Published August 2003

Inject accountability into your advertising campaign

The remedy for overindulging is to swig the same stuff (the next morning) that made you feel rotten to begin with. Does anybody actually do that? In advertising, many companies do the equivalent by allowing the same ads (that caused the headache) to continue running.

The old line of thinking was, “We put a lot of money into developing and producing this campaign, so we’re going to see it through.” Then they’d do a postmortem to find out what went wrong (after the budget was spent).

Today there’s a new tonic: “accountability.” Don’t allow a failed strategy to play out. It comes down to having real-time data to drive real-time decisions. Sometimes that means pulling the plug and adjusting your strategy before the media budget is history.

A campaign is a “series” of ads with a “unified theme” designed to lift brand recognition and, subsequently, increase sales and share. Until recently, most large-cap companies put their budgets into “institutional branding.” Now we’re seeing more of them go the “direct response” route because DR is easier to measure.

Although we’re crawling out of the worst advertising ditch in 25 years (2001 and 2002 — 2003 is projected to slightly surpass the high watermark of 2000), “accountability” has become more vital than ever before. The big brands no longer tolerate failing campaigns; they’re now changing horses midstream. OK, I’m on an animal kick.

In my view, this is a positive paradigm shift — and one that easily translates to every enterprise. I’ve built my practice on making “big brand” strategy work for small business. So here is the key to applying more accountability in your business.

Prepare your advertising strategy by identifying measurement metrics and milestones before the campaign launches. Following is a simple four-step system.

• Establish realistic objectives, timelines and budget. What are you trying to accomplish: an increase in awareness, sales, share, margin, your database? What time span will your series run; is it seasonally and competitively situated? Is the budget adequate to achieve your objectives?
• Decide on what you’ll measure: inquiries, qualified leads, referrals, sales, gross dollars? Eventually, it all boils down to net profit; however, a qualified database (from a single campaign) can generate sales revenue for years. Don’t be short sighted. Also, determine minimum standards of performance.
• Mark your milestones or checkpoints. Decide where along the campaign trail you’ll assess whether you need to change the message, media or pull out altogether. My only caution is that you don’t make a hasty decision. Allow the campaign enough time for a healthy start before pronouncing it DOA.
• Set up a tracking and documentation system. Too many times, management comes up with a system that the frontline won’t or can’t implement. Involve the people that have point-of-contact and sales responsibility; after agreement, hold them accountable.

Follow this system to ensure advertising accountability and you won’t get bit by the dog with the hair, uh — you know what I mean. Next month’s column will cover my “top five list” on how to improve advertising results.

Andrew Ballard, President of Marketing Solutions Inc. in Edmonds, develops brand leadership strategies for businesses and teaches strategic marketing through Edmonds Community College. He can be reached at 425-672-7218 or by e-mail to andrew@mktg-solutions.net.

Back to the top/August 2003 Main Menu