Success in marketing hinges on rapid innovation, requiring marketers and creatives to stay agile in response to new platforms, shifting algorithms and evolving consumer behaviors. Key performance indicators (KPIs) play a crucial role by providing measurable insights into the effectiveness of marketing efforts.
By tracking the right KPIs, marketers and creatives can make swift, data-driven decisions and ensure strategies align with business goals. Monitoring KPIs enables marketers to quickly adapt, reallocating resources or adjusting campaigns to optimize performance in a fast-changing landscape.
“You can’t manage what you can’t measure,” said Joe Weller, VP of demand generation at Smartsheet. “You need to begin every project with an expected measurable outcome, and you need to understand that performance indicator for that particular campaign and for your particular business. It’s about knowing what success looks like.”
It can be helpful to communicate the usefulness of specific KPIs with cross-functional leaders through the context of successful case studies. Ideally, this will bring a common understanding of how the functions of marketing and communications work together.
Various household brands have leveraged KPIs across revenue and sales (direct financial impact), engagement/conversion (driving volume and converting leads); retention (customer satisfaction) and brand awareness (perception). Here are some examples:
Revenue and sales KPIs
Amazon showcased how a short-term, annual event like Prime Day can fuel long-term customer loyalty and revenue growth. By leveraging the visibility of Prime Day to offer time-sensitive deals and personalized recommendations, Amazon lowered customer acquisition (CAC) and increased customer lifetime value (CLV), with the average subscriber having a lifetime value of more than twice that of a nonsubscriber. By tracking CLV, Amazon justified its investments in Prime Day promotions, as the results more than offset acquisition costs.
Engagement and Conversion KPIs
Costco upgraded the native search function on its mobile app, doubling the click-through rate (CTR) on search results. By making it easier to market and advertise to the shopper, the retailer invited opportunities for more time spent on page and higher conversions. Costco then saw e-commerce sales increase 16.1% year over year (YOY) for its fiscal 2024 ending Sept. 1, 2024.
Customer retention and loyalty KPIs
Starbucks leveraged its net promoter score (NPS) to enhance customer loyalty through its Rewards Program. By analyzing these metrics, Starbucks reduced its churn rate and increased CLV. The repeat purchase rate (RPR), another critical metric, was also improved, as loyal customers were incentivized to visit more frequently with special offers and rewards. The company currently has an impressive 77 NPS, and attributes 40% of its sales to the program.
Brand awareness and perception KPIs
Coca-Cola’s 2016 global campaign, “Taste the Feeling,” was a masterclass in building brand awareness and improving perception. Through share of voice (SOV) and sentiment analysis, Coca-Cola measured how its creative campaign resonated with audiences. Social media metrics, such as hashtag usage of #TasteTheFeeling, were closely monitored, contributing to a significant boost in engagement and market share.
Stay agile in monitoring KPIs
Understanding why a KPI moves up or down is critical for marketers. As Weller notes, “It’s not just about seeing metrics rise, but grasping the ‘why’ behind the changes.”
Marketers will benefit from staying ready to change the KPIs they focus on. As Smartsheet grew, the company expanded beyond the bottom of the funnel to more mid- and top-funnel tactics. “The evolution of the company will influence the KPIs that you choose,” said Weller.
Smartsheet needed to justify the investment in a YouTube campaign geared toward increasing awareness. A brand lift study by Google tested how likely a control group was to search for or visit Smartsheet’s site after seeing the ad. “We had that as a data point that we could take back to our leadership and say, ‘We spent this much and here’s what we learned,’” said Weller.
Unified KPI tracking for cross-team alignment
Smartsheet unified its teams under a shared top-line dashboard, tracking KPIs together. This transparency fostered better collaboration and alignment across the marketing department. “We’re sharing an overall marketing budget and we’re all looking at the same KPIs together,” said Weller.
“It’s really helped align our marketing team. I’ve seen the teams work much better because we have a clear understanding of KPIs and there’s transparency,” he said.
Choose the right KPI for each initiative
Each campaign should be measured by the KPI that fits its purpose. Brand mentions can be used for awareness campaigns, but you wouldn’t report on conversions for a brand campaign. “It wouldn’t make you want to continue to invest in that,” said Weller.
The right KPIs help you use resources more effectively and communicate effectiveness to cross-functional leaders. “If you have the right KPI based on the specific effort that you’re going after, then people are accountable,” said Weller. “If not, then you’re not going to get that buy-in or the accountability.”
Relevant metrics tell the story of a marketing team’s impact. Embracing KPIs helps marketers validate their work and align it with broader business goals, reinforcing their role in organizational growth.
