NO DOUBT YOU'VE read, discussed or thought about the idea of marketing accountability more than once. While accountability is “old school” to direct response marketers, it's a hot topic with the marketing community at large and remains an intangible idea that hasn't been fully realized.
In a 2005 Webcast, Scott Hanson and Raymond Pettit of advertising research firm Long-woods International explained why and how accountability is becoming mainstream for nearly all communications media.
“Much is riding on proper evaluation and measurement of the efficacy, performance, cost and impact of increasingly complex and integrated marketing activities. To that end, we argue that applying the well-proven principles of the scientific method, coupled with proper research design, to measure and diagnose the incremental effects of multidimensional campaigns is a tried and true process that will achieve results that have generally eluded the majority of organizations to date.”
If you think they're describing the tenets of direct mail, you're right.
The processes and tools utilized in tracking and analyzing direct mail, e-mail and Internet advertising campaigns are escalating the importance of return on investment for traditional, “non-direct” marketing mediums such as space advertising and public relations.
American City Business Journals in Charlotte, NC, applies a specific methodology to creating a parallel between its marketing investments and the correlating results.
“Boiling everything down to a cost per acquisition for a new customer allows us to evaluate all marketing efforts against each other — direct mail vs. sponsorships vs. e-mail, etc. — rather than simply measuring like campaigns against like campaigns,” says database marketing director Christi Farr. “This way, we truly can optimize our marketing spend based on specific objectives.”
| 85% | Companies that claim marketing accountability is a hot topic or priority |
| 65% | Firms that have meaningful measures and metrics in place |
| 55% | Organizations that can determine ROI |
| 20% | Marketing professionals working with their company's CFO to monitor accountability |
| Source: Johnson Direct | |
Direct mail is one of the easiest marketing mediums to track, says Dawn Tappy, marketing manager at Proven Direct, a Midwest-focused marketing production firm in Menomonee Falls, WI.
“To brand a new service, we recently executed a direct mail campaign targeted at C-level decision makers. It generated [better than] a 2% return,” Tappy explains. “This piece will be followed up with three subsequent mailings. The effectiveness of each individual piece will be measured, as well as the campaign's overall results.”
Direct marketers are way ahead of the curve in terms of measuring metrics and refining their campaigns accordingly. This is a great place to start employing marketing accountability tactics.
And don't limit your tracking efforts to direct mail. With a relevant message and offer, appropriate timing and user-friendly response mechanism, you can stimulate leads from any marketing effort — advertising, e-mail, events and trade shows, Web site and public relations.
Consider the processes and mechanisms that make Internet and direct marketing campaigns so easy to track and measure. For example, the effectiveness of a traditional billboard, radio or print ad might be difficult to track. However, integrating a compelling offer and utilizing a microsite URL as a response mechanism will convert a branding promotion to a direct response promotion. Your audience will be persuaded to respond to your offer by visiting the campaign-dedicated microsite where you'll be able to track each visit. Turn responders into qualified sales leads by requiring visitors to complete a quick survey before they receive the offer.
“We've been able to weed out and redirect marketing dollars to more profitable lead sources because we can track the cost per qualified lead and overall campaign ROI,” says Andrea Anderson, director of marketing for Fargo, ND-based Vtrenz Inc., a provider of marketing automation software.
While it's important to tie all media into one cohesive program — and leverage the images and awareness they create — it's just as critical to remember the basic realities of getting skeptical, busy, overwhelmed or disinterested prospects to stop, read what you have to say, and consider saying “yes.”
Keep in mind that 40% of your success is predicated by the media used, 25% on the offers made, 20% on the creative and 15% on other factors, including timing and relevance. Remembering this breakdown will help you assign a proportionate amount of time and resources to each aspect of your campaign and also determine the ROI needed to declare the effort a success.
MAKE IT A PRIORITY
How does a traditional marketer become a measurable marketer?
While most organizations — B-to-B, B-to-C or nonprofit — exclaim “marketing accountability is a top priority,” most don't have the necessary metrics in place to quantify their efforts.
Marketers today wear many hats and are responsible for promoting their organizations via several ever-evolving media, from billboard and brand advertising to trade shows and Webcast events. The sheer volume of a marketer's workload, combined with tighter budget constraints and generally shrinking marketing departments, makes “accountability” a seemingly impossible feat.
Add to this list of obstacles the fact that consumers and professionals alike are bombarded with thousands of media messages every day. Consumers today encounter from 3,500 to 5,000 marketing messages daily, vs. 500 to 2,000 in the 1970s, says J. Walker Smith, president of consumer and marketing watcher Yankelovich Inc.
This overwhelming volume of marketing messages is forcing consumers to tune out in a figurative and literal sense. Figuratively, consumers begin treating unwanted media communications as white noise — just a whirring sound in the background of life. Literally, people are adopting new technologies to help select what, when and how they hear and see the messages that interest them. For example, digital video recorders make it possible to watch TV shows — minus commercials — at the consumers' convenience, and the iPod's playlist capabilities produce personalized music selections without advertising interruptions.
PUT IT IN WRITING
Among the challenges marketers face to make accountability a reality is that their organization — for any number of reasons — doesn't have a comprehensive marketing plan. Without this, and companywide agreement of its contents — including objectives, target markets, strategies, key messages and tracking/measuring tactics — gathering and analyzing results and ROI is put on the back burner.
A marketing plan should focus not only on analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, but on achieving an increase in marketing and sales accountability, outlining realistic objectives, innovative strategies and responsible measurement. Until recently, defining the tactics with which a campaign would be measured was not a common component of a marketing plan.
| DMers | Campaign |
|---|---|
| 45% | Direct mail |
| 15 | Advertising |
| 15 | Other |
| 10 | Branding |
| 10 | Online marketing |
| 5 | Event marketing |
| Source: Johnson Direct | |
Today's marketing plans must contain testing, return-on-investment scenarios and an outline of how each and every campaign is going to be measured. It must address relevancy and segments.
MAKE IT A CAREER CHOICE
Measuring marketing performance is considered a strong leadership trait for an accomplished marketing professional. Each effort you make to enable your current employer to account for every dollar spent on marketing is going to make you a better, more sought-after marketer.
Whether you employ manual processes to take control of your metrics, or use a marketing measurement system, make it a career choice to rationalize your marketing planning and maximize business results.
Direct marketers have always understood the importance of measurability, testing and relevancy. This accountability puts DMers at the forefront of marketing communications…exactly where we deserve to be.
Proctor & Gamble, for instance, is placing “hard emphasis on improving our return on investment,” reports USA Today in a 2005 interview with P&G spokesman Dave McCracken. “We're just getting smart in how we are using TV as part of our overall marketing mix.”
In rethinking its media strategy, P&G — after spending 80% of its $3 billion 2004 ad budget on TV — is considering alternative media options. And this advertising powerhouse is not alone.
Last year's Cannes TV ad competition shared the limelight with seven other marketing categories, including direct marketing, outdoor and Internet ads. Cannes reported that entries in the non-TV sectors increased by double digits. The fastest growing segment was direct, with a 33.5% spike. TV entries were down 2%.
Alternative media strategies bring to mind the advent of “direct branding” — a result of marketers wanting to continue traditional brand advertising but needing to measure the results of their media investments.
Direct branding combines the art of brand advertising and the immediacy of direct marketing. The divide between traditional advertising and DM is more prevalent today than ever. Where traditional advertising generates eventual sales by promoting a brand image, direct marketing takes a straightforward route by asking for the sale now.
The direct branding approach helps businesses combat these marketing challenges:
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Reducing information overload for prospects and customers.
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Creating accountable advertising with smaller budgets.
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Meeting consumer demand for relevancy.
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Utilizing emerging technology to personalize communications.
Business-to-business companies such as mobile command unit maker LDV Inc. in Burlington, WI, are dramatically increasing qualified sales leads — and consistently reporting on results — by converting traditional space advertising campaigns to direct branding ads.
In a recent ad campaign targeting law enforcement agencies, the right offer, combined with multichannel marketing strategies and an easy-to-use response mechanism, boosted LDV's sales leads sixfold.
The bottom line with direct branding, then, is that marketers can work harder than ever to enhance their brand as they simultaneously drive sales. Today, this is a necessity — and a prerequisite for doing business.
GRANT A. JOHNSON (grantj@johnsondirect.com) is CEO of Johnson Direct in Brookfield, WI.
