Foreword to the Second Edition

At Google, we have a saying we use quite frequently: “Data beats opinion.” In practice, this means that for any endeavor, we first determine our key success metrics and then measure how we are doing against them on a regular basis. This allows us to optimize and expand those programs that are working, while sunsetting those that are not.

In today’s hyper-competitive business landscape, most marketers are compelled to take this approach versus relying on conventional wisdom, rules of thumb, or intuition that may have been sufficient in the past.

The challenge, of course, is knowing what to measure and exactly how to measure it. That’s where Marketing Metrics comes in. It is the most comprehensive and authoritative guide to defining, constructing, and using the metrics every marketer needs today. This second edition adds advice on how to measure emerging topics such as social marketing and brand equity, in addition to explaining indispensable marketing metrics ranging from Return on Sales to Cannibalization Rate.

Perhaps the most pressing question in marketing today is not simply how to measure any single outcome, but understanding how all the various metrics interconnect—and the resulting financial consequences of your marketing decisions. Marketing Metrics moves this discussion a major step forward by reviewing alternative integrated marketing measurement systems and how companies are assembling such systems for better diagnostics and more transparent marketing models. I predict that those enterprises who develop a deep understanding of this marketing interconnectivity will gain a significant competitive advantage over time.

What does your boss or client think about all this? Marketing Metrics surveyed senior marketing managers on the metrics they use to monitor and manage their business. The results tellingly reveal that your boss and client think you should already know what to measure and how to measure it, so there’s a sense of urgency for all of us to become masters of marketing metrics.

In our experience at Google, marketers who move with speed, center their messages around relevance, and use data (it beats opinion!) are best-positioned for success with today’s buyers and modern media vehicles. I therefore heartily recommend Marketing Metrics as the foundation of the data portion of this three-pronged marketing strategy!

Jim Lecinski
Managing Director, U.S. Sales & Service, Google