DA: What does it take to execute a well-integrated campaign? What are the key steps?

Sutherland
To find the correct media mix for any integrated campaign you first have to establish your basic parameters, such as goals, budget, timing, et cetera. Then you overlay that with your audience consumption insights. Finally, match that up with the message to establish the media opportunities.

The last piece that helps validate the architecture of the campaign is measurement. Going through the exercise of mapping out all of the components in an integrated campaign uncovers any overlooked opportunities as well as forces one to infer the estimated contribution for each component.

Walmsley
The best story might not be one told in a primarily traditional manner, so it is imperative to ensure that all parties are at the table at the same time.

Craig Walmsley is director of strategy for AKQA

Briefing all agencies simultaneously on the same marketing challenge ensures that everyone has the opportunity to bring their story to the table, and to test it against everyone else's. Often, we have found this process to be less a competition and more an evolution, as the different aspects of each agency's thinking are drawn together into a stronger, deeper concept.

Once the core story is agreed upon, it should be given a custodian; an agency or individual responsible for codifying the story, and ensuring its integrity and coherence throughout the development process.

Each agency should then provide its take on how this will be manifested in the medium it is most familiar with. For example, because of its flexible and functional nature, digital often plays the role of providing the depth, detail and functionality to complement, clarify and convey the story.

Managing such a process requires strength and single-mindedness on the part of the client, a deft hand at managing agency relations, and a healthy respect on the part of all of the agencies themselves.

Santello
There are several key steps:

• You need an "engagement platform" that is a springboard for a big idea that is centered around creating customer engagement;
• You must have a big communication idea that, at face value, has legs in multiple media channels. If the idea feels "handcuffed" to a particular medium, then it will likely not be integrated well across other media. On the other hand, if you instantly begin to see multiple media channel applications of an idea, then chances are you have the makings of a great integrated cross-media campaign.
• Put together a team of strategists and media activation experts that understand various media channels and how they can work together to create seamless communication;
• Define the integration "threads," or things that everyone agrees are aspects of integration;
• Pull together industry sales force representatives that know how to integrate their various cross-media channels behind the big idea;
• Conduct regular communication audits to evaluate past efforts and learn from them;
• Make sure you have a client that not only supports integration but demands it.

Neisser
First and foremost, you need an integrated team of experts in a wide range of disciplines. This team needs to be guided by an account planner who helps identify the key target insight, and a media expert who can paint a "day in the life" portrait that rates the various potential points of contact for impact, relevance and importance.

Drew Neisser is CEO of Renegade Marketing Group

For this to happen, you also need a client who really, really wants an integrated idea. If the client is working with multiple agencies across a range of disciplines, then it has to play the role of referee, making sure that at least during the early stages no one channel dominates the planning process. Otherwise, you basically end up with an ad that gets re-purposed into the other channels.

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