Performance-Based Marketing: The Path to Measurable Results
Gone are the days when measuring success by "likes" or "shares" is enough. Today’s businesses require data-driven results to make informed decisions and be profitable. This is where performance-based marketing comes into play.
Whether you’re a small business looking to book appointments or a large corporation seeking to increase sales, performance-based marketing is an effective way to measure the success of your marketing campaigns. In this blog, we’ll dive into what performance-based marketing is, the various marketing channels it can be applied to, and how we report on the results.
What is Performance-based Marketing?
Performance-based marketing is a type of marketing campaign (digital or print) that is measurable and evaluated based on the results it delivers. Simply put, its success depends on the impact it makes on customers and how this is reflected in sales. Unlike other forms of marketing, performance-based marketing isn't just about raising consumer awareness; it's about direct response. It creates a sense of urgency and drives the customer to act, resulting in a measurable conversion.
Performance-based marketing is actionable and quantifiable. To build this type of campaign, Darwill starts with data. Data fuels the success of performance-based campaigns. That’s what makes them stand out! Using consumer data and our algorithms, we create data models that help define the recipients of the campaign while leveraging targeting and retargeting strategies to secure the sale or conversion.
These campaigns utilize marketing components that are proven to drive consumer action. Everything is strategically crafted to produce a measurable response from the direct and digital channels selected to deploy on, the imagery and text used, and the calls to action that push the recipient to act. For example, the consumer may be encouraged to respond by calling a phone number or visiting a website.
One significant advantage of these campaigns is their ability to track measurable results in real-time, allowing us to quickly identify which campaigns are most effective and adjust accordingly. If a campaign is not performing, it’s not worth running. That’s why starting with performance in mind and your customer data is important.
Elements of a Successful Performance-based Campaign
To create a successful performance-based marketing campaign, Darwill focuses on the following:
- Building profiles from the customer data.
- Creating data models to provide insights into your target audience.
- Strategizing to use the clients’ budget efficiently.
- Determining the proper cadence to deploy direct mail and digital marketing.
- Designing the creative elements based on industry standards.
- Providing visibility into the campaign's results and discussing those with the client to measure and understand the campaign’s impact.
Marketing Channels and Reporting
Performance-based marketing can be applied to a variety of marketing channels. This includes direct mail, social media, email marketing, and pay-per-click advertising. Darwill works closely with each client to select which channels make the most sense for their goals. Keeping their goals in mind, we can establish what their unique key performance indicators (KPI) should be and what metrics will be most important to report on.
Darwill can report on various KPIs. For example, click-through rates, conversion rates, customer acquisition costs, and revenue generated. We can find a way to report on whatever is deemed important by the client. By tracking these metrics, the client can better understand what marketing efforts are working and which need to be revised.
Here are some examples of marketing channels and common trackable KPIs that we can report on.
Direct Mail – Match back reporting for direct mail is a method used to measure the effectiveness of a direct mail campaign in acquiring new customers. It involves comparing the list of direct mail recipients with the list of new customers in the client’s customer relationship management (CRM) system. If a direct mail recipient is later identified as a new customer in the CRM, the acquisition can be attributed to the direct mail campaign.
Paid Social Advertising – Paid social media such as boosted posts and Meta Ads can be tracked by metrics like post engagement, impressions, reach, click-through rates, and measure conversions on form fills tied to a social ad.
Email Marketing – Open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates, bounce rates, and unsubscribe rates.
Pay-per-click Advertising – Track conversions, cost-per-click, click-through rates, and return on ad spend.
Increase Performance with Darwill
Whether you’re a small business looking to expand your online presence or a larger corporation seeking to increase sales, performance-based marketing is an effective way to drive customer behavior and achieve your business goals. Let’s focus on measurable results and build your performance-based campaign today!
