This unit applies to individuals working in a marketing assistant or account manager role who are required to design and test direct marketing activities in relation to a product or service. They may work in small, medium or large enterprises in a variety of industries and typically undertake controlled experiments to test direct marketing activities before designing and implementing the activity. The results of such testing can be analysed to predict the likely success of the proposed direct marketing activities. Direct marketing experiments may include testing the offer, media, communication, timing or response components of direct marketing activities. |
ELEMENT | PERFORMANCE CRITERIA |
1. Determine appropriate testing methods | 1.1. Establish rationale for conducting tests on direct marketing activities 1.2. Determine testable components of direct marketing activities that can substantially affect test results or can be differentiated without affecting other components 1.3. Evaluate and select appropriate testing methods for media being used and media component being tested |
2. Design and conduct a test | 2.1. Create a range of hypotheses to be tested 2.2. Formulate a number of possible scenarios expected at conclusion of test 2.3. Select minimum and maximum number of test cells 2.4. Define control cells and establish a method to identify all responses by cell of origin 2.5. Establish minimum significance variance in response 2.6. Apply test to selected offer components |
3. Analyse and act upon test results | 3.1. Use statistical techniques to analyse results 3.2. Determine whether test results provide a null, positive or negative result in relation to each hypothesis 3.3. Determine appropriate testing actions for results obtained 3.4. Refine, modify or change direct response offer components in accordance with testing results until final offer is created 3.5. Document and visually present testing results in format specified by organisational policies and procedures |
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Required skills |
culturally appropriate communication skills to relate to people from diverse backgrounds and people with diverse abilities information management skills to record, collate and transfer test results numeracy skills to interpret and analyse statistical information research and data collection skills to design and analyse tests of direct marketing offer components and direct marketing activities technology skills to use a range of office equipment and computers; and to use a range of statistical software applications, including databases, spreadsheets and specialist statistical programs relevant to marketing. |
Required knowledge |
overview of key provisions of relevant legislation from all forms of government, codes of practice and national standards that may affect aspects of business operations, such as: Australian Direct Marketing Association (ADMA) Direct Marketing Code of Conduct and 'Do Not Mail' and 'Do Not Call' Free TV Australia Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice privacy laws sweepstakes regulations Trade Practices Act marketing communication concepts and processes media options statistical methods, tests, and techniques for measurement and analysis software applications used in direct marketing. |
The Evidence Guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package. | |
Overview of assessment | |
Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit | Evidence of the following is essential: isolating and selecting a direct response offer component to be tested creating and testing a range of hypotheses conducting and re-running tests on offer components until a satisfactory outcome has been reached knowledge of relevant legislation. |
Context of and specific resources for assessment | Assessment must ensure: access to office equipment and resources. |
Method of assessment | A range of assessment methods should be used to assess practical skills and knowledge. The following examples are appropriate for this unit: analysis of responses to case studies and scenarios assessment of written reports on testing activities direct questioning combined with review of portfolios of evidence and third party workplace reports of on-the-job performance by the candidate observation of presentations of testing results oral or written questioning to assess knowledge of statistical techniques review of test design. |
Guidance information for assessment | Holistic assessment with other units relevant to the industry sector, workplace and job role is recommended, for example: other marketing units. |
The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included. | |
Testable components may include: | communication components such as: copy proposition, content, style, tone and personalisation art direction production values offer components such as: product or service being offered additional products or services attached to the offer guarantees or warranties entry into a prize draw media components such as: type of medium specific media channels appearance within a media channel response components such as: response media selected response form characteristics timing components such as: date day of the week time of day frequency of repetition time gap between primary and secondary communications |
Appropriate testing methods may include: | nth record split record rotation segmentation |
Media may include: | cable or satellite television fax free-to-air television phone website |
Media components may include: | specific channels within a medium such as: list segments lists programs specific publications appearance within a specific channel such as: duration during ad break size on which program |
Appropriate testing actions may include those for: | null results in which the hypothesis is neither accepted or denied: re-running the test with larger test cells designing a new test for the same hypothesis designing a new test positive results in which the hypothesis is accepted: adopting the winning cell as the new test control negative results in which the hypothesis is denied: continuing with current control cells |
Unit sector |
Business Development - Marketing |
This unit contains employability skills. |
Not applicable.