September 29, 2009

Achieving Accountable Marketing: Six critical levers must be pulled

This brief was written by Michael Dunn, Chairman and CEO, Prophet. He writes that the senior management continues to dial up the pressure on marketers to demonstrate a strong return on investment. They are demanding higher levels of accountability and seeking assurance that every penny spent is helping to drive both top- and bottom-line business growth. Marketers must respond by demonstrating disciplined planning, rigorous tracking and evaluation and continuous improvement in performance. They also must be able to link spending cause and effect, quickly diagnose the root causes of any spending performance issues, and make timely, fact- driven decisions to improve returns. In short, there is pressure to achieve marketing performance that is both efficient and effective. The following describes each and the roles they play in driving optimal marketing performance.