Campaign timeline/project plan template and example

Create a strategic schedule for your marketing campaigns and always-on activity

How will this integrated campaign planning template help me and my business?

When you're planning a marketing campaign, there are so many paid, owned, and earned media channels that it can be difficult to know which activities you need to schedule in order to create a well-integrated campaign that has the best chance to deliver results.

This Excel template gives you a comprehensive checklist to sequence different content and media activities for different types of campaigns from new product launch, sales promotion, event or new site launch. It includes a Gantt chart and timeline so you can plan both campaign and longer-term 'always-on' continuous marketing activities.

With so many different content assets and channels needing management in modern campaigns, planning them in is essential. Sometimes activities such as retargeting, welcome nurture campaigns, campaign tracking or A/B testing of landing pages can be missed. You can amend this template to create your campaign plans for different time periods and use as a 'best practice' example checklist for activities you should consider.

For more guidance on how to set up, run and track successful digital campaigns, explore our Campaign Planning Learning Path course.

Who is this template for?

The template is aimed to help marketers involved with planning and scheduling content-led inbound marketing campaigns within a company or at an agency.

How is the template structured?

This spreadsheet has these worksheets for you to amend:

A ‘Read me’ worksheet explaining how to use the other worksheets by assigning responsibilities for different members in your team or agency. You can also customize your campaign start date here.
The Integration plan worksheet gives a top-level summary of your campaign structure to help ensure paid, owned, and earned media channels are reviewed and selected (as relevant). Activities are structured around the Smart Insights RACE planning framework.
A more detailed Campaign activity plan worksheet has full details of what needs to be signed off and reviewed. Activities are structured around the six sections of our campaign briefing Word template.
The Annual plan worksheet helps you create a top-level timeline of all main campaign and always-on communications activities to help with forward planning.

Latest update

More reference to ‘always-on’ activities including earned and owned media.
A clearer explanation of each tactic explored within the worksheets.
This content is evergreen and has been updated to our newest branded document style to ease readability.

Resource Details

Authors: Jill Quick and Dr. Dave Chaffey
Editor: Amelia Mayes – Digital Content Strategist
Format: Excel spreadsheet – you can amend for your business or clients

Related Smart Insights templates:

About the authors

Jill Quick

Jill Quick is a Digital Marketing Trainer and Consultant at Quick Marketing and co founder of The Coloring in Department. A candid and experienced marketer who loves to teach you not just how to “get” digital marketing in theory, but how to actually DO it.

Dr. Dave Chaffey

Dave is co-founder of Smart Insights and creator of the Smart Insights RACE planning framework. For his full profile, or to connect on LinkedIn or other social networks, see the About Dave Chaffey profile page on Smart Insights. Dave is author of 5 bestselling books on digital marketing including Digital Marketing Excellence and Digital Marketing: Strategy, Implementation and Practice. In 2004 he was recognized by the Chartered Institute of Marketing as one of 50 marketing ‘gurus’ worldwide who have helped shape the future of marketing.