Digital campaigns have come of age with innovative combinations of digital elements including social. One major difference between the Mad Men world of traditional campaigns and today's digital marketing campaigns is the overwhelming ability to track and measure every aspect of the campaign. Superior analytical tools have put pressure on agencies to be more accountable than ever for campaign ROI. Quantitative measurement has not been a natural part of the DNA of creative agencies. However the agencies that thrive today incorporate the best of creative elements with a strong focus on quantifying results and demonstrating ROI. They embrace measurement without sacrificing the creativity that is at the heart of their value to clients.
Primary market research plays a key role and fixes potential weaknesses in campaign effectiveness measurement. Here are three considerations when working on your next campaign.
1. Campaign measurement
Campaign measurement is inherently a measure against itself. It is analogous to a runner measuring herself against her personal best or other runners versus her maximum potential. While the campaign can be measured against competitors or tracked for improvement over time, it cannot be measured against the optimal campaign that could have been launched. Primary market research can identify the ideal campaign messages, triggers, vehicles and venues PRIOR to campaign design. Quantitative techniques such as Max-Diff (maximum differential scaling) determine best messages amongst alternatives determined by qualitative research.
2. Social dialog
Another example is seeding the social dialog. An agency and its client will determine social objectives and put in place tactics and measurable goals to determine if these objectives are met. The question though is "what is the conversation?". What does it need to be to fulfill and exceed the objectives? Customer questioning and inquiry through primary research can help determine that. Projective techniques in interviews and focus groups such as emotion laddering can elicit difficult to articulate aspects of the conversation.
3. Target customer
Last but not least, who is the target customer? Was the campaign targeted at your best prospects? Audience analysis and segmentation models need to be leveraged to ensure. Optimizing versus "satisficing" is the goal here.
- CEO Al Nazarelli
Alan Nazarelli is President & CEO of Silicon Valley Research Group, a full service market research agency focused on improving the marketing efforts of technology companies. Al has authored numerous articles and papers on technology market research and is a frequent speaker at industry events. He has been quoted in PC World, eWeek, InfoWorld, Network World and Forbes. Al holds an MBA from the University of Oregon.
