Marketing Management For Non-Marketing Managers

14MANAGING MEASUREMENT

There is an old business adage: What gets measured gets done. Yet, marketing frequently isn’t measured.

In chapter 11, ‘Evaluating Returns on Marketing Investments,’ I discussed the importance of estimating returns on marketing investments as a part of the plan evaluation process and anticipating the needs for systems or processes that will support information gathering during the execution phase so that outcomes can be evaluated. During the plan evaluation process, the management team outlines what should happen.

However, a company’s marketing plan can drift off track, or even become abandoned, if those expectations and the actual results aren’t continually present in discussions and assessment throughout the process. This is where measurement and management intersect. Effective management of measurement in marketing can vastly improve returns on marketing investments—and improve the company’s ability to forecast future performance. It takes some advanced planning and discipline to be effective. This chapter looks at some of the practices required for effective management of measurement on an on-going basis.

More specifically, to effectively manage measurement, managers must

• address language barriers;

• agree on metrics in advance;

• build the processes and systems required to measure performance, if the company does not have them;

• remain focused on metrics throughout plan execution; and

• coordinate the team members whose participation is required for success. ...