Marketing Research Chart: Best metrics for delivering marketing value to the C-Suite

SUMMARY: Conveying Marketing’s value to the C-Suite can be challenging. It’s easy for this group to see marketing spend, but difficult for them to measure the impact of that budget. Sales is often credited with revenue generation, but in order for Marketing to have success, gain the budgets they need and secure their jobs, they need to demonstrate the department's impact on revenue.

In this week’s chart, learn more about the tactics marketers use to deliver value to the C-Suite.

by Jen Doyle, Senior Research Manager

Delivering marketing value to the C-Suite

Q. What have you found to be the best tactics for delivering value from Marketing to Senior-level executives or the C-Suite of your organization?

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The most effective tactic for delivering value to the C-Suite is reporting on metrics of importance to C-Level executives (such as ROI and profit margins). For example, marketers can demonstrate how their lead generation and automated marketing campaigns contribute to overall revenue. They can review sales conversion rates and monthly revenue both before and after the implementation of lead scoring, nurturing and management campaigns.

The second most effective tactic for delivering marketing value to the C-Suite is sharing marketing results in an easy-to-understand manner for non-marketing professionals. Marketers should simply explain what they have accomplished and what this means for revenues and future growth. Talking about recent A/B tests that panned out and improved landing page conversion rates typically will not impress or connect with the C-Suite audience. Instead, marketers should pay attention to the language the CEO and CFO use when reviewing financials and revenue to communicate their results.

An undervalued, and possibly overlooked, tactic is reporting on metrics of importance to internal departments, like Sales or Customer Service. By winning over these departments, Marketing betters its chance of effectively delivering value to C-level executives.

For additional research data and insights about B2B marketing, download and read the free excerpt from the MarketingSherpa 2011 B2B Marketing Advanced Practices Handbook.

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Marketing Research Chart: Best metrics for delivering marketing value to the C-Suite

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