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Posted on Sat, 01/21/2012 - 01:30 PM by
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The introductory chapters explain the role metrics play, based on surveying 252 firms dedicating $53 billion to marketing. Examples like Circuit City’s failure – constantly running sales to draw customers despite thin retail margins – make effective punchlines, particularly with counterpoints such as competitor Best Buy spending its budget on branding and customer relationships. “…few firms get marketing, and many do not. The result is that firms that get marketing have a competitive advantage and those that don’t struggle.” The first opening chapters note why many companies are not analytic, outlining obstacles to data driven marketing and defining traditional marketing metrics. One typical excuse of B2B businesses – “We’re a B2B company and sell indirectly to customers. As a result we don’t know who our customers are.” In the best analytic traditions, Jefferies remind that improvement is possible without oversell: “There is a frame work for developing a data-driven marketing strategy. You don’t need 100% of the data to get started.” The next book segment outlines the 15 Metrics ballyhooed in the title. Five nonfinancial metrics are grouped, with the next 4 grouped to address return on investment. Chapter 6 is a particular favorite (All Customers are Not Equal: Metric #10 – Customer Lifetime Value). It includes a breakdown formula for determining the value of a customer segment, and has an example chart of a value-based direct mail marketing strategy. Chapter 7 rounds out the 15 with web analytics metrics such as bounce rate and cost per click. These middle chapters, containing calculations and supporting material, sets Data Driven Marketing apart from other marketing books. Jeffery strikes a proper tone between presenting super-absorbent-dry textbook material and text dripping with useless generalities. Chapter 5 for example includes a spreadsheet template explanation to support a Return on Marketing Investment calculation. The discussions are advanced but also include charts that will help you envision campaigns more comprehensively. The ending chapters return to broader ground, serving as a primer for today’s data management and broader operational concerns. There’s a nod to the ethics for collecting customer data. “Marketers should clearly communicate the privacy policy both external and internal and how data will and will not be used.” Examples also note how to demonstrate data to support your product branding. A great B2B instance occurred during OpenHack, a competition in which Microsoft showed how its servers faced 82,500 attacks, yet maintained 100% uptime. The competition was the genesis for an image changing campaign for Microsoft server, perceived as susceptible to hacking. “IT professionals were given free training on how to secure Microsoft products within the enterprise, then their perception toward Microsoft products and security change very significantly and positively after the training.” The formulas enhanced the book without reminding you of a bad study hall experience. There is an appendix for instructors, a nod towards classroom purposes. But recalling my grad school days, I can’t think of a better book that noted data, finance, and operations in a digestible package. Business owners who like to learn are in for a treat. For building a business based on sound practices and beyond tips and hints, you will want to keep data driven marketing at your side. While it says Marketing on the cover, you will be hard pressed to find a more solid book that sets a marketing context against other operations in your business. MORE NEWS FROM SMALL BUSINESS TRENDSWhat Job Are You Helping Your Customers Do?Marketing is often described in terms of a product life cycle. The development, the launch, continued support, and finally, discontinuation all have specific marketing efforts associated with them. From social contests to reduced prices and giveaways, the emphasis is nearly always on the product or service provided. However, this does not take into account the way that customers actually search for and find products. Small Business Loans and Small Loans to BusinessA few weeks ago, I wrote about the decline in “small loans to business” during the Great Recession and economic recovery that followed. Now I am back to tell you that data on “small business loans” paints an even worse picture of the small business credit markets. As U.S. Small Biz Week Arrives, Are You Stressed or Optimistic?With the arrival of National Small Business Week here in the U.S., a variety of events, beginning yesterday, have been scheduled in Washington D.C. and across the country to recognize the importance of small business to the U.S. economy and to address topics important to small business owners. Just in time, a semi-annual study of American small businesses shows those business owners to be stressed but optimistic. Check out the schedule of national events and hear what leaders and small business owners are saying about issues most important to small business today. Why You Should Read Engagement MarketingEngagement Marketing: How Small Business Wins in a Socially Connected World is the new book about how to get and keep customers by engaging with them. Pointers on Hiring a Marketing Firm for Your Small BusinessI’m not here to tell you which marketing firm to use. Rather, I’d like to offer you some pointers on what to look for when hiring a marketing firm. I believe the search starts with you. Ask yourself some foundational questions to get a handle on what you are looking for. RELATED SMALL BUSINESS NEWSDon’t push when you can pullNo selling required There is a better way of winning new customers than pushing you and your B2B offer at them. Customers love it because they’re buying rather than being sold to. You’ll like it because it feels better than selling and you’ll get more long term business from it. U... You’re the Boss Blog: White House Opposes Small-Business Contracting Provision in Defense BillIn a statement, the administration called higher goals for small-business contracting "laudable but overly ambitious." ... How the 'Little Guy' Can Partner With Big CompaniesIf you're a little guy, there are plenty of ways to partner with a much larger company. Here are seven. ... "Scott Thompson Was A Terrible CEO" And Other Snippets From Fred WilsonAs always, Fred Wilson had a lot of insights share this morning at TechCrunch's Disrupt conference in New York. Here are some of the highlights from his talk with the always barbed Mike Arrington:... SRDC Is Offering Loans Through RLFSouthwest Regional Development Commission (SRDC) is offering loans through revolving loan fund (RLF). Its purpose is to have a direct financing tool making loan funds available so as to assist in retail, manufacturing, and distribution businesses. |
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The numerous ways to conduct digital marketing, combined with traditional media, can create an elaborate process to measure results. To make the hard work of analysis easier, try Data Driven Marketing: The 15 Metrics Everyone In Marketing Should Know by Mark Jeffery. Jeffery, a professor at the Kellogg School of Management, has provided the right starting points to discovering the value of a data-driven marketing campaign. The book is also an excellent primer for small businesses establishing a measurement platform. I picked up a copy from a local bookstore to review.