Marketing professionals have an enormous amount of analytical data available to them. Advertising clicks, website activity, leads, conversions, and sales can be directly linked in ways that provide excellent insight for marketers. For those using an integrated marketing approach that includes digital as well as other channels, measuring results for the offline programs can be a challenge. Channels like print advertising and professional conferences may require very different approaches for gathering data. In cases like these, some “old-school” measurement techniques can help marketing pros make informed decisions.
Response Rates
One creative way to measure response rates for offline marketing programs is to include a unique phone number or web site address as the call to action. The unique URL or phone number traffic will show how many people responded as a direct result of that advertisement or promotion. This can be used for print advertising, direct mail programs, billboards, and more.
Mail order catalogs measure responses by including a special code on a catalog and then asking callers to give them the code when they place an order. The codes are entered into a database that provides more information. Unique codes assigned to track geographical differences, household income levels, A-B design comparisons, and other factors reveal information that’s used to further analyze the marketing program.
Reach and Frequency
Reach and frequency are also helpful for measuring the effectiveness of marketing programs. A key benefit of applying reach and frequency techniques is you can estimate return on investment before programs are implemented. This can help compare various programs across channels and drive budget decisions.
For example, when planning print media buys, you can add up all the readers you’ll reach by using the circulation rates published by the magazines. If you advertise in two publications, that each reach half of your target audience, you’ll know you can reach the entire target by advertising in both.
Frequency is the number of times you expect to reach the target audience. For example, if you know there are 50,000 car wash owners in the US and there are 3 print magazines that all claim they’re circulated to 50,000 car wash owners each month, you know that placing ads in all three publications will get your message in front of all car wash owners 3 times every month.
Share Of Voice (SOV)
Share Of Voice (SOV) can be used to compare your advertising efforts to your competitors. It’s measured by monitoring the advertisements you place, and the advertisements placed by your competition. The total circulation numbers for everyone that’s advertising shows the total voice for that period of time. Each advertiser’s SOV can be derived by calculating their percentage of the total voice.
The SOV concept can be applied to many programs including online advertising, convention participation, and more. To get the total voice for online advertising, use the number of monthly site visits claimed by the web sites you advertise on. For conventions, use the total attendance numbers provided by the convention management.
You can add more sophistication to it by adding a “weighted factor” to your measurements. For example, is your back cover ad more effective than your competitor’s half page inside black and white ad? The publisher sure thinks it is because they charge you a premium price for that position. Use the publisher’s rates to find the factor to adjust the value of different ads. How much more do they charge you? Twice as much? If so, double your share of voice calculation. The same approach can be used for website banners. The websites will charge different rates for different size ads and placements on the site. For conventions, use the costs the meeting organizers charge for different size booths and different locations on the show floor.
Don’t forget about the web sites, publications, and conventions you don’t participate in. Just because you’re not in them doesn’t mean they don’t persuade the target audience. If your target customers all attend a particular convention and you aren’t there to exhibit, it affects your total SOV with that audience.
Comparative and quantifiable measurements, like the examples explained here, can provide insight into the effectiveness of your programs beyond the readily available digital data. Identify the measurements that make sense from your target market’s point of view, then track the numbers and build an objective framework for making informed decisions.