Make Sure Marketing ROI is 360°

In the current series of articles where I share some guidelines on what to look for when selecting a viable marketing ROI solution, here is tip number 3: Make sure Marketing ROI is 360°.

With the rise of CRM/marketing automation and other online marketing applications, measuring Marketing ROI has become a whole lot easier… For DM and online marketing effectiveness, that is. For all the other marketing instruments (above-the-line advertising, PR, market research, product management & development, tradeshows, events, et cetera) measuring ROI has remained every bit as challenging. 

When you do an online search for Marketing ROI solution providers or for marketing ROI calculators, chances are 8 in 10, they offer only DM and/or online marketing ROI solutions. That’s great if 100% of your marketing budget is allocated to DM and online marketing. But, then again, how likely is that scenario? In a benchmark study on B2B marketing budgets, carried out by SiriusDecisions, we see that on average around 25% of the variable marketing budget (for marketing programs) is allocated to DM and online marketing.

Don’t get me wrong. I think it is absolutely valuable to invest in CRM/marketing automation and other online marketing tools. Not only do they help increase commercial effectiveness, their individual effects can also be more easily measured and monitored. But when you want to successfully build the marketing business case, you won’t do well justifying only 25% of your variable marketing budget. It is fair to assume that your Board of Directors will want to see a return on the full marketing budget they have approved. A full marketing budget that includes all variable and all overhead marketing costs.

My advice: When justifying your marketing budget is important within your company, invest in solutions that allow you to measure a 360° Marketing ROI. It requires a bit more effort than just focusing on those marketing instruments that allow you to easily measure their individual ROI. But these efforts are all the more rewarding. The ultimate reward: a solid and complete marketing business case = a constant or increasing marketing budget.