The evolution of database marketing platforms continues to help marketers manage and deliver quantifiable strategies for direct marketing. This is especially good news for companies and agencies striving to prove return on marketing investment, as the unstable economy over the past year and a half has increased the need to justify marketing spend and elevated the pressure on those of us who are asked, “What’s the ROI?”
There is no need to shy away from the ROI discussion. The ability to attribute sales or leads against our efforts is something every marketer strives to achieve. The challenge with many companies in the B2B manufacturing space is the ability to manage data through the buying cycle. All too often leads are generated either through e-marketing, traditional direct marketing, or trade shows, only to be distributed out to a dealer base where the ability to track progress is lost. When this happens, the ability to correlate sales to marketing communications investment is impossible.
If companies are serious about accurate ROI metrics, they must commit to a data management model that, at minimum, closes the sales loop. Ideally, there would be metrics for ongoing communications efforts as well for programs that support service, aftermarket purchases, etc., to derive “lifetime” customer value. The ROI is only as good as the system in place for tracking sales. Agencies can provide metrics on things such as media value and competitive insights, but without the ability to follow customer behavior, there will not be accurate sales results that justify the investment.
The commitment to marketing ROI assessment is an enterprise-wide initiative. There is a great deal of strategic planning and heavy lifting that need to happen at the front end. A good agency can lead a client into effective database management. However, if there isn’t a commitment by the client organization, then it’s very difficult to hold anyone accountable for accurately answering the question “What’s the ROI?”
For more information on tracking your marketing efforts, see this recent article in DMNews.
