming available. Marketers need to be on top of these changes to succeed. The key is to be excited about the future of marketing and the opportunities that automation and AI will bring.

As a marketer, what are the key points in building up an efficient campaign from start to finish?

The key points in building up an efficient campaign from start to finish are getting your team together, clearly defining a campaign, and understanding your budget, target audience, and messaging. Once you have all of these pieces together, you can start ideating and selecting your channels and media. In addition, ensure that the message is impactful and consistent across all channels.

What key things to remember as you build a business case for a potential new partnership that would fit in with your existing MarTech stack?

The three key points are (1) Understanding the added value that the new partnership would bring to the organization, (2) assessing the budget requirements for the new partnership, and (3) integrating the new partnership into the existing IT architecture in a safe way.

Account Based Marketing is something that’s exploded over the past five or six years. What do you see as the inherent values of Account Based Marketing today?

Account-based marketing (ABM) is a marketing approach in which a company builds relationships with customers by selling to their existing accounts rather than recruiting new customers. ABM is often seen as a more effective way to reach customers than traditional marketing methods because it allows companies to track and measure the effectiveness of their campaigns more easily.

What is the framework you refer to for identifying and subsequently managing great talent and keeping that talent happy?

The key to managing great talent is to find individuals with the right skill set and attitude, build trust with them, and give them opportunities to grow. Creating a positive and inclusive environment is also important for retaining talent.

What are the key components that you look at for new partnerships and new integrations?

The key components for a successful new partnership or integration are trust, credibility, and support. Organizations want a partner that is easy to work with and provides support throughout the implementation process.

Is there a book, blog, newsletter, website, or video that you would recommend to our listeners?

• Imagine It Forward: Courage, Creativity, and the Power of Change by Beth Comstock with Tahl Raz
• Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg

Shout-outs

Blair Hardie – Director, Digital Operations at Integrated DNA Technologies