CHAPTER 3 – THE ECOSYSTEM
Embracing metrics and accountability. Once you’ve broken down the walls within your organization, in addition to the barriers between you and the customer, the next step is to build ROI into the core of the process. You need to develop the infrastructure to provide the analytics and real-time reporting that is now crucial for generating revenue, enhancing profitability, and maximizing the value-add of your marketing plan. This is the only way for marketing specialists to shed the tagline-folks tag, and to earn their seat at the boardroom level. For decades, accountability was somewhat of a step-sister for the overall marketing effort. In many cases, measurement was barely considered among a dizzying collection of competing tasks. This is an omission the post-modern enterprise can no longer afford. In fact, experts today maintain that at least 10% of a company’s marketing budget should be reserved for testing and measurement. There are more ways than ever to effectively evaluate program results. This includes the ability to monitor response and success rates in real-time – enabling you to fine-tune messages and channels at a moment’s notice. It means not being afraid to ask the tough questions like: How many customers did we bring in this month? How do we increase that next month? This all ties back to our discussions on “thinking about why instead of what” and about the need for a solid overarching vision. With a clear and concise strategy in place, and the science to back it up, an organization gains the confidence to compile a mix of marketing channels that may fly in the face
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