Think about a past project that resulted in a less than desirable outcome. What did you learn from that experience and how will you apply that lesson in the future?
"Recently, I have been learning more about the buyers' journey and how it affects the results of a campaign. On one particular project this year, I believe our message was great; however, our timing was off. The consumer wasn't ready for our 'ask' in that stage of their buying journey, resulting in a pretty flat response. What I learned is just how important it is to track and analyze customer interaction through all stages of their purchasing journey. I am learning how to better do this through analysis tools such as heat maps and Google Analytics."
Nobody is perfect, and the interviewer is well aware that you have likely experienced some fails in your career. What is most important is that you show your ability to learn lessons from those perceived failures. Share with the interviewer a time when you did not get your desired outcome. What did you learn from the experience, and what would you change the next time?
"After weeks of working on a new ad campaign for our agency, the launch was a total flop. Our marketing team is a very creative group, but sometimes this means that research does not get the attention it deserves, as everyone wants to jump in and start creating. The campaign would have been more successful had we devoted more time to learning about the consumer we were attempting to attract. What I learned from this experience was that we needed to lay down stronger groundwork, despite our excitement to get up and go. We could have even hired an outside research team or conducted some simple surveys before we began."
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Anonymous Answer
Once, I was assisting with a direct mail campaign. The order was for 9,000 mailers,
to be postmarked within a two-week period before the holiday. After the order went out, I got a call from the printer that their printing facility would be out of order for at least one week due to power issues.
This would've set us back so much that we would only be able to send the mailers out after the holiday, which would completely defeat the campaign's purpose.
So, I called a few smaller printers and asked what their maximum capacity was for short turnaround times. In the end, I worked with three different places to fulfill the order.
Even though I got the mailers out on time, it cost us 35% more than our original printer.
I learned that it's important to have a backup plan. I also learned that it's important to think on my feet and adapt to changes. I will remember these lessons and apply them to other projects. I'll be sure to have a backup plan in place so that I'm prepared if something goes wrong. And, I'll be ready to change my plans if necessary in order to achieve the best possible outcome.
Krista's Feedback
Excellent response!
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