Marketing is really one big test.
I love the emails I receive from www.whichtestwon.com. Each email provides an A/B test letting you check your gut for the version which performed best. It's fun, short, to-the-point, and insightful. I like to tell clients and students that "Marketing is one big test". Naturally, most don't know what I'm talking about and probably think I'm making light of my career. But think about it. When starting any plan, tactic, marketing program, we use the most information at hand to make a decision. We execute. We measure. We modify. Execute. Measure. Modify...and so it goes.
This underscores the need for information, analytics, and measurement. I am guessing that many marketers don't do A/B testing. It's easy with e-mail. Easy with paid search. Easy with landing pages. A bit more expensive with print, tv, and radio. However, if you think through the measurement BEFORE you execute while in the planning stages, it's easier to implement. Testing will improve effectiveness and relevance of marketing activities.
Armed with this information, create a scorecard to benchmark each program statistics which enables you to continually increase your performance with the understanding of the variables impacting success.
No wonder marketers need to love data!
What do you think? Share your testing stories.
Jackie
This underscores the need for information, analytics, and measurement. I am guessing that many marketers don't do A/B testing. It's easy with e-mail. Easy with paid search. Easy with landing pages. A bit more expensive with print, tv, and radio. However, if you think through the measurement BEFORE you execute while in the planning stages, it's easier to implement. Testing will improve effectiveness and relevance of marketing activities.
Armed with this information, create a scorecard to benchmark each program statistics which enables you to continually increase your performance with the understanding of the variables impacting success.
No wonder marketers need to love data!
What do you think? Share your testing stories.
Jackie
Posted by Jackie Kuehl at 8/12/2010 8:53 AM 
Categories: tactics, relevant marketing, tips, Marketing strategies, testing
Tags: analytics tactics programs whichtestwon marketing strategies email marketing test
Categories: tactics, relevant marketing, tips, Marketing strategies, testing
Tags: analytics tactics programs whichtestwon marketing strategies email marketing test
Jackie, very well put. Any marketing program has to be evaluated for its measurement but we have seen countless examples of the opposite in our careers. What do they say about repeating the same mistake twice?
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Right Paul. I believe the same mistake is executed over and over because the measurement isn't planned. Then the program is executed and "oh my gosh, how do we know if it worked?"
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Measurement, measurement, measurement. Candidly I am beginning to get tired of how many times I hear or read about measurement with the advent of social media. I think people are using the term as a gate keeping device because they don't understand we now operate in a "pull" economy. The reality is that a good marketer to your point Jackie, develops a marketin plan completer with objectives, strategies, tactics, timelines and associated assignments. A good plan has what we call a marketing mix. Yes, we analyze, we measure since we are looking for positive results, but we always have to modify because of the variables we cannot control, better known as the marketplace. The marketplace is where the focus needs to be, less emphasis on measurement or else you will drive yourself to ROI "Hell". Modify, modify, modify. A.K.A. Being flexible!
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Ah yes, Jim, the paralysis of analysis. Gosh I know it well from my Category Mgt days. The point I was making wasn't as strategic as where you are going. 95% of the clients I work with, at the first meeting, have no 'success' measure in place to know if their tactics are working. That's what I was getting at. Marketing is a blend of the art and science which makes it so fascinating to me. Some people, like you, just have great instincts that are spot on and can make a decision. But even with your instincts, I know your social media plan will have some sort of benchmarks to know if it's working, right?
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My #1 plan metric right now is to get a client! Metric #2 is to retain that client beyond a Pilot Program.
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I still believe that the MKT creates needs where there none. Can you change my mind?
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