A complete event operation and promotion!

All operating systems and organizations are only the basis of operations. Operations themselves are the specific practice process of the business model, so full-process control of operations is particularly important. Generally, an operation activity includes six steps: preliminary preparation, operation plan, execution schedule, execution and optimization adjustment, data indicators, and summary output. The operation plan is the soul and the execution plan is the core. During the entire operation process, a sense of rhythm is emphasized. Existing resources must be fully considered, and then the existing resources and plans must be continuously deduced in the time dimension to achieve the desired results. Operations is a job that particularly emphasizes control, including control of resources, control of rhythm, and control of goals.

1. Preliminary preparations

Before formulating the operation plan, we need to do some preliminary preparation work. The core preparation includes two items: first, we need to clarify the core goals of the operation. Generally speaking, there are three core goals of the operation: expanding the user base, finding a suitable profit model to increase revenue, and improving user activity. We need to clarify and quantify these goals; secondly, we need to prepare resources. We must take inventory of current resources in advance to be prepared. Specific preparation work generally includes:

1. Early preparation

a. Ensure the normal operation of the product

b. Clarify product positioning and goals

c. Select appropriate promotion channels and methods, coordinate internal and external resources and develop detailed plans

d. Determine team division of labor and implement

2. Initial launch

a. Ensure the normal use of the product

b. According to the operation status, optimize the product in stages

c. Promotion strategy in the initial stage of launch

3. Daily life in the later stage

a. Product Update

b. Content Operation

c. Event planning

d. User operations

e. Data Analysis

f. Feedback

2. Operational plan

Determining an operation plan is by no means a matter of writing a document, but rather a deduction of human nature. Operations must be based on human nature, whether it is C-end or B-end customers. B-end customers are also determined by human will, and the value of B-end itself is a reflection of greedy human nature.

Since it is human nature and we need to emphasize control, it is quite difficult. Therefore, unexpected events often occur during operations, making it difficult to guarantee results. Basically, we need to first make a qualitative analysis of the operation plan. If it is an attempt at a new operation model, we need to conduct a small-scale pilot until we find a reasonable rhythm and plan, and then expand it on a large scale. If it is normal and the target guarantee is very high, we need to strengthen the guarantee of the results in the operation plan, which can be done according to the following aspects:

1. Reasonable goal setting

First of all, the goal setting must be reasonable, and it is best to make quantitative deductions based on existing experience. Of course, usually when we are working on an operation plan of a certain scale, there is definitely more than one project. So we need to break down all the key projects and add predictions for the industry to come up with more reasonable goals. Otherwise, in the process of implementing the operation plan, the entire rhythm will be completely changed in pursuit of the goal.

2. A foundation that guarantees success

The basis for goal setting is that there are major core projects that have successful experiences and cases in the past. Therefore, in some larger operation plans, we must pay attention to breaking down the key foundations of those plans that have been proven to be successful and reliable in the past and adding them to the core of the new operation plan. An operational plan formulated in this way will have a foundation for success, rather than relying on trial and error, and even if there are errors, they will be within a reasonable range.

3. Keep breakthrough attempts within a defined scope

Of course, it is impossible for every operation plan to be completely based on the original one. There must be new breakthroughs, both in channels and strategies. This is also the core key of every new operation plan, but it must be noted that first of all, there are risks. We cannot only focus our time on this, but must fully consider the scope of the new approach. Only in this way can we control the overall results in the overall operation plan.

4. Consider security issues

We cannot just consider how to market and promote. Internal services are equally indispensable. We must consider what to do after these users come, and even consider redundancy. The first aspect of the guarantee is product performance support and service support after customers come; the second aspect is rule support to see if there are any loopholes. Especially for those with capital investment, we must consider the attention of the black industry and formulate safeguards to be prepared.

5. The connection of the process should be repeatedly deduced

Secondly, in terms of process connection, the internal process must be repeatedly deduced, and the more situations are considered, the more perfect it will be. Problems are most likely to occur where the inside and outside are connected, and it is often difficult to form a closed loop. External connections focus on human nature, while internal connections also need to consider the actual situation, and in fact, human nature must also be considered. It cannot be suppressed by relying on approval documents. In fact, internal operations are equally important and will have unexpected effects.

3. Execution Plan

The execution plan is the deduction of the relevant personnel of the operation project in the time dimension, and time is the key consideration factor. At the same time, in order to ensure the results, there must be standard instructions to ensure the quality of the overall project, and even one link may be a prerequisite for the next link. So pay attention to the following when executing the plan:

1. Personnel interaction and standards

Since it is a complete operational project, personnel within the designated scope must fully interact and participate. Only in this way can all personnel be mobilized. All members of the project team should set rules and standards at the beginning and hold regular project promotion meetings.

2. Table management

In the execution plan, at least these tables must be included to be called an execution plan, rather than just assigning work. Of course, other forms can be added according to actual conditions.

a. Overall execution plan: the overall goals and overall pace of the project, as well as the key goals of each stage;

b. Project division of labor table: The corresponding members and corresponding matters in the project should be detailed to specific outputs and standards;

c. Implementation schedule: The key to the implementation schedule is to include supervision items, specific to time nodes and standards;

d. Description of implementation standards: description of overall implementation standards and implementation standards for key nodes.

4. Execution Optimization and Adjustment

Even the most complete operation plan will need to be constantly optimized and adjusted, so the content of the optimization and adjustment must be determined in advance, mainly including three aspects:

1. Process of handling accidents

The first thing to consider is the occurrence of accidents, which are mainly unexpected situations in operating projects. So a processing process needs to be established.

2. Optimized decision-making conditions

When the results are not as expected, it is necessary to give a judgment on the decision conditions in advance, so that in the specific implementation process, possible risks can be predicted in time and optimized according to the plan. The main thing to consider here is that the plan process must be taken into account in advance, rather than constantly and repeatedly discussing it during implementation, which will result in missing out on many opportunities.

3. Pre-planning

Some contingency plans must be put in place in advance. If an unexpected event occurs or the result is unsatisfactory, there will definitely not be timely conditions to verify it. Moreover, there should not be only one plan. There should be a basis for selection based on the actual situation. Secondly, and more importantly, the resource situation should be taken into consideration in the plan itself. For example, if an activity is suspended in the middle, there will be problems if it is to be developed again.

5. Set the data indicators to focus on

During the operation process, we cannot just focus on the final result target, but also set many process indicators for each link, and control the process indicators to ensure the final result. For example, during the operation of a general platform, we will set the number of registrations, conversion rate, payment rate, retention rate, number of users, number of active users, active time, etc. as assessment data indicators, which are also a basis for improving and optimizing work.

Of course, the data indicators we focus on will definitely be different depending on different goals and product stages. For example, in the early stages, we paid more attention to the number of registrations and users, and later we will pay more attention to active users, retention rate, conversion rate, etc. At the same time, we also need to use some common tools to analyze indicators for these data. Here are some common key indicators:

1. User retention and retention rate

Retained users and retention rates usually reflect the loss of users acquired in different periods. Analyzing this result is often to find the specific reasons for user loss. For example, after we have acquired a certain number of users, there will be more users at the beginning, but as time goes by, there will be continuous loss of users. The retention rate will gradually decrease over time, and generally reach stability after 3 to 5 months. After 4 months, the retention rate stabilizes at around 10%. At this time, we should consider improving the retention rate so that more users will stay and more and more users will actually use the app.

Next-day retention: New users come from the product’s onboarding design and new user conversion path. Analyzing the reasons for the loss of these users and improving the next-day retention rate are the key indicators that early products focus on.

Cycle retention: During this period of time, users will go through a complete usage and experience cycle. If users can stay at this stage, they are likely to become more loyal users.

Channel retention: Because channels come from different sources, the quality of users will also vary, so it is necessary to conduct a retention rate analysis for channel users. Moreover, after eliminating the factors of user differences, comparing the next-day and weekly retention rates can help us more accurately identify product problems.

2. Active Users

Users are constantly added and lost every day. If you only look at the number of daily active users, it is difficult to find the essence of the problem, so it is usually combined with the activity rate and the entire life cycle. The activity rate refers to the ratio of active users to total users. This ratio can help you understand the overall activity of your users. However, as time goes by, the user activity rate will gradually decrease. Therefore, if after a long life cycle, such as half a year, the user activity rate can be maintained at 5%-10%, it is a very good performance of user activity. Of course, it cannot be fully applied and depends on the product characteristics and industry.

3. Payment rate

Refers to the proportion of paying users to total users, i.e. number of top-up users/number of registered users*100%
Registered user payment rate = Total registrations / APA
Average online paid rate = ACU / APA
Active user paying rate = UV / APA

6. Summary Output

After the entire operation plan is completed, whether it is successful or not, it doesn’t matter. We cannot just celebrate if we succeed, nor can we just be depressed if we fail. Instead, we must fully summarize this operation and add the evaluable parts of this operation plan to the operation library, so as to continuously improve the controllability of the operation.

Author: Mantou's Notes

Source: Mantou's Notes