“Inability to measure ROI” was named by marketers as one of the most significant barriers to the adoption of social media tactics by their organization. This barrier is more of a perception than a reality because social media often requires qualitative measurement rather than the quantitative metrics that online marketers have become accustomed to.
There are two factors required to measure ROI or other profitability metrics – an investment cost and income returned. The more easily and directly these factors can be identified in a tactic, the more likely it is to be perceived as accurately measureable. For example, the cost of “advertising on blogs or social networks” is usually based on pay-per-click and conversion metrics, so advertisers are motivated and easily able to measure this tactic. The result is that “advertising on blogs or social networks” rated at the top of the chart above in terms of accurate measurability.
Near the other end of the spectrum, is “blogging on a company blog” where there is usually little direct cost other than staff time, thus little motivation to measure return. However, as with most PR-related tactics, there is considerable return when measured on a qualitative basis. The value is derived not from the quantity of comments in response to a blog posting, for example, but from the quality of the comments. Are the comments positive or negative in nature? Are they beneficial or detrimental to building and sustaining your brand? The ability to accurately measure the qualitative value of these interactions is possible, if not more challenging. Those who don’t include qualitative factors in the planning of their social media programs may find themselves employing much less effective tactics, simply for the sake of perceived measurability, resulting in a loss of confidence in performance.
excerpted from a study by Marketing Sherpa
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Monday, June 1, 2009
ZUNE HD Video
The Zune HD has been released...the iPod Touch toppler is here. (Or is it? What do you think?)
Microsoft’s OLED Personal Music Player, the Zune HD, has been rumoured for a while, but Redmond finally pulled the trigger and made it official earlier this week. Now it’s broke free of the labs and made it in to the open. Eyeing it up close, it’s surprising how much the Zune HD looks like a HTC Touch Diamond2, although it’s definitely thinner. The Zune HD may not be an iPod touch beater just yet without the apps, but it’s certainly going to rival the Sony X Series Walkman from the word go.
Setting Business Goals
It's true: Your business can't go according to plan if you have no plan.
What do you want to achieve this year? More new customers per week? Higher average order amounts? Better customer service ratings? No matter what it is you are shooting for (or in our case, what we're shooting to be shooting), goal setting is one of the most important things that you can do. Here at DVideo Productions, we're always evaluating, and re-evaluating, our "plan" and taking new steps to reach our goals. We've got a few tips to help you:
1. Keep it Challenging but Realistic.
Any goal that you set for your company should be challenging but don't over do it. For example, if you had an average order amount of $700 last year, you wouldn't want to set your goal for this year at $3000 per order. Unless you make drastic changes in how your company runs or what you are selling, that goal is just not realistic. You know best what you may be able to achieve in your particular industry, so be honest with yourself and set your goals accordingly.
2. Write All Your Goals Down.
You may say to yourself on January 1, "I want to get 20 more new customers per week this year." A few months later you will be saying "Did I say I wanted 20 or 30?" Or more realistically, you have forgotten that you even made that goal. If you have all of your goals written down you will be able to not only go back and check them, you will also be able to go down the list every few months and check to see how many of them you have completed.
3. Assess Your Current Situation.
To set goals you have to know where you are at right now. If you want to assess your customer service rating, send out a survey to all of your customers on which they could rate you in each department of our operation. That will help you establish our base. Next step: Send the survey to every customer after every order. This way you can keep track of how you are doing and if there is ever a hiccup you can fix it quickly. Don't assume anything. Always assess the current situation before setting a new goal.
What do you want to achieve this year? More new customers per week? Higher average order amounts? Better customer service ratings? No matter what it is you are shooting for (or in our case, what we're shooting to be shooting), goal setting is one of the most important things that you can do. Here at DVideo Productions, we're always evaluating, and re-evaluating, our "plan" and taking new steps to reach our goals. We've got a few tips to help you:
1. Keep it Challenging but Realistic.
Any goal that you set for your company should be challenging but don't over do it. For example, if you had an average order amount of $700 last year, you wouldn't want to set your goal for this year at $3000 per order. Unless you make drastic changes in how your company runs or what you are selling, that goal is just not realistic. You know best what you may be able to achieve in your particular industry, so be honest with yourself and set your goals accordingly.
2. Write All Your Goals Down.
You may say to yourself on January 1, "I want to get 20 more new customers per week this year." A few months later you will be saying "Did I say I wanted 20 or 30?" Or more realistically, you have forgotten that you even made that goal. If you have all of your goals written down you will be able to not only go back and check them, you will also be able to go down the list every few months and check to see how many of them you have completed.
3. Assess Your Current Situation.
To set goals you have to know where you are at right now. If you want to assess your customer service rating, send out a survey to all of your customers on which they could rate you in each department of our operation. That will help you establish our base. Next step: Send the survey to every customer after every order. This way you can keep track of how you are doing and if there is ever a hiccup you can fix it quickly. Don't assume anything. Always assess the current situation before setting a new goal.
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