IBM conducted a study delving into insights from Global Chief Marketing Officers (CMO), called “From Stretched to Strengthened.” They interviewed 1,700 CMO’s from 5 different sectors, 19 industries, and spanning 64 countries.
The study found that 79% of the CMO’s expect a very high level of complexity over the next 5 years, however only 48% feel prepared to take on the complex challenges to come.
The biggest concern for these CMO’s was the uncertainty of how to respond to and make sense of the vast amount of information becoming available to them. They called this “Data Explosion.” And due to this new data being spewed from their analytic dashboards and other metrics, CMO’s are having to change, take action and even make investments.
Many investments are being dedicated to technology to help better understand the insights buried within this data:
• 73% of marketers are investing in technology (CRM, analytics, etc.)
• 69% of marketers are looking to integrate insight within the data
• 65% of marketers are seeking to understand analytics
But what’s preventing CMOs from using new technological tools? According to IBM’s survey 72% of marketers pointed to “Cost” as the biggest barrier, preventing them from using and leveraging technology. Second was a “Lack of ROI certainty” coming in at 61%.
How are you measuring the success or impact to revenue and profit of your marketing efforts? Sadly, many marketers don’t know. They simply perform the same functions or strategies that their competitors are doing or mimic what was done in the past. They cannot accurately measure the effectiveness from one campaign to the next.
IBM’s study pointed out by 2015, ROI will be the leading measure of success. This will require involvement from the Finance Department to measure the impact to financial metrics, such as revenue, cost of sale, and profit. Social media metrics, such as Facebook “likes” and Twitter followers, are becoming a trailing measurement of success.
So, how are you measuring ROI? Would you like to be certain that your marketing efforts are contributing to additional revenue and new customer growth? Stop guessing. Xcellimark can help you capture value within your marketing data and measure results. Our team will prove your marketing investment’s ROI and monetize your efforts. Contact us today to find out more.