Who is Responsible for the Persistently Weak Marketing Accountability?

Marketing accountability remains an important, but persistently challenging objective for marketers. As the first of two related articles, this piece identifies the underlying causes and challenges that hinder marketing accountability. It argues that the CMO has ultimate responsibility for weak marketing accountability in marketing organizations. However, because the advantages of marketing accountability accrues to a large group of constituents, the final article will recommend a concerted partner-based approach to addressing the intransigent marketing accountability challenges.

Marketing accountability (the tracking, analysis, and optimization of marketing activities and investment towards ensuring positive return on investment) has risen to prominence in recent years. Marketers cite competitive pressures, demand to do more with less, and the challenging economic climate as key drivers of the increased accountability pressure. Advancements in marketing accountability capabilities (technologies, tools, processes, and talents), which were initially created in response to initial accountability needs, have started exerting accountability pressures of their own as they generate awareness for and push the envelope on marketing accountability possibilities.

Accountability remains stubbornly challenging
Today, the awareness of and necessity for marketing accountability seems apparent. Several article, news, and surveys of brand managers and marketing executives consistently highlight the importance (and challenges) of marketing accountability. “Brands demanding more marketing accountability: survey,” reads the DM News. “For CMOs, Accountability Remains a Challenge,” said the Chief! Marketer, and, “Survey: Marketing Accountability Measures Remain Weak” wrote the MPM Toolkit . Early this year, the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) headline read “Accountability Heads List Of Top Issues.” However, six years ago, in 2005, ANA’s survey of senior executives said, “Marketing Accountability is Top Issue on Marketers Minds, ANA Survey Reveals.” While these select headlines buttress accountability’s importance among senior marketing practitioners, they also indicate that little has changed in six years. In short, marketers consistently have reported accountability as a top priority for years.

All talk, little action
Despite the pressures for accountability and marketers’ stated need for accountability, marketing accountability and analytics have low penetration rates on many marketing and advertising accounts. Peter DeLegge captured the situation succinctly: “Marketing accountability continues to be a hot topic. The reality is that there is a lot of talk, but not an equivalent degree of action.” Of all the reasons blamed for the slow progress on accountability, weak demand for accountability from brand stewards is arguably the most important factor. Despite marketing accountability’s prominence and self-proclaimed importance by marketers, many of you still do not demand rigorous accountability and analytics on your marketing programs and investments. Evidence abounds; look no further than agency and marketing consulting accounts, the “ground zero” where marketing strategy, ideation, planning, execution, and evaluation converge.

Here, advertising practitioners still find a paucity of analytics demand on several client accounts. A non-scientific estimate shows that less than 50% of accounts have program reporting requirements, less than 35% have analytics budget, and less than 20% demand deep analytics for insights. A CMO Council survey revealed that less than 20% of top technology marketers surveyed had developed “meaningful, comprehensive measures and metrics for their marketing organizations,” and a marketing ROI study found that about two-thirds of marketers could not articulate their marketing ROI. A rule of thumb thrown around in agencies recommends that marketers should allocate about 10% of their advertising budget to accountability. In reality, accountability specialists should be glad if they get any budget at all, and ecstatic if allocated a wimpy 5%.

Stated reasons for weak marketing accountability
Marketers and industry observers list several reasons for marketers’ weak demand for accountability:

1. Low priority – marketers have other, more pressing, and more urgent challenges
2. No time – they typically have little time to launch major marketing accountability, or need campaigns to launch immediately with limited time to integrate analytics capabilities
3. No technology – an absence of the right analytics or BI tools to harness or make sense of the diverse data required for estimating true ROI
4. Lack of data – difficulty in obtaining the key datasets (such as cross-channel or perceptual) to empirically evaluate desired campaign success or immeasurable objectives, such as linking marketing activities to conversions in some verticals
5. Doubt about measurement ROI – unconvinced subliminally about the value of analytics
6. Limited agency expertise – campaign consultants or agencies lack deep analytics expertise, thus hindering agencies and partners from making a credible case for accountability, and preferring to (mis)allocate large budgets to account management instead
7. Low-budget, low-priority campaigns – campaign or program is too small; they need not measure
8. Suspicion- the perception that metrics stifle innovation, creativity, and long-term perspective

These challenges are real, but not insurmountable. In fact, most marketers who walk the accountability talk today, and as shown below, had to overcome many of these hurdles at some point.

The primary responsibility lies with the CMO
Dig below the surface, and you will realize that a culture of weak accountability belies many of the constraints stated above. Although many marketers intellectually appreciate the benefits of and need for accountability, most will take the easy path of limited accountability if the organization permits. Yes, accountability is additional hard work! For managers intrinsically keen on accountability, organizational culture barriers and lack of adequate support may prove overwhelming. As a result, the acknowledgment of accountability benefits and importance does not translate necessarily into action at the marketing front lines. During the prime time of marketing execution, real cultural priorities exert themselves. Arguably, weak accountability therefore persists not because marketers are unaware of its importance and ramifications, but because they either lack the mindset, the shared belief, or the perspective that accountability is a must. Because CMOs are responsible for marketing organization culture, and weak accountability derives from weak marketing accountability culture, the prime responsibility of weak accountability culture reflects poorly on the chief marketing officer. In short, blame weak accountability on the CMO.

Leaders play a vital role in defining organizational culture, and CMOs exert a similar impact on marketing organizations. When CMOs sincerely demand measurable results on marketing investment, marketing accountability cascades down every aspect of the marketing organization, right through to agencies and marketing partners. In other words, a marketing accountability culture takes hold within the organization and its partnership ecosystem. Accountability rigor permeates existing marketing relationships and shapes emergent relationships. Strong marketing organizations–accountability demanding organizations (and usually successful clients)–set high expectations, require proof of performance, demand optimizations, experiment, seek benchmarks, and where not available, expect learning road maps from their existing agencies and relationships. Such organizations also set the tone for new marketing relationships; their RFPs tend to provide clear objectives, set targets, and demand proof of accountability capability. The message: Only accountable partners dare participate.

Next steps
This piece identified the challenges of marketing accountability and why you continue to read about marketing accountability as a highly desired but persistently unmet need. The piece blames the situation on the CMO. However, the benefits of full accountability accrue to the entire marketing ecosystem of professionals: agencies, consultants, organizations, brands, CMOs, managers, customers, and so on. The concluding piece will expand the cultural mindset that sets apart high accountability organizations and examine how key players in the marketing ecosystem can play a concerted role in moving accountability forward, hopefully bringing the persistent headlines to rest.

Click here to read the concluding post: From Blame to Solution: A Concerted Approach to Solving the Persistent Marketing Accountability Challenge