Do you ask this question before your start a marketing campaign or project? Sometimes it is really hard to come up with a number or a goal, but should we not try before doing it? I hear more people discussing why you should not measure things rather than why you should. But I think it really pays to have a goal or some sort of metric, even one that is not worth very much.
The goal might change and be adjusted during the process but I certainly think having good solid reasoning would be worthwhile to most people. Especially, when you get in the middle of the project and start wondering what you should be doing today. I know this sounds rather trivial and many may think that I am rather foolish in discussing it. However, I think if you sit back and look at some of your last marketing projects or maybe even your last sales call, you might find that this answer is a little “Grayer” than what it should be.
By answering such a simple question you may clarify for your whole team decisions based on outcomes, cost, time, and resources, that get allocated. Without the question you may not even build a process to answer, why you did it.
I would challenge organizations to not only consider this question. But spend time thinking of how it fits into a larger picture. If you have ever heard me talk about what works in marketing, you know that I believe that one single event by itself seldom works. Effective marketing is the strength of the connections between each single event.
Why are we doing this? I like that question!