Marketing ROI & Measurement Benchmark Study Released: Research Shows Marketing ROI Measurements A Long Way From Where It Could Be

For Immediate Release

Los Angeles, CA & Flanders, NJ, August 8, 2005 – In the 2005 Marketing ROI and Measurement Benchmark Study, released today by Lenskold Group and MarketingProfs.com, more than half of marketers surveyed (53%) consider their current ability to measure the financial returns to be “a long way from where it could be.” Another 38% have made some progress but are still “short of where they could be.” In fact, only one in five (18%) use marketing ROI, net present value or another profitability measure for at least some of their marketing. The research study was conducted in first quarter 2005 with 832 corporate marketers and senior executives from the MarketingProfs.com member base (responses from another 500 consultants and academics were analyzed separately).

One major obstacle for marketers across all company sizes was the appropriate funding levels for measurements and analytics. Roughly 8 out of 10 marketing professionals indicated their measurement funding was either far below or slightly below the right level (53% and 25%, respectively). Yet the profit potential is astounding as 60% believe profits can increase 10% to 25% by putting measurements in place to capture marketing’s contribution to sales.

“The pressure for marketers to take greater financial accountability continues to grow,” says Jim Lenskold, President of the Lenskold Group and author of the book Marketing ROI, “but senior management must back this with the funding and commitment to improve marketing measurements in order to tap into the additional profit potential that is currently out of reach.”

Marketing organizations in both large and small companies significantly under-utilize more reliable measurement techniques of market testing and modeling and instead tend to use techniques such as pre- and post-marketing sales comparisons. “Better measurements and analytics can bring the additional insight necessary to guide strategies and tactics toward greater market profitability,” says Lenskold.

“Benchmarking the use and challenges of Marketing ROI measurements is a high priority for marketers, as we have learned from the 150,000 readers of MarketingProfs.com from all industries and company sizes,” says Roy Young, Director of Strategy and Development for MarketingProfs.com.

Additional topics covered in the research study include:
• The approach to measurements prior to launch of new marketing campaigns
• Barriers to measuring and calculating marketing profitability
• Measurement methodologies used
• Strengths and weaknesses of marketing profitability management capabilities
• Financial measurements of brand advertising and marketing
• CEO and CFO confidence in marketing profitability
• CMO priority for profitability measurements
• Future direction for marketing measurements

The Lenskold Group has announced the formation of Marketing Profitability Management Best Practice Forums to accelerate improvements in marketing accountability and credibility. The forums will launch in the first quarter 2006 in New York.

About Lenskold Group

The Lenskold Group has surpassed traditional mindsets and methods to develop the most comprehensive and innovative process to plan, measure, and optimize marketing strategies toward maximum profitability. The Lenskold Group has delivered high-quality consulting and marketing services to generate profitable growth for a broad range of client companies since 1997. Our team of accomplished professionals provides cohesive and comprehensive solutions in the area of marketing ROI process, measurements and analytics. James Lenskold is president of Lenskold Group and the author of the award-winning book, Marketing ROI, The Path to Campaign, Customer and Corporate Profitability (McGraw Hill, July 2003). Additional information is available at www.lenskold.com.

About Marketing Profs.com

MarketingProfs.com is an online publishing company providing post-MBA marketing know-how to over 150,000 marketing professionals. Drawing on the cutting edge marketing expertise of over 300 analysts, marketing professionals, and professors, we help marketers – from the very largest companies in the world to start-ups – stay current and effective in the entire range of online and offline marketing areas. MarketingProfs.com is supported by advertising and Premium members who receive access to in-depth articles and online seminars. See www.marketingprofs.com for more.

Contact Information

Lenskold Group:
Jim Lenskold
732-223-8886
jlenskold@lenskold.com

MarketingProfs.com:
Roy Young
310-203-8879
roy@marketingprofs.com