What The Tour de France Can Teach You About Plan B

Welcome to the 2019 installment of What The Tour de France Can Teach You About Advertising. This is my annual post using the Tour de France, professional bicycling's greatest race and marketing machine, as a metaphor for improving your advertising. (You can get caught up on some of the previous entries here.)

While any  pro bike rider will say he wants to win the Tour de France, for most it's just a fantasy. The reality is perhaps only 15 or 20 riders have the ability to both time trial and climb, as well as the supporting team, needed to win the General Classification (GC). However, while GC riders who can actually win the yellow jersey are few, there are other races within the race to keep things interesting.

The polka dot King of the Mountains Jersey is, as the name implies, awarded to the rider who garners the most points though high placement in climbs spread throughout the Tour. The Green Jersey goes to the Tour de France rider who garners the most points in the sprints at the end of each day's stage (for flat stages) and for intermediate sprints along the way. There's even a White Jersey for the best under-25 rider with the lowest elapsed time. And, while it may seem odd to see a team of nine riders supporting the goal of one teammate, prize money in the Tour de France is divided equally among the team, so riders are rewarded for their work.

But, what if the rider a team is supporting lacks form, gets injured, or drops out of the race? That's when pro teams turn to Plan B, Plan C, Plan D, or even Plan E. Whether it's helping another teammate pursue some other jersey, simply going for stage wins, trying to finish ahead of a rival rider or team, or just generating exposure (and getting TV time) for their sponsors, pro cycling teams always have something to ride for in the Tour de France.

So what does all this have to do with advertising? Well, if you have a yearly ad plan and strive to get the most from your ad dollars, then that ad plan should mirror the Tour de France team strategy and have an ultimate goal in mind. That is, your ad plan should be well-rounded with an eye toward being first at the finish line, with each element supporting that goal. However, if some element of your ad plan doesn't perform as expected, make sure you have a Plan B, C, D, or E in place too.

While a Tour de France team director may have to change up his strategy several times in the course of a day's stage, monitoring your ad plan requires a lot less work. In fact checking how your plan is performing once a month will give you a pretty good idea on your return-on-investment. If you're too busy for that, be sure to at least check once a quarter. And, if you're unhappy with what you see, be prepared to switch to Plan B.

Your Ad Plan B doesn't have to be a major strategy shakeup. If you're dissatisfied with the ROI on the advertising you've purchased, consider simply reallocating. If your digital spending is getting better returns than email marketing, spend more on digital and less on email. If your broadcast spending isn't generating results, put that money into something that's performing. Just as a Tour team has to change things up on the fly to make the most of each race, adjust your ad plan as you go to insure you get the best results for your money.

When forced to go to Plan B ( or Plan C, D, E, or even F), Tour de France teams keep moving forward and work to get the best race results in the final standings. If your business needs to activate Ad Plan B, remember to change things up as needed so that you get peak performance from your advertising investment. And, no matter what changes you make, just remember to keep the marketing wheels moving, so that your ad plan always gets your business the best sales results.

See also The Connection Between The Tour de France and Your Advertising Plan

Don't Make It Up As You Go Along

Welcome to the 2016 installment of What The Tour de France Can Teach You About Advertising. As regular readers of this space know, this is my annual post using the Tour de France, professional bicycling's greatest race, as a metaphor for you how can improve your company's advertising. (If you want to get caught up on some of the previous entries, you can do so here, here, here, here, here, here and here.)

For mostly the wrong reasons (this, this and this, primarily), this year’s Tour de France has been one of the more entertaining Grande Boucles in recent memory. But as wild and wooly as it has been, for most of the contenders, the tactics involved in the race have remained the same. In general terms, it plays out as; Keep yourself in a good position to not lose time, be ready to take advantage of an opportunity when it presents itself, and then be ready to run down attacks to protect your position.

While it may not seem like it, in a broad sense, most of these actions were planned months in advance. The teams and riders scouted the course of each day’s stage ahead of time and, most likely, knew the stages and particular points on a given day’s course where they would make their moves. Then, as the race has unfolded, each team and each rider has adjusted their strategy based on the events of the Tour so far.

So, how does this all relate to advertising? Well, if you’re running a business, you should plan your advertising strategy in advance, know the most advantageous times to market your goods or services and be flexible enough to adjust on the fly. Just as a Tour rider may be stronger in the mountains or in time trials and will plan their attacks at specific points in those stages, it’s important that you plan ahead to take advantage of the best times and approaches to market your business.

To do that, look at every marketing opportunity you have ahead of time and plan your advertising campaign and budget to play to your strengths and to keep your wheels turning during the slow periods. Then keep track of the return on your advertising and your spending and adjust as needed as the year progresses.

Note that, when I say “plan your advertising strategy in advance,” that doesn’t mean Post-Its with “buy advertising in June, July and August” on your annual planner or patiently waiting for a special offer from an ad rep. Long story short; Don't make it up as you go along! Instead, map out where and when you’ll spend your budget ahead of time so that you can save time, save money and keep your business in front of your customers and ahead of the pack all year long.

Further, just as each Tour de France contender and team has a strategy for each stage of the race, make sure you have a strategy for each medium where you advertise. For instance, your digital strategy (Facebook, Twitter, Google, YouTube, Snapchat, PokémonGo) should be separate from your broadcast, print and promotional strategy. Yes, there are those times when you may hit with an across-the-board media blitz, but remember to use each medium to complement the other.

Finally, just as a rider’s or team’s strategy may change based on the results of the previous day’s action, or even based on what happens during the stage, monitor your return on investment (ROI) in all your media and don’t be afraid to adjust your strategy as you go. If one component of your overall ad strategy isn’t performing to your satisfaction, apply those resources to the elements that are helping your business.

Tour de France riders and teams start planning their race strategy as soon as the organizers announce the route in October, well before the race the following July. They’ll study each stage, train on many of the routes and plan what they’ll do at a given point well in advance of the Tour each year. Then, they stand ready to tweak that strategy as the race dictates. And, if you’re advertising your business, you need to develop a comparable strategy with your yearly ad plan. Plan your expenditures in advance to maximize your budget, make sure every media in which you advertise is playing to your strength and, as the results and ROI dictate, be ready to make changes along the way. Doing so may not put you in the yellow jersey, but it will certainly go a long way toward keeping your business rolling toward more green in your bank account.

See also: How Cool Do You Want To Be?