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Advertising is ultimately about attracting new customers and maintaining current ones. Your advertising ROI helps you see just how well your investment is paying off. You’re comparing what you spent on your campaign and then comparing it to the results it achieves and ultimately, to the amount of money it generates.
This being said, with there being so many options available, it can be really tough to know what to track and how to determine if the campaign is moving the needle in the right direction. So, we've listed out four non-negotiable rules to remember when tracking your advertising ROI. We hope they help you avoid some very common causes of advertising failure!
Rule #1: Know The Difference Between Response and Results
A response is an indication that people paid some attention to your campaign. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve gotten the result you wanted. For example, a target audience member may have seen advertising and commented on it. First of all, that’s great! It gives you a good feeling about the campaign and ensures you are heading in the right direction. However, don’t get confused… it won’t pay the bills.
Understand the difference between response and results. Response is feedback designed to give you good information about the potential success or failure of a campaign. Results are simply that...results. Responses are good, but results accomplish goals and put money in the bank.
Rule #2: Don’t “Test” Your Advertising with Lame Offers
Many marketers like to promote offers like, “Mention our ad and receive 10% off!” or something equally anemic. Don’t put up paltry promotions that do nothing to help drive sales. People aren’t going to bother following through if they don’t think your offer is worth their time. If you provide them with something weak, that’s not going to move the needle much. Even if you boost the percentage, many likely won’t make an effort. Trying to drive traffic through ad mentions isn’t a good way of measuring success. So again, it goes back to doing the research and making sure you’re creating advertising that appeals to the people you want to reach.
Rule #3: Awareness + Action = Results
It’s important to understand the difference between the two types of advertising campaigns, how they function and the results they are designed to create. Action Campaigns and Awareness Campaigns both work together to build a successful overall marketing campaign.
- Awareness Campaigns: The strategy is to create a steady, consistent presence with the audience. The objective is to build top-of-mind awareness by telling your brand story. Awareness campaigns are an important foundation for building a long-term brand, with results steadily built over time.
- Action Campaigns: The strategy is a short-term high-frequency presence. The objective is to drive traffic and response through an event or a compelling offer. Results are quick and robust. Action campaigns are helpful for boosting sales for a specific purpose over the short term. They are not a substitute for an ongoing long-term branding campaign.
Rule #4: Brand Consistency
In advertising, consistency builds trust. We love our big national brands because we know that no matter where we are in the country, we know what to expect. You can accomplish the same result in a local or regional level by making sure that your marketing efforts are consistent across the board.
The same brand, the same message, the same offer across all channels: radio, print, digital, social media, website, email, etc. Resist the temptation to put one offer on the radio and another on your digital campaign. You’ll only end up confusing prospecting customers and confused customers won’t trust you. They’ll shop elsewhere. Build advertising momentum by making sure all your tactics are pushing in the same direction.
By following these four rules, it will be a lot easier to see just how well your investment is paying off. And our team at fuze32 believes in advertising accountability. We know that it’s easy to track results if you understand how to do so. Contact us today to see how our team can help you get your marketing plan on the right track towards your goals, and be sure to check out the guide below to learn more about how you can better monitor your ROI.
