Accurate reporting is a critical component of an effective marketing strategy because it ensures the best possible return on the investments of time and money. Without clear reporting, marketing becomes guesswork, and decisions are made based on gut instinct and perceived historical performance rather than facts.
However, reports from the marketing agency or campaign side aren’t enough. The real power comes when marketing and advertising metrics are paired with business-side operational feedback, turning data into actionable knowledge.
Here are two examples:
- We recently stopped an expensive ad campaign for a kitchen cabinet company, even though the numbers looked good. The conversion tracking showed multiple phone calls per day originating from Google ads. However, the substance of those calls wasn’t good. Callers wanted a single cabinet or parts and repair jobs, not full kitchen remodeling. If you just looked at reporting on impressions and conversion data, the campaign was a success. Repeated adjustments to the campaign didn’t yield significant improvements. Even though it had been working well for years, the tactic stopped being effective, and the budget was shifted to other lead generation areas.
- For another client, the numbers also looked good, but there was confusion among potential customers in a new territory following an acquisition and rebranding. In that case, the campaign yielded good results, but customer confusion was a barrier that reduced appointment-setting metrics. The solution involved changes in messaging and a creative pop-up on select campaign landing pages that addressed the barrier and improved results.
Turning data into knowledge is one of the primary reasons we hold monthly marketing meetings with our clients. Emailed reports are one-sided snapshots of marketing and advertising performance. Getting all the players together with accurate information leads to powerful decision-making.
