Conversation #4 - No Proof, No Budget

Some marketers may be stuck in an old world where they are not commercially accountable, but this is becoming increasingly rare especially after the battering that the recession has delivered.

Marketers, more than ever before, need to put a strong business case forward to support marketing investment, so they need the knowledge and skills to be able to do this.

The big issue is not what accountabilities marketers have but what capabilities they have to deliver against those accountabilities. So marketers need to:

1. Establish a framework that demonstrates the connection in their category between marketing activities, business results and ultimately shareholder value. This requires a deep understanding of the causes and effects of individual marketing activities and their impact on short term brand sales and long term brand equity. It also requires an ability to apply and interpret a variety of research and ROI analysis tools.

2. Ensure that every activity has a measurement plan in place. It is valid to recommend investment on the basis of a set of well-informed assumptions, but this must be followed through by rigorous measurement, analysis and demonstration back to the business on the impact of marketing investment.

Let us know what you think. Submit your response here and we’ll post asap.