A bending, Agile river and stary sky.

15 September 2020

Agile marketing - like normal marketing but more badass

Lyssa is a marketing badass and founder of Kraken Marketing. She is all about using Data-Driven Marketing using Agile methodologies to help businesses level up. Google Women Techmaker, public speaker, and GIF aficionado. She was one of Cornwall's 30 under 30 and Young Business Person of the Year.
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Here at Kraken HQ we are all about Agile marketing! 

 

I honestly could talk about Agile marketing ALL.DAY.LONG  – and have at a number of conferences including Agile on the Beach, Agile in the City London, and Headtalks.

But this article is just going to be an intro to Agile marketing.  

What is Agile?

Agile is an iterative approach to project management that originated in the software development world. 

It helps teams deliver value faster, as you deliver in smaller iterations. 

 

It all started back in 2001 when 17 fellow nerds met at a ski resort in Utah. During this trip, they came up with the Agile manifesto. 

 

The Agile manifesto states 

 

  • Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
  • Working software over comprehensive documentation
  • Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
  • Responding to change over following a plan

Sounds good right? 


So what the hell is Agile marketing?

Agile marketing focuses on frequent releases with deliberate experimentation. Which is cool, as we are also data-driven marketing nerds so tracking what works is our jam.


It is strategic, but we don’t create detailed plans for long periods of time that are set in stone. 

We want to be quick to respond to change and are constantly evaluating what is and isn’t working. 

 

Being Agile is at the core of our badassery. 

But it does require a change in mindset from the more traditional marketing styles. 


You need to get comfortable with experimenting, with small releases, and with iterations. 


It is all about teamwork and collaboration – that’s why we are transparent in everything we do. Let’s put it all on Trello, so you can see what is being worked on at all times. There are no gatekeepers here, and you can view all the work, as it happens, in real-time. 

 

You also need to be tracking alllll that data to in Agile marketing to make sure you are informed and responding the right things, not just what your gut says.

 

Now there is an Agile Marketing Manifesto. 

 

  • Validated learning over opinions and conventions
  • Customer-focused collaboration over silos and hierarchy
  • Adaptive and iterative campaigns over Big-Bang campaigns
  • The process of customer discovery over static prediction
  • Flexible vs. rigid planning
  • Responding to change over following a plan
  • Many small experiments over a few large bets

What are the benefits of Agile Marketing?

Projects are delivered on time and on budget.  Who doesn’t want that?

It doesn’t matter if you are B2B or B2C – Agile marketing works.

Utilising a Kanban board is an excellent visual tool that helps improve workflow. It also fosters collaboration and helps you identify potential issues earlier. 

 

We are massive Trello fans here, and we are pretty sure you will become obsessed during our project too!

 

Us human beings thrive and are a lot happier when we know what is going on. We also love to see how our individual efforts are contributing to the success of a project. Agile also improves knowledge transfer throughout the team, as you work so closely together. 

 

Agile marketing allows you to deliver faster, which means you can see results quicker. Which is helpful for both positive and negative things! You need to know if its working or not, so you can either slam the breaks on or ramp it up. Turn that beast up to 11. 

 

Things change. And you need to be able to evolve quickly to them.
An example of this is during the COVID-19 pandemic KFC launched a new campaign where they say press pause on its slogan Finger Licking Good…for now,  as it is not socially responsible right now. 

 

This is an excellent example of people responding quickly to change and being freaking brave. They have used that slogan for 64 years! 

This is a totally badass campaign. 

Want to know more?

Hit us up! We would love to talk to you about how Agile marketing can help you level up!

Mix that up with being brave with your brand and you will be flipping unstoppable.