Why do most of us admire superheroes? Their strength and perseverance motivate us to be like them. Just like a superhero, you can save the day—and streamline your Marketo instance—by following these naming convention tips.
Consistency is the KEY!
Why do we succeed with consistent naming conventions?
As more Marketo users come onboard with different backgrounds and levels of experience, the existing, unprepared Marketo ecosystem breaks. A team of superheroes needs to strengthen together and to pick themselves up with centralized program names.
Develop a structural overview of marketing activities
Why does a team of superheroes need a secret base of operations?
A strong naming system will allow listing programs and identifying them easily by types of activities and in order by date and/or quarters. All programs would then get sorted in alphabetical order by each value per your final program taxonomy.
Program Taxonomy
[Region]-[Program Type Abbreviation]-[YYYY]-[Q#]-[Program Name]-[Program ID]
[Region]-[Program Type Abbreviation]-[YYYY]-[MM]-[DD]-[Program Name]
Gain bulletproof reporting powers
Having a consistent program naming convention makes analysis easier with programs for scoring, reporting, and other operational needs. Then, the programs can also be distinguished within the selections of the naming convention values.
Manage Marketo like a flash
Using a naming convention reduces time spent on searching and sorting programs out of hundreds of folders. We do not have a time stone for that.
APAC-EVT-2018-Q1-Leaders-Conference-Sydney-1908
APAC-EVT-2018-Q1-Leaders-Conference-Singapore-1911
EMEA-EVT-2018-Q1-Leaders-Conference-London-1912
EMEA-EVT-2018-Q2-Leaders-Conference-Paris-2112
EMEA-EVT-2018-Q2-Leaders-Conference-Spain-2113
LATAM-EVT-2018-Q3-Leaders-Conference-Sao-Paulo-2129
LATAM-EVT-2018-Q3-Leaders-Conference-Mexico-City-2188
NA-EVT-2018-Q4-Leaders-Conference-New-York-2219
NA-EVT-2018-Q14-Leaders-Conference-San-Francisco-2228
| Regions:
GLOBAL LATAM EMEA JAPAN NA APAC |
Program Type Abbreviations:
Content Syndication = CS Email Send = EML Newsletter = NL List Import = LI Physical Event = EVT Online Event = ONL |
Nurture = NUR
Online Advertising = OA Operational = OP Social = SOC Webinar = WBN |
Here are some examples without the superhero’s perseverance.
Bad examples:
- EMEA_Physical_Event_10_2015
- New York Trade Show November 1 2015
- 2018 Feb-12 Webinar-123 what to do
- 2017_Email_NA_123_report
- 10-1-2016 Leaders Conference
Here are some examples from an inspired superhero.
Good examples:
- EMEA-EVT-2018-Q1-Leaders-Conference-London-1908
- NA-EVT-2015-11-01-Leaders-Hero-NYC
- GLOBAL-WEB-2018-Q2-123-What-to-Do-2081
- NA-EML-2017-07-17-123-Report-0717
- APAC-EVT-2016-10-01-With-Greatness-Workshop
Underscore vs dash vs space vs dot
It is highly not recommended to use underscores because hyperlinks will hide them, making it difficult to distinguish between program and asset names. Dots should also be avoided for program names because they’re the separators between program name and asset names.
Use dashes or a mix of dashes and spaces as separators. They will make your programs and assets more visible within your new, improved naming convention structure.
Asset Naming Convention
Once the naming convention at the program level is finalized, the next step is to dive into it at the asset level. As it is important to align the flow steps within the program, it is ideal to organize the assets in a sequence that follows the order of the progression.
For each smart campaign within a program:
[Sequence in 2 digitals] – [Generic Description]
Examples:
Send campaigns
01 – Send Email 1
02 – Send Email 2
Progressions
01 – Filled Out Form
For each asset within a program:
[Number Corresponding to Number of Smart Campaign Using Asset] – [Generic Description]
Examples:
Emails
01 – Email 1
02 – Email 2
Landing Pages
01a – Registration page
01b – Thank you page
02a – Registration page
02b – Thank you page
It is highly recommended to keep asset names generic because it eliminates the need to rename assets after cloning from a program template.
To summarize, choose a naming convention that fits your organization’s goals. Remember, consistency is the KEY!
You are much stronger than you think you are. The future is worth it. After all the pain and all the tears, the future of a consistent naming convention that meets your organization’s goals is worth fighting for.
