Were you able to join us at the Checkers game a few weeks ago? It was a good time- don’t miss it the next time we do it! While I enjoyed meeting several of you and the hockey game itself, my mind wandered to consider marketing.

That shouldn’t be a surprise- we were surrounded by marketing all evening. There were ads on the Jumbotron. There were ads surrounding the ice rink. Even the T-shirt cannon delivered clothing with its own advertisements. Everything you could see was an ad, in one form or another.

Do you remember any of those ads? Do you remember the names of any of the Checkers’ sponsors? Me neither. 

That’s why I left disappointed—not in the game or the people I met, but in the wasted marketing dollars. No wonder people dislike marketers.

Now there’s a place for advertising like this. The problem is that it’s very hard to quantify the return on investment. How can you count how many people bought windows from your company as a result of your Checker’s sponsorship? How can you distinguish your sponsorship from the Checkers and the other venues or events that also have your name? How do you know it’s worth the money?

Many businesses don’t even try to calculate effectiveness. They assume high spending must be working—but it might not be. Without knowing, money could be better spent elsewhere.

Others try to figure out the effectiveness of their ads by asking customers, “Where did you hear about us?” That’s a start, but I’ve found that it is a more complicated answer than you might think, at first. They might say they saw your ad at the Checker’s game- but they also saw you sponsoring Bark-in-the-Park or on your truck as you drove past them on your commute. 

I know customers don’t know the real answer to this question because in my world (digital marketing), we track everything. I work hard to make sure we know exactly how a customer found us, so we can attribute them to a specific marketing source. I know customers don’t always know the right way they found us, because some of my clients still ask how they found us- and can compare that with analytics data. Customers frequently get this wrong- and the objective data confirms this.

Unfortunately, even in the digital marketing world, some companies get this wrong. They spend thousands of dollars a month on a Google Ads campaign, thinking, “Surely it must be doing something” without knowing for sure. I’m convinced that Google is such a profitable company because people approach Google Ads in the same way they approach Checker’s sponsorship- and waste a lot of money.

You should know exactly how much money your Google Ads—or your Checkers sponsorship—brings in, not just what you spend or the traffic you get. 

Don't continue wasting money on uncertain marketing returns. Contact Reliable Acorn to learn how you can measure and improve your results—I'll help you make every marketing dollar count.