Marketing and Finance Out of Step

HERE’S MORE PROOF THAT marketing and finance are not in sync.

A new survey by TargetBase shows that only 8% of all marketing execs feel that their firm’s marketing and financial goals are in lockstep.

Almost 75% said they’re aligned but need some degree of improvement. (The need is “significant” for 28%.) And 23% flat-out said the goals aren’t aligned at all.

Here’s one possible reason why: Half of the marketers polled said they’re frequently pressured to produce short-term results at the expense of long-term growth. And 28% claimed they’re occasionally asked to do this.

In addition, one-fifth of the respondents cited lack of support from the parent company, and an equal number noted little internal approval and support.

And the bean counters are watching. Fifteen percent of the marketers said their programs are evaluated monthly for impact on company growth. Another 10% said they’re examined at random intervals.

But some marketers have breathing room. Some 25% of those surveyed said they’re evaluated yearly, and another similar-sized group indicated this was done quarterly.

And which metrics are used to monitor growth? The chief one is sales at 83%, followed by revenue (80%) and profits (78%).

What are the biggest challenges facing marketers in their pursuit of growth? For 43%, it was discounting vs. building value. Tied for first place was inadequate marketing funds. And 40% cited elusive ROI measurements.

That lack of funding is serious. A whopping 40% said their marketing budgets are not sufficient to meet their growth objectives this year. Another 35% said they were, and 25% weren’t sure.

As for media, 23% of the marketers said direct mail had the greatest impact on their growth goals. This was followed by print (15%); e-mail (10%); and point-of-purchase (10%).

However, print was named by 78% of those surveyed as helping them reach their sales goals, and direct mail by 60%.

And how did DMers choose their channels this year? Past results were cited by 80%, and the best projected ROI by 65%. Another 63% sought insight from primary or custom consumer research. Some 33% based it on “gut feeling.”

The survey was conducted among 40 CMOs from a variety of companies, including Disney, General Mills, Honda, Sunkist and Whole Foods Market.