The Use of Metrics for Measuring Marketing Effectiveness in South African Organisations
Date
2012-09-10
Authors
Laing, Andrew Charles
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Abstract
Marketing managers are under increasing pressure to justify their marketing spend and show how this expenditure results in organisational growth. The perception that marketers are unaccountable is driving companies to seek reassurance that their marketing investments are being allocated optimally amongst resources and activities, especially when in the midst of a recession.
This research report therefore sought to understand South African organisations’ approach to marketing measurement. The report set out to establish whether marketers are formally required by their companies to measure their marketing effectiveness, which metrics they use, and their perceptions regarding the usefulness of these metrics.
The research was qualitative in nature and used semi-structured interviews to explore respondents’ perceptions and perspectives. Fourteen marketing managers were interviewed, comprising of seven respondents from FS and seven from FMCG.
Most companies were found to have some form of requirement that their marketing managers measure the effectiveness of their marketing activities. The most commonly used metrics were identified as being financial metrics (e.g. sales), advertising/promotion efficacy metrics (e.g. share of voice) and consumer perception metrics (e.g. perceived value). These same categories comprised the metrics which marketing managers would ideally like to use in the absence of any hindrances to selection.
Lastly, the research ascertained how marketing managers perceived the use of marketing metrics to benefit their companies. The most commonly cited benefits were performance monitoring, strategic planning and the implementation of corrective action.
Description
MBA thesis
Keywords
Marketing metrics, Metrics