Study: Can Branding and Direct Response Metrics Be Equally Measurable? Key challenges revealed By Visual IQ

Illustration: Chris Madden

Direct response marketers should consider themselves lucky. When it comes to measurement, their main metrics—cost per lead, conversion rate, etc.—paint a pretty clear picture of campaign effectiveness.
Brand marketers, however, lack these kinds of measurements that are so easily associated with the bottom line. They rely on less concrete metrics such as awareness, reach and video views, which are often a step removed from what is traditionally considered true impact. This leaves them feeling challenged and unsure about the effectiveness of their branding efforts.
Our study, "Branding Measurement in Today's Accountable World: A Tale of Two Marketers," explores possible reasons why branding measurement is so complex. More importantly, it offers data on the measurement and optimization woes that brand marketers face today.
Check out "Branding Measurement in Today's Accountable World: A Tale of Two Marketers"
Here's a glimpse of what some of those challenges look like:
1. Do you think it's more challenging to measure the impact of branding efforts than direct response efforts?
Eighty percent of marketers say yes. If you've got your direct response ducks in a row, well done. But don't let that confidence lead you to neglect your branding efforts—after all, brand recognition and affinity are often crucial prerequisites of a consumer's buying decision.
2. How confident are you in your organization's ability to quantify the impact of direct response/branding KPIs/metrics?
Eighty five percent of marketers are "very" or "extremely confident" in their organization's ability to quantify the impact of direct response efforts, compared to 64 percent when it comes to measuring the impact of branding efforts. The latter is most likely a result of the greater variety of branding metrics that are tracked compared to direct response metrics.
These are only two of the many questions that we answer in our study. Take a look to help your team members understand how they stack up against their peers when it comes to their branding measurement efforts.