If You Can’t Measure It, You Can’t Improve It
At the heart of any effective advertising campaign are market research and consumer research. They used to be the domain of big brands with large budgets to spend on focus groups and testing. Today, there are plenty of quick and cost-effective ways to gather consumer-centric data, determine market sentiment and project potential returns. No digital marketing campaign should begin without doing proper research first.
THE C-SUITE LOVES NUMBERS
Explaining the relevance of data points instills confidence in stakeholders.
They want to know the money spent on any campaign isn’t just someone’s gut feeling or opinion, but that it’s supported by data.
They also want assurance that a campaign is based on insights gleaned from a sample set of potential customers.
They want to know how the effectiveness of the campaign will be measured.
Establishing key performance indicators (KPIs) shows stakeholders what success looks like. Measuring strategic benchmarks, testing and optimizing campaigns are not luxuries. “Set It and Forget It” might be a clever slogan for the Ronco Showtime Rotisserie, but it’s the last thing you want to do with an advertising campaign.
Advertising is a data-driven industry: Data leads to insights; insights lead to actionable plans and effective creative. So before you begin your next campaign, it’s mandatory you do your homework. Research current market conditions, understand how the competition is reacting to the marketplace, evaluate your current assets, and identify the challenges and opportunities before you. Research is more than numbers – information is power.
