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Julia Manoukian

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January 23, 2019

How Progressive Brands Approach ROI Measurement

Julia Manoukian

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Few brands know how to prove the success of their experiential and brand experience campaigns. The ones that do better manage and protect their marketing spend. They make more powerful campaign decisions knowing that events aren’t going anywhere - they’re just changing because of the world we live in today. They target their audience with laser focus - especially those that are prequalified and are likely to convert.

In a previous Limelight webinar, we discuss with president of brand experience agency Momentum Worldwide Matt Lewis discussed how the industry's most progressive brands approach ROI measurement.

Watch our latest webinar, "Event & Experiential Trends in 2018: What Consumer  Experts Are Saying," and learn what major brands are doing to drive engagement  and lift sales.

Why Brands Fail at Experiential Today

CMOs expect their marketing teams to adapt to the new normal and get stats that justify budget — and they're not getting them. Why? Experiential ROI is difficult to quantify. That's what most marketers think, anyway.

Only 6 percent of marketers say they are extremely confident in measuring offline and experiential marketing. The other 94 percent struggle to measure the success of their campaigns.

Perhaps the problem lies with alignment. Forty-eight percent of marketers find it difficult to align their offline campaigns with their online campaigns.

"These activations are highly disconnected from existing business systems," says Stocks. "It's difficult to look under the hood or inside the box to see what's working and what isn't."

Others think that XM measurement is just too tough. Data issues, data inaccuracy, inefficient and manual workflows — all of these components make measurement a chore.

Elements of an Amazing Consumer Experience

Experiential isn't like other mediums where the focus is on a transaction. Brands need to tell stories to engage their audience at an offline event like a trade show or store opening.

"Wherever possible, brands should make the consumer the hero. They should give consumers the opportunity to shine," says Lewis. "Let's give consumers a mic. Let's give them a platform."

Personalization is important, too.

“Don't act like a robocaller” says Stocks. “You get to actually meet people - whether virtual or on a rare face to face, so why would you waste an opportunity to be incredibly useful?”

How Do Progressive Brands Measure ROI?

Just 23 percent of companies say they can track ROI on event investments, according to research from Harvard Business Review.

Only a quarter of people can actually measure or track the ROI of their events, and there are people out there struggling to figure out whether their campaigns made sense for them or not.

The world's most progressive brands all have one thing in common. They create data ecosystems — a suite of data measurement tools that provide them with personalized, real-time insights at various touchpoints in the XM lifecycle. These tools are scalable, automate workflows, reduce lead times, and improve the customer experience.

"Brands still think of experiential marketing as transactional," says Lewis. "But if you think of it as an ecosystem, you would start to see a whole lot more lifetime value in a consumer."

Show Me the Money

A data ecosystem can only grow with the right metrics, however.

"I would be looking at a creative metric to make sure everything's connected," adds Lewis. "Digital, experiences, conversations — all of these need to have the same message."

Other metrics like exit surveys and questionnaires can also optimize measurement.

"Capturing someone as soon as they leave an event is the most contextually relevant way to get an accurate response."

These metrics prove lucrative for brands who lack a huge measurement budget. Marketers can discover what consumers thought of their event, use this data to fuel their future campaigns, and create long-term value.

Then there's social media sentiment, which lets marketers gauge perceptions of their brands on Facebook and Twitter.

"A lot of the metrics we have right now are in the public domain," says Lewis.

"If someone has a positive experience and broadcasts it on their own channels, that's a metric we can use."

Data vs. Emotion — a Fine Line

Brands shouldn't compromise good experiential experiences for hard numbers, though. Experiential marketers need to strike a balance between data collection and resonating with consumers on an emotional level. During the pandemic, it has been proven that consumers will remain loyal to brands that truly care."An amazing experience shouldn't be opposition to measurement," says Lewis. "Is your event personalized? Are you telling a story? Is it relevant? That's all critical. We use data to provide us with insights because we need them, but it's not the sole indicator of a successful experience."

Consumers are willing to hand over their data if they receive a good experience, however. The emotion needs to be there. You need to give consumers a compelling reason to hand over their data.

How to Tie Experiential Marketing Back to Results

Brands need to identify the main objective of their experiential campaign, whether it's data capture, conversions, or revenue lift. Then they should define KPIs, configure their CRM, and invest in XM technology to measure engagement at their offline event. Syncing experiential tech with CRM software and tagging sales, leads, and consumers to their original event source will improve measurement effectiveness.

Many brands are unable to measure event ROI because they think it's too complicated or difficult to quantify. However, using the right metrics and tech can optimize measurement and provide marketers with in-depth insights into their XM campaigns.

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