Measurement…Are We Making it Too Difficult?
I finally got around to finishing this post which is why it references an article from April! One of the writers that I follow, and who’s opinion I very much respect is Steve Rubel who writes for Advertising Age. In his April 21, 2008 column he calls out for digital industry standard metrics and indicates that until we get there, that marketers will not be truly ready to embrace the right level of digital marketing spending levels.
There is no doubt that standard metrics will make it easier for all of us. But at the same time, with all of the press regarding metrics today, you would think that the industry doesn’t know how to effectively measure digital campaigns. I would contend that we know more than we give ourselves credit for…we (collective we) have been doing this for quite a while!
So while we’re waiting for the IAB, the Four A’s and everyone else to sort through the standards that will eventually give us a common language, I’m suggesting that we keep a few of the tried and true best practices in mind:
1) Start with your business goals and objectives in mind. I would start with 3 or 4 and scale up from there.
2) Don’t start out by “measuring everything”. That never works, and you’ll get lost in the data minutia.
3) Build strong relationships with your technology team - they are critical in helping to put the tools in place in order to get the reports that you’ll need.
4) Get comfortable with some of the new metrics that are available to you — engagement time, brand interaction rates and video views. But don’t treat them like they are the be-all-end-all metrics anymore than CTR’s are. They are pieces of the puzzle.
The direct marketing world recognizes that every campaign is different. Every company is different. Although there are more options within the digital realm, if we stick with what we already know, I think we’ll be surprised how effective, and relatively painless, our measurement efforts can be.