In Part 1 of this 2-part blog series, we covered a few important points to help you avoid common pitfalls around expectations when it comes to obtaining buy-in from executives around your strategies, but also as you continue to move throughout your digital and marketing journey. 

In this final part, we will walk through 3 ways of obtaining and keeping buy-in from executives:

  1. Start with why and capture it. Look at where you are today and where you want to be. All other plans (builds/technology/execution) should stack back up to this and depending on your initiative make sure that your timeline is appropriately reflective.
    • At a micro level and within your teams use briefs and templates. They’ll keep everyone on track and organized as you plan your broader message backup to leadership, particularly when you have several initiatives going on at once. Miss these steps and you will likely miss the mark. It only takes a few hiccups for leadership to question if goals/objectives are understood. 
  2. Build the vision with your executive team. Quite literally ask them what they want and what does a successful future-state look like? Create excitement and trust around the common goals. Although it may seem like it, you’re not meant to have all the answers, why? Because digital and marketing now sits above all aspects of any businesses today so although you have ownership and responsibility of your plans, co-collaboration on the vision fosters commitment and trust. This process will remove unnecessary friction that essentially blocks creativity and critical thinking – the two most important skills that uncover value. 
  3. Show vs Tell. Hone your presentation skills because in order to gain buy-in with what you’re articulating, it needs to be visual and as simple – to the point as possible. Your visuals should tell a story without you having to. Focus on what is important and ditch what isn’t. Lastly, keep the future-state or business outcome at the forefront so executives can connect the dots. 

Being a leader in performance marketing and digital today is a hefty role – because it’s changing rapidly. These departments are being held accountable for growth and retention like never before. It’s even more hefty when you struggle to manage expectations and haven’t achieved buy-in from your executive team – solving these two things will make a huge difference to performance and get everyone into a winning state of mind.

What’s Next?

Making the decision to invest in a modern marketing plan? Taking a strategy led and technology enabled approach is the first step. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help.