Get maximum results from your marketing budget

Written by Shirley Lichti for The Record, December 20, 2006

Retail department store magnate, John Wannamaker, is credited with saying: "I know that half my advertising is wasted …. I just don't know which half."

Whether you are agree or disagree with Wannamaker, research published by Marketing Evolution, a marketing effectiveness research firm, now suggests that of the $300 billion spent annually on advertising in the U.S., more than one third - $112 billion - is wasted.

Rex Briggs, founder of Marketing Evolution, co-author Greg Stuart, who is the CEO and President of the Interactive Advertising Bureau, include this finding in their new book, What Sticks: why most advertising fails and how to guarantee yours succeeds.

Although aimed at marketing professionals, the book is straight forward and contains many useful insights for anyone hoping to improve the overall effectiveness of marketing campaigns.

The authors begin the book citing Procter & Gamble Chief Marketing Officer, Jim Stengel, who said "I believe today's marketing model is broken. We're applying antiquated thinking and work systems to a new world of possibilities."

According to Briggs and Stuart, too many marketers blindly continue doing the same old thing without really knowing if it works.

By contrast, Japanese companies that find defects in their manufacturing processes consider them as "treasures." And the American Alpine Journal publishes an annual volume chronicling the failures of mountaineers - so others can learn from their mistakes.

It's only when you embrace failure and recognize your mistakes, that you learn from them and improve your marketing efforts.

Briggs and Stuart present case studies from companies like Procter & Gamble, Kraft, Volkswagen, and Unilever to illustrate what works, what doesn't and how to bring accountability and measurability to marketing efforts. Although these companies have big budgets, the lessons learned can be applied equally well to small companies.

The authors suggest marketers need to consider 4Ms: motivations, message, media mix and maximization.

In the past, many companies have focused on the "Big Idea" behind an advertising campaign. Although there's nothing wrong with having a big idea, you must first understand consumer motivations, by asking, "Why do consumers buy our brand?"

If you can't fully answer this question, it's inevitable that a good chunk of your advertising budget is being wasted. Suggestions for how to avoid misunderstood consumer motivations are provided in easy to digest examples.

Once you understand why consumers buy your brands, you can move to the second M and design messages that effectively tap into these motivations.

It's critical to communicate your message in a way that consumers will hear. Messaging is like playing the children's game of telephone. Although the message may make perfect sense to its originator, it inevitably becomes garbled as it is passed along through a series of other people.

Briggs and Stuart analyse several campaigns, some with before and after ads to illustrate the point, giving readers ideas how to design and test their own ads to avoid similar pitfalls.

Media, the third M, is compared to a Swiss army knife. Rather than use just one tool on the knife, marketers should recognize each tool has a unique function and purpose.

Research presented by Briggs and Stuart shows how ads get better overall results if exposure is spread across multiple media platforms. Marketers wondering how often consumers need to see and hear the message will appreciate data regarding optimum frequency for running ads on tv, print and online.

For me, the best insight in the book came from the fourth and final M, maximization. The authors suggest an approach to setting marketing budgets based on a 70/20/10 split, where 70 per cent of spending is allocated to proven tactics. The next 20 per cent is invested in efforts that are a little different, for example, running a larger size ad or increasing the frequency.

Briggs and Stuart point out that the R in R&D stands for research, so the last 10 per cent of your budget should push the envelope with tactics you've never tried before. This might mean launching a blog, developing podcasts or delivering video on your website.

Consumer media habits have changed fairly dramatically in recent years. (Just think about how much time you spend online today!) If your media plans are not much different for 2007 than they were five years ago, they are most likely suboptimal.

Achieving good marketing results is hard. But there are some great examples in this book which should be of value to any size business. If you are looking to improve the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns next year, add this book to your Christmas wish list - then test, learn and deploy.

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