Know Your Targets and ROI Will Follow

Have you asked yourself lately what your ad agency is doing to help drive measurable return on investment? Or, in fact, what you're doing to be relevant, original and impactful? Many brands think about ROI and discover ways to define it, but often find it difficult to measure. With today’s technologies, there are more options than ever to guide the process and determine results. But before you get to measuring success, you need a road map on how you'll achieve it. Think of it as “planning for ROI.”

This all starts with the right mind-set — a 360-degree insights state of mind. Most companies say it’s all about the consumer. And ultimately it is. But to truly unite your brand to sales, you need to understand the intersection of the key constituents that are essential to making it happen. For a traditional packaged goods brand, that means gathering insights for more than just consumers, but also various other players — shoppers, retailers and its sales force. Each play a critical role in determining a brand’s ROI.

Think about it like this: Consumers can’t consume if shoppers don’t buy. Remember, a shopper may or may not be a consumer, depending on your product and/or service. Shoppers can’t buy if retailers don’t stock and feature products. Retailers won’t stock and feature products unless a company’s sales force works collaboratively to achieve a win-win.

Each product category, retailer and brand has its own challenges. An in-depth insight into your constituents will ultimately unite your brand to sales. Take the time to question and understand who they are before initiating contact. Asking the right questions may lead you in new directions — and towards new ways of achieving a higher ROI.

To help you with your 360-degree homework, here are five questions to consider about each of these critical constituents. The answers will help lead you to the development of communications that are relevant, original and impactful:

1. What's your ultimate business objective?
2. Whom do you want to communicate with? What do you know about them and their relationship to your service and brand?
3. What action do you want them to take?
4. What barriers exist that may stop them from taking action?
5. What reward will motivate them to take action?

Planning for ROI is as critical as measuring it. Make sure your team knows the right questions to ask to make sure you’re communicating effectively with your most essential constituents.

Robert L. Klein is chief strategy officer at Blue Chip Marketing.