Comments on: Stop Politicking and Listen to the Numbers http://www.coryhuff.com/stop-politicking-listen-to-the-numbers Digital Strategist | Storyteller | Troublemaker Wed, 14 Dec 2011 11:09:24 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2 By: Cory Huff http://www.coryhuff.com/stop-politicking-listen-to-the-numbers/comment-page-1#comment-25 Cory Huff Wed, 13 Jan 2010 04:59:23 +0000 http://www.coryhuff.com/?p=163#comment-25 Great points Justin. I think you're trying to say that we're not showing our value because we're not being given enough money. The chicken & egg conundrum. Perhaps it's also a certain amount of the artist's lament, "My work is art, therefore I shouldn't be subjected to the rigors of capitalism." Unfortunately for the artist working in advertising, there's a fiduciary responsibility. The reason we, as an industry, are terrible at explaining our value is because we're not steeped in it. We're steeped in the art, the social, the networking, the message - but how many advertisers run a budget each quarter? Probably just the manager of the department, if that. You're absolutely right in that we can do a better job of showing the correlation between Web-based marketing and the bottom line. It's actually fairly easy to do, in comparison to any form of advertising (with the possible exception of a well-run direct mail campaign). We just have to have more of us steeped in the numbers, and we'll start to be more aware of it. Great points Justin.

I think you’re trying to say that we’re not showing our value because we’re not being given enough money. The chicken & egg conundrum. Perhaps it’s also a certain amount of the artist’s lament, “My work is art, therefore I shouldn’t be subjected to the rigors of capitalism.” Unfortunately for the artist working in advertising, there’s a fiduciary responsibility.

The reason we, as an industry, are terrible at explaining our value is because we’re not steeped in it. We’re steeped in the art, the social, the networking, the message – but how many advertisers run a budget each quarter? Probably just the manager of the department, if that. You’re absolutely right in that we can do a better job of showing the correlation between Web-based marketing and the bottom line. It’s actually fairly easy to do, in comparison to any form of advertising (with the possible exception of a well-run direct mail campaign). We just have to have more of us steeped in the numbers, and we’ll start to be more aware of it.

]]> By: Justin http://www.coryhuff.com/stop-politicking-listen-to-the-numbers/comment-page-1#comment-24 Justin Wed, 13 Jan 2010 04:46:38 +0000 http://www.coryhuff.com/?p=163#comment-24 Hey Cory - Nice response. I agree that different projects will require differing amounts of detail when it comes to showing results to the client, but I do want to push back on one point: In your post, you say "Perhaps if you are spending vast sums of money, but the plain truth is that most Web marketing campaigns are vastly underfunded, especially in proportion to the amount of time people are spending on the Web vs. other forms of media." Do you think though that there is any correlation between the amount of money devoted to web project and our collective historical interest in showing the value of our work? I think we all know that design is valuable to business, that advertising is valuable, and that certainly the web is valuable. But when asked to explain exactly HOW it's valuable, or how valuable it is, we as an industry are terrible at that. On the other side, if we address the needs of the business, then I think not only will they be less likely to stand in our way, but they will be more likely to add funding to our projects. A CFO may not care one bit about an interactive project, but if we show her that it's making her company money, then she'll invest more in it. All the better if interactive can do what other mediums can't, it's just more money for us. Thoughts? Hey Cory –
Nice response. I agree that different projects will require differing amounts of detail when it comes to showing results to the client, but I do want to push back on one point:

In your post, you say
“Perhaps if you are spending vast sums of money, but the plain truth is that most Web marketing campaigns are vastly underfunded, especially in proportion to the amount of time people are spending on the Web vs. other forms of media.”

Do you think though that there is any correlation between the amount of money devoted to web project and our collective historical interest in showing the value of our work? I think we all know that design is valuable to business, that advertising is valuable, and that certainly the web is valuable. But when asked to explain exactly HOW it’s valuable, or how valuable it is, we as an industry are terrible at that.

On the other side, if we address the needs of the business, then I think not only will they be less likely to stand in our way, but they will be more likely to add funding to our projects. A CFO may not care one bit about an interactive project, but if we show her that it’s making her company money, then she’ll invest more in it. All the better if interactive can do what other mediums can’t, it’s just more money for us.

Thoughts?

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