This week, we’re going over a lesson that I think is critical for all marketers (and backpackers!): always have a backup plan!
When the bush plane dropped my husband, Andrew, and I off at Skolai Pass in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park this past July, we were there for all of 5 minutes when it started to rain. As I watched the plane get smaller and smaller as it flew away, the weather continued to worsen and I thought to myself – Have we just made the biggest mistake of our lives?
 Clearly, the skies eventually cleared and we had a great trip — but it didn’t look like that for the first 24 hours! |
As any backpacker knows, rain poses a legitimate safety concern. Rain and 35-degree temps is a next level nerve-wracking combination. Andrew and I hiked through thick brush and across a freezing river to find a place to pitch camp before the storm hit it’s peak. We had planned to strike out and immediately take on 10-ish miles of bushwacking on day one.
It quickly became apparent that wasn’t in the cards.
After about four miles, we roughed it up a small foothill, and opted to set up a basecamp behind the shelter of a rocky outcropping. Ideally, the high ground would help us see or hear if we had any wildlife friends scoping us out, and the rocks would give us some shelter from the downpour and the wind.
Luckily, we were able to set up camp and quickly get our gear inside our tent and rain fly – suffering minimal water damage to critically warm base layers and our sleeping bags. We had also thought ahead and packed contractor-grade trash bags (fully waterproof!) to wrap essential items (like our packs and wool socks) in.
Now, I don’t think you’ll ever run into a high risk storm on a mountainside while building a marketing campaign. But that doesn’t mean your marketing doesn’t sometimes feel life or death!
It’s critical to have a contingency plan when building your marketing strategy, and to be willing to pivot.
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We’d have loved to land in Wrangell to sunny skies, but you must play the cards you’re dealt. On our hike, pivoting our strategy, looking for the most viable option for camp, and having emergency gear bailed us out of a tight spot. In marketing, this might look like:
- Having evergreen content in the queue written by yourself or a professional to use if inspiration just doesn’t strike
- Being willing to pivot social strategies if you’re not getting traction on a specific channel
- Organizing a crisis management strategy for if the market takes a nosedive
- Putting together a list of your highest revenue-driving activities and falling back to them when a new strategy doesn’t pan out
The moral of this story is:
Flexibility and adaptability are crucial in unpredictable environments.
How are YOU building in flexibility, or even a full-fledged backup plan, into your marketing? Are you willing to pivot Ross-Geller style if things aren’t working?
Some food for thought this week!
