ASSIGNMENT PROJECT FRONT SHEET CIM Membership Number Module Title

ASSIGNMENT/PROJECT FRONT SHEET
CIM Membership Number: XXXXXXX
Module Title: Mastering Metrics
Level: Diploma in Professional Marketing (L6)
Accredited Study Centre: Oxford College of Marketing
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Module: Mastering Metrics
Assessment session: March 2015 CIM Membership number: XXXXXXX
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COMPANY LOGO
DIPLOMA IN PROFESSIONAL MARKETING
THE FUTURE OF ANALYTIC“ IN XXXXXXX
REPORT AND SEMINAR PRESENTATION
Page Counts
Task 1: 4 pages
Task 2: 6 pages
Task 3: 6 pages
Assignment total 16 pages, exclusive of cover sheet, contents, bibliography & appendices

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
1.2 The role of metrics in making marketing decisions …………………………………………………………….
1.3 Relationship of marketing with other business functions …………………………………………………. 5
1.4 Effective use of marketing metrics ……………………………………………………………………………………….
2.1 Effective use of marketing metrics in XXXXXXX ………………………………………….
2.2 Analysis of marketing metrics in XXXXXXX ………………………………………………… 8
2.3a Dashboard of XXXXXXX marketing metrics ..........…………………………………… 11
2.3b Commentary of XXXXXXX dashboard …………………………………………………….. 12
3.1 P ese tatio of slides fo se i a o XXXXXXX: Futu e of A al ti s ………
3.2 Identification or future monitoring and management required
3.2a Management and monitoring for future trends …………………………………………………
3.2b Justif i g futu e use of a keti g et i s …………………………………………………………
1.1 XXXXXXX organisational summary ………………………………………………………….. 19
Bibliography ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 20

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1.2 The role of metrics in making marketing decisions
Ma keti g et i s ha e e o e i easi gl o e i po ta t fo a u e of easo s. Pe haps
most important among them is the growing need for marketing to demonstrate the value it adds to
the usi ess. (CIM, 2014)
Marketing often suffers a crisis of credibility. As a cost centre there is a constant need for the
marketing function to de o strate the value that it adds to the usi ess (CIM, 2014) in order to
justif u e t a d se u e futu e spe d it ust e a le to speak the la guage of the usi ess (CIM,
2014). Marketing metrics can help to align everyone in an organisation and share in its focus
to a ds putti g the usto e fi st (CIM, 2014).
In order for an organisation to successfully use metrics it is important to have clearly defined
business objectives and for these objectives to be understood throughout the organisation. It is
then for the measurements chosen to determine whether these business objectives are on course
for being achieved through comparing this through a pre-set benchmark.
According to Farris, et al., (2010) a metric easu i g s ste that ua tifies a t e d, dynamic or
ha a te isti hile Da is sees a et i is a easu e e t of pe formance. (Davis, 2013)
hile A le otes, easu e e t is the o pa s e ous s ste hi h highlights ho
important the need to quantify activity is in the modern business world. Soft metrics such as brand
a a e ess, o ga i sea h a ki gs a d e ail ope ates a e i po ta t ut do t ofte ha e this
same importance to key stakeholders as successfully tracking the return of investment (ROI).
Measurements are fundamentally important for any strategic marketing planning. With the advance
in digital technology there is much more data now available to organisations to be able to facilitate
measurement; it is important to know what to measure and when.
In XXXXXXX the APIC (analysis, planning, implementation and control) planning framework (Beamish
& Ashford, 2008) is a used a primarily at the control phase. The APIC framework will help to provide
lea i g s fo futu e pla i g a d i ple e tatio . However initial audit and analysis of a XXXXXXX
allows us to develop business objectives. In order to achieve the business objectives the following
must be looked at:
Product: Type of sale, comparison of the competitor, marketing cost per unit.
Price: Sell price, sell price variation, competitor pricing.
Place: Cost of different channels, how effective these channels are, digital metrics.
Promotion: Metrics attaining to, enquiry source (email marketing, PPC, organic, social media, display
etc.), response rate, open rates, cost per enquiry, click through rates, ROMI, conversion rate, and
overall campaign effectiveness.
The above metrics for marketing provide data that can be beneficial for a range of different uses.
These include providing a benchmark to measure against, identifying trends, year on year (YOY)
comparison, a snapshot of current performance, analysis of variance and gap analysis. All these
measurements must have accountability and clear communication to other business areas to ensure
that marketing activities are delivering the greatest return; this is turn helps to demonstrate why
different functions are so important.

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1.3 Relationship of marketing with other business areas
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX and therefore XXXXXXX is a sales orientated business. This business is currently in
the process of making a strategic shift away from a sales focus to a market focus business through a
change from travel agent to travel retailer (see page 19). This move will see XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
selling their own product ranges built around consumer demands. As well as nurturing and
maintaining the relationships with the consumer the marketing function needs to be able to interact
with other areas of the organisation. However not all of the business areas operate with the same
focus and sometimes and conflict often arise when objectives do not much up.
1. Marketing and Finance
Finance is one of the most important areas of an organisation focussing largely on revenue, profit
a d sha eholde alue, although fi a ial easu es a e isleadi g A le , the help to
form the basis of many of the marketing metrics. Finance work closely with all areas of the
marketing mix and need to be accountable for the marketing spend and hold key relationships for
metrics. Finance is the link between marketing and the rest of the business. XXXXXXX overall has a
successful relationship with the Finance teams through sharing information and releasing a joint end
of month reports.
2. Marketing and Sales
In theory marketing and sales should go hand-in-hand; however it is the case for many companies as
Mi helle M Gi is otes that “ales a d Ma keti g feel as though the a e operating on
separate islands. Price has the biggest effect on the sales team, but often the area of the marketing
mix where the two areas are the most misaligned, often due to different KPIs requirements.
Marketing are targeted on lead generation and in a price driven industry the need for marketing
leading product is essential This often leads to loss leading and margin cutting. However the sales
teams are targeted on profit and turnover and these methods are not conducive to profitable sales.
3. Marketing and Web Development/Technology
An effective working relationship with Web Development team is essential for the promotion from
the marketing mix; it can ensure that the products we creating are being presented in the right way,
at the right time and in the right place. The development of a new XXXXXXX website built around a
more customer centric ideology allows Web Development to play a key part in creating the
i te fa e et ee u e a d selle (Brassington & Pettitt, 2013)
4. Marketing and Product
Land and Air contractors may have products that require promotion to achieve investments and
sales targets. The interest in the Product team to promote regardless of their pricing structure,
these products perpetually prove not to be the most effective in generating leads. However
marketing also require them to source exclusive flight and land product to help stand out in the
market. This misalignment of KPIs and needs can often cause tension between the two
departments.
A o e to a ds a at i o ga isatio allo s a keti g to get the best of more than one of the
p e ious ethods of the o ga isatio . (Brassington & Pettitt, 2013). XXXXXXXXXXXXXX has
addressed this through developing the cross-fu tio i g of tea s PACE p odu t, ad e tisi g a d
customer experience) by reducing the power of any one particular area problems are solved much
o e effi ie tl . A at i is ot just a o ga isatio al st u tu e: it is also a a of app oa hi g the
challenges facing the business CIM, 2014)

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1.4 Effective use of marketing metrics in XXXXXXX
Most fi s to do ot ha e a lea pi tu e of thei o e all a keti g pe fo a e hi h a e h
the a ot a ess it (Ambler, 2003)
When looking at metrics in business it is important to look at three things, are the right metrics? It is
better to have five effective metrics than 50 that do not show what is wanted to be measured. How
are effective are the current metrics? Metrics will need to be revised from time to time, when
businesses evolve it is important to know whether what measured in the past in still relevant to the
business moving forward. Lastly are we taking any action because of them? If the metrics are not
being utilised then what is their benefits to the business.
With the advance in digital technologies it is much easier to facilitate measurement, however with
this increase access of data how do we know which metrics are right for our business. Metrics need
to be completely honest; it is not uncommon for a business to set a metric, only to discover that the
p o ess is u a le to ge e ate the data eeded. Measu i g the o g thi gs a e o e
da ge ous that easu i g othi g at all (CIM, 2014). It is important that metrics are reliable and
produce the same results no matter who processes the data.
As a sales business XXXXXXXXXXXXXX turnover is vital in knowing profit and returns. Overall reports
and financial metrics are frequently communicated. Daily sales targets and projections as well as
month end reports from all areas of the business are circulated frequently. These reports are very
granular displaying individual consultant turnover, profit margins and individual product range sales.
In marketing, collection of data around promotions and general activity is commonplace. For each
individual campaign, there is a plethora of data which is captured around e-direct marketing metrics
(open rates, click through rates, unsubscribe rates, response rates), online metrics (bounce rates,
page views, time on site), customer satisfaction, customer segmentation and so on, which is useful
for identifying trends, making comparisons and seeing a snapshot of the market.
It is important to be able to reliably track the marketing performance over time. Marketing
continuously collect data around promotions and general activity through a range of different
methods, google analytics being a predominant one. Whether this is through e-direct marketing
metrics such as, open rates, click through rates, unsubscribe rates and response rates. Further
online metrics including bounce rates, page views, length of time on sight, number of leads
generated. It is also established how these enquiries reach the consultants (phone, email etc.).
Marketing currently treat each customer the same, e-direct marketing is sent to the en masse all
XXXXXXX data ase the a keti g i should itself e a p odu t of u de sta di g the usto e
(Brassington & Pettitt, 2013). XXXXXXX do not currently segment their customers, by doing so it
ould help to ta get its a keti g i o e losel o the pote tial usto e , a d thus to eet
the usto e s eeds a d a ts o e e a tl (Brassington & Pettitt, 2013).
Whilst the marketing activity can be analysed and tracked through benchmarking and targets there
is currently not and effective way to determine what source produces enquiries with the highest
value. As The Cha te ed I stitute of Ma keti g ote the ulti ate easu e of the
effectiveness of marketing, in a commercial organisation, is some kind of financial return – typically
sales of p ofita ilit .

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2.1 Identification and evaluation of key metrics relevant to XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX is a business which is driven almost predominantly through digital, product management
and communication of our brand. The primary focus for the business is based on market share, lead
generation and costs.
The below table demonstrates the key metrics used by XXXXXXX.
Marketing Metric Benefit Limitation Overall Evaluation
Market Share
Measures the
sales as a
percentage of the
total sales volume
in their market.
- Can show how you are
performing against the
industry.
- Can be expressed in units
(e.g. percent) or as a
monetary value.
- Helps management to
understand the success of
marketing penetration
strategies.
- An increased may seem
positive but without
knowing how it relates to
the rest of the market may
skew results.
- Market share can give a
good indication of
position in market place.
However should be used
with caution, an increased
market share does not
necessarily indicate
increased profits.
Average
Transaction Size
Measures the
average financial
value for each
transaction
- Helps to understand how
successful the organisation
has been in achieving higher
sales from each customer; if
higher average transaction
is increasing it implies that
the customer is purchasing
more or higher value
product.
- Does not account for
purchase patterns.
Leading to the temptation
to infer behaviour when it
is actually very difficult to
determine from the
average transaction size.
- A high transaction size
can be viewed as
successful. Needs to be
used with gross profit to
provide a true reflection
of the sales. It does not
account for purchasing
patterns.
Turnover
The income that
the organisation
receives from
selling products
- Provides an indicator of
performance as it specifies
the total sales.
- High turnover does not
always indicate success as
it does not take into
account the costs to
achieve it.
Again does not give a true
reflection of success,
must be used with gross
profit to give an accurate
indication of ROI.
Gross Profit
Measure of the
total turnover
minus the costs
- Effective in travel as we
easily know the difference
between cost of purchase to
the business (e.g. flight
price) and the price we sell
to the customer.
- High gross profits indicator
that the organisation is
efficient in the industry.
- Increasing market share
should be crucial to an
organisation is does not
take into account
overhead expenditure
affect the net profit.
- Improving profit should
indicate success however
it is often only paints a
pa tial pi tu e as it s
frequently calculated
before overhead
expenditure needed to
produce the products.
Conversion Rate
Conversion of
enquiries to sales.
- High conversion rates
indicate the product is
appealing enough to
warrant response and
purchase.
- Many variables to
achieve high conversion
rates.
- Must be able to balance
the demand for
quantitative performance
with qualitative aspects.
- A useful metric to
measure the performance
of a campaign and sales
staff. However does not
a ou t fo a alk-i
enquiry. Needs to be
used with average
transaction size to give a
true indication.
Click Through - Assess the frequency with - Does not indicate how - A useful metric as it

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Rate (CTR)
Measures how
many customers
click through on a
link after viewing
it
which an online
advertisement results in a
visitor clicking through the
business offering.
- Although CTR do not
always result in a purchase,
high CTR is a positive sign
that the ad generated
interest.
many people result in
conversion and thus sales.
- Does not indicate why
they have clicked.
assesses interest in
specific products,
however it should be
used as part of the sales
funnel.
Cost Per Enquiry
(CPE)
Measures the
cost of each
enquiry
generated
- Know how the enquiries
are generated and the costs
attached, aids future
projections for marketing
enquiry campaigns.
- An enquiry does not
indicate a the value of the
enquiry
- Low CPE may not
indicate good ROI.
- While informative is best
used with consumer value
and sales data. Does not
measure the quality of
each enquiry
Bounce Rate
Measures
number of
visitors who leave
after viewing just
one web page
- Key metric for websites.
Gives a high level overview
of e site isito s ha its.
- Provides insights into what
products and promotions
are the most engaging.
- Can provide a skewed
impression of the
customer. It is impossible
to know when the
customer bounced, may
not have found they
needed or exactly what
they needed.
- A useful metric as a high
bounce rate would
indicate the page does
ot eet the usto e s
requirements. Should be
used in conjunction with
A/B testing.
Open Rate
Measures the
number of
customers who
open/read an e-
marketing
communication
Overview of an engaged
audience who show an
interested in product, price
or promotion
- Does not account for
undelivered, those who
have not received the
communication (e.g. junk
mail quarantine) or those
who read the email in a
preview pane.
Useful metric for use as a
guide and to give an
overview of trends.
Should not be used solely
a measure of success of
failure.
Social Media
Measures the
number of
followers (or
equivalent) as an
indication of their
interest
- Helps an organisation
understand whether its
products and services are
relevant to their customers.
- Not all followers engage
in a meaningful way.
- Useful to gage an overall
reach and customer
activity level, however it
is difficult to know how
users are still active.
2.2 Analysis of marketing metrics in XXXXXXX
1. Market Share
According to CIM (2014) Markets are the ultimate source of organisations revenue. Creating a
competitive advantage to encourage customers to an organisations service is an essential part of a
a kete s ole. U de sta di g a tual a d pote tial a ket sha e is a esse tial e ui e e t. While
internal metrics as these are provide satisfactory results, XXXXXXX understand its value market share
provides in identifying their position in the market place. It provides data on how market
penetration strategies are performing and provide a benchmark for the organisations sales are
performance against a total sale volume in their relative market.
XXXXXXX sales / all industry sales x 100 = % market share
If an organisations sales are up 20% YOY this may look like a positive results however if the rest of
the market sales up 50% YOY it needs to be questioned why. Market share can help to analysis this.

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Hitwise (part of the Experian group) is an effective tool as it measures website traffic to a range of
different businesses. Hitwise has shown that XXXXXXX current market share is 7%. This relatively
small in comparison to our main competition Trailfinders 22% and Audley Travel 16%. The
comparatively low market share can be attributed to the change in XXXXXXXXXXXXXXs direction.
2. Cost Per Enquiry
This is calculated by using data from several sources. The initial stages are to firstly set up the email
e ui as a goal o Google A al ti s. This allo s t a ki g of all o e sio s, hethe the e f o
email marketing, paid search, organic, social media, display advertising etc and can be extracted
f o the a uisitio ta . Co sulta ts receive call enquiries in the same way as email enquiries and
are tracked using the same process.
XXXXXXX phone management partner, Sesui allows us to set up phone tracking and extract the data
Depending on the initial point of contact the customer receives (email, search etc) they will be
displayed with a different phone number. This allows the business to determine where they are
receiving the enquiry from and where is producing the most.
This data is then collated to provide a total enquiry figure, which as the cost of the marketing activity
divided by it to provide a cost per enquiry amount.
Cost of activity / total enquiries = cost per enquiry (CPE)
This method allows us to determine where our enquiry is coming from the costs attached. CPE can
be tracked to a more granular level by media, campaign and traffic source in order to disseminate
the best value enquiry sources. When cross referenced with sales, this will allow most profitable
enquiry channels to be identified.
3. E-Direct Marketing Open Rate
This tracked through XXXXXXX use of MailChimp and email service provider (ESP). This ESP allows
the organisation to send emails, automated messaged and targeted campaigns (although the latter
is currently not being utilised). Comprehensive reports are provided after each email campaign,
displaying variety of different data including the number of successful emails that are opened.
When used with the number of emails sent the percentage opened can be established.
Number of opens / (number of sends – bounces) x 100 = % open rate
While the high open rate with would indicative of a successful campaign, it is important that it is
utilised with other relevant metrics to give a true reflection of the campaigns success.
4. Click Through Rate
XXXXXXX analyse this data for the different campaign mediums that are used. For email marketing
campaigns this data is again extracted from the report provided by the organisations ESP, it tracks
the number of unique people who click on any link contained with the email (note: they may click
multiple links but will only be counted once) and dividing by the number of opened emails.
Number of clicks / number of user opened emails x 100 = % click through rate
This method of data collection is also used for social media campaigns, pay per click (PPC), organic
search and display advertising.

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Number of clicks / number of page impressions x 100 = % click through rate
5. Conversion Rate
XXXXXXX gather this data through assessing the number of enquiries received through their different
campaign methods against the number of transactions over a given period. Google Analytics and
the Sesui phone system is used to calculate the number of enquiries received, while Finance provide
details of the number of transactions.
Number of transactions / number of enquiries x 100 = % conversion rate
6. Bounce Rate
Through Google analytics an organisation can track how both general and individual campaign traffic
is performing. Presented as a percentage it is calculated by dividing the total number of visitors
viewing one page by the total entries to the page. This can be looked at in a more granular way by
traffic source (email, direct, referral, display), this data is used to further analyse each channel.
The use of this data can be used to make decisions about the product to advertise in the coming
weeks. For example a multi-stop flight to Aust alia The Aust alia Cit “li ke is out est
performing deal of the week, it has the highest response rate over the week is was promoted
compared to the other deals with 690 product views, a bounce of 58.43% against a site average of
60.53% and achieved 60 email, 10 call and 7 call back enquiries.
7. Average Transaction Value (ATV)
The average transaction size can provide data on the value of each individual transaction. With
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXs change from travel agent to travel retailer the organisation is hoping to see a YOY
uplift in the ATV.
Total turnover / number of transactions = average transaction value
The current average transaction size for XXXXXXX is £3870 YTD compared with £5925 compared to
previous financial year. While this can show that we are down compared to the previous 12 months,
the ATV does not accounted for the purchasing patterns.
8. Turnover and Gross Profit
Average transaction value is closely linked to turnover and profit. An increased ATV would suggest
an increased turnover and profit, decrease would suggest the opposite. It important for
organisations to look at both the turnover and profit when analysing sales data, the current YTD
turnover for XXXXXXX is £7,763,928 and profit currently stands at £35,946. While there was a higher
ATV for the previous financial giving a turnover of £26,387,435 the business made a loss of -
£176,331. Further analysis using sale price variation and as well as other costs incurred (e.g.
marketing spend) would help to dissect this further.

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2.3 Dashboard of XXXXXXX Marketing Metrics
2.3i May – Oct 2014 Website Traffic Sources 2.3ii May – Oct 2014 Enquiry vs Spend 2.3iii May – Oct 2014 Enquiry All Sources
2.3iv May – Oct 2014 Enquiry Levels 2.3v May – Oct 2014 Cost Per Enquiry 2.3vi May – Oct 2014 Conversion Rates

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2.3b Commentary of XXXXXXX Dashboard
Dashboards can display metrics results for a variety of different areas. This dashboard focusses on
lead generation from the previous 6 months (May-October 2014). This section will provide an
overview of each figure, provide insight in the current results and identify trends and learnings that
can help shape the future of XXXXXXX analytics.
The use of Google Analytics allows an organisation to see where the where customers have not only
come from but where they are going will help to provide insight into the advertised products. Figure
2.3i shows the breakdown of all website traffic sources. Paid search accounts for nearly half of all
XXXXXXX website traffic (48.2%) and also relates to the highest spend. Social media and display
advertising remain very low in website traffic source as this is only recently becomes a focus. Display
advertising was introduced in September 2014 so it is difficult to accurately determine future
impact. However an October snapshot of website traffic puts display at 1.4% of all traffic up from
0.2% in September, although this increase in small it would suggest a future trend in the benefit of
display advertising.
The presence of social media in traffic source is carried through to enquiry levels, 0.4%. While these
levels appear small, social media spend current sits at approximately 0.4% of the budget
(approximately £350 per month) and are producing results equal to spend. XXXXXXX are responding
to this new trend by putting increased budget towards social media activity. Social media
advertising has developed quickly and is showing no hint of slowing down. It provides an
organisation with more opportunities to convert page views or visits into enquiries. Increasing an
organisations following allows them to access to potential, current and previous customers.
Figure 2.3iii illustrates the importance of paid search for XXXXXXX enquiry with nearly two-thirds
(63.2%) generated via this source. Knowing how much CPE is, is essential in being able to budget
and re-distribute funds if necessary. The past financial year (July 2013-June 2014) has an average
cost per enquiry of £14.97. Although the CPE targets vary month to month the target is to reduce
ost ased o last ea s pe fo a e. The u e t YTD Jul -October 2014) CPE is sitting at around
17.09. There has been a decrease in enquiry levels over recent months, but more of the enquiry is
sourced via paid search increasing the CPE. In to justify a business case for further investment in
higher cost enquiry channels it is important for this to be tracked in relation to customer value. It is
not clear from figure 2.3v that the higher CPE relates to a better sales return.
Marketing KPIs are based on lead generation often giving to the temptation to increase spend in
order to increase enquiries levels. While the evidence suggests that the increased spend does
produce increased enquiry levels (figure 2.3ii), loss leading and deal based product online can also
help to generate increased enquiry levels; however the quality of the enquiry is reduced. While the
feedback from consultants from months such a September where there has been increased spend
that it is more difficult to upsell, which we can see from the conversion rate (figure 2.3iv) that
conversion rate was at its highest level for the previous 6 months. In order to fully analyse this data
to recognise patterns in increased spend, the ATV will need to be taken into consideration.
While these graphics establish trends from the previous 6 months they do not account for purchase
patterns and can lead to misleading analysis. September indicates that a higher spend will produce
increased enquiry levels and increased conversion this pattern does continue on through October,
although this can be partly attributed to the product shift. January, February and March are the
months that have previously yield the highest enquiry levels, January 2014 achieved 8437 enquiries.
What these metrics can help to establish individual monthly trends

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3.1 “lide prese tatio for the se i ar The Future of A alytics

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3.2 Future Trends and Use of Marketing Metrics
3.2a Management and Monitoring For Future Trends
Marketing metrics are beneficial to marketers in a variety of different ways. They will play an
increasingly important role in marketing decisions helping to understand consumer behaviour, as
well as a measure for wider business performance. Throughout this report it has been established
that there is a need to continuously observe and analyse trends within marketing performance. This
will provide a benchmark for comparison, a basis for forecasting future performance and to inform
any forthcoming marketing campaigns. It is vital that these current and future metrics are
effe ti el a aged, the eed to e elia le, alid, espo si e, lea a d ele a t CIM, .
The use of metrics is complex and with business having seemingly unquantifiable amounts of data,
the challenge comes to managing the analysis and determining what data is needed when
developing marketing metrics. The Chartered Institute of Marketing (2009) notes in its White Paper
hilst more widespread use of metrics across the board is to be welcomed, metrics usage brings its
o issues a d these eed to e o side ed.
Marketers must quantify the value of products, customers and marketing channels, all under the
various pricing and promotion methods. There is a temptation that for marketing to analyse what is
easy to measure rather than what is relevant. With marketers increasingly being held accountable
fo the fi a ial a ifi atio s of thei de isio s, ala ed s o e a d to etrics, developed by
Kaplan and Norton, should be taken. The management of metrics in this approach focus on the
organisations strategic agenda and select a smaller number of data items to monitor and have a mix
of both financial and non-financial data.
In order for XXXXXXX to fulfil most effective use of metrics the below table identifies the
management and monitoring that will be required over the next three years.
Area of Responsibility Purpose Individual Responsible Frequency
Creation of ala ed
s o e a d
Identify he best
execution of marketing
metrics. This can be
used inform marketing
plans, justify the
marketing spend and
better integrate
marketing metrics with
the wider business
model.
Created by monitored
by the Marketing
Manager. Must ensure
that it is adhered to by
the marketing team.
Updated quarterly,
in line with the
financial year.
Development of social
media strategy and
integration of social
media metrics
Social media monitoring
has become a primary
form of business
intelligence, used to
identify, predict, and
respond to consumer
behaviour.
Social Media
Manager/Executive,
Digital Marketing
Manager/Executive
Ongoing at a
campaign.
Overview reported
to the business
weekly with a full
month end report.
Full integration of
sales and marketing
metrics
Development of a
feedback loop to
determine success of
Sales Management,
Marketing Manager,
Marketing Executive,
Ongoing at a
campaign.
Overview reported

17
campaigns (enquiry
levels, conversion, ATV)
Accountant. to the business
fortnightly with a
full month end
report.
E-direct marketing
Metrics (open rates,
CTR, total enquiry)
Overall success of e-
marketing campaigns to
inform marketing for
future planning. Provide
support for customer
segmentation.
Marketing Executive,
Marketing Manager.
Ongoing reporting
after each EDM
send (currently
once a week). This
does not require
reporting to the
wider business.
Enquiry metrics
(source, enquiry vs
spend, CPE,
conversion)
Establish profitability of
different marketing
channels, campaign
conversion and aid in
planning and
forecasting.
Marketing Manager,
Financial Analyst.
Ongoing.
Reported to the
business monthly.
3.2b Justifying Future Use of Marketing Metrics
In order to make decisions stakeholders rely on accurate, timely and relevant information, marketing
metrics allow this happen. In order to justify the future use of marketing metrics it is important to
identify where current metrics are not providing the whole picture, how they can add value to the
organisation and not just marketing KPIs. Shultz & Gronstedt, (1997) highlight the need for the
business to view marketing as an investment not just an expense.
It is essential for marketing to be integrated into strategic business planning, but it must be willing to
adapt its et i s to do so, aki g a shift a a f o sho t te a al sis a d to a ds lo g-term
ealth eatio “eggie et al . There is evidence to suggest (Seggie, et al., 2007) that there is a
growing discontent with traditional financial reporting. Ambler also otes that fi a ial
easu e e ts alo e a e isleadi g sho i g that the e is a appetite fo ide et i s ithi the
business. While these measures are useful for benchmarking and comparison, historic data cannot
be relied upon to forecasting future trends.
For XXXXXXX, over the next three years there will be continual monitoring of enquiry, from source
(email, social media, display etc.), costs, spend to conversion and average transaction value. These
continue to be relevant when making strategic business decisions, and continue to be significant at a
marketing level to inform the success of campaigns and promotions. If these measurements are
kept consistent it will allow again future trends to be analysed and compared with current (and
historic) data. However as this contains both financial and non-financial data it is important that this
be jointly managed by Marketing and Finance is ascertain enquiry value through incorporation with
sales data.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXs move from travel agent to a travel retailer and a change in target customer, it is
evident from current market share data that XXXXXXX uses improving. Current market share metrics
used to give an overview of the business presence in the market, however its full benefit it not being
utilised as the focus still remains heavily on enquiry levels and turnover.
The improvement of segmentation of XXXXXXX will allow the incorporation of algorithmic marketing.
Using predictive logic and assumptions to suggest to the customer other items they would be

18
i te esti g i pu hasi g. It assu es that if a usto e is sea hi g fo a flight the ill also e
interested in accommodation, care hire, tours etc. Development of this real-time customer data can
also be utilised in sending bespoke campaign and trigger emails.
The last de ades ha e see a sig ifi a t ha ge dete i i g a o pa s assets f o ta gi le
assets such as stock and property, to intangible assets such as brand equity. Kotler, et al., (1999)
defi es a a d as a a e, te , sig , s ol o desgi o o i aio of these, that ide tifies the
goods o se i es of o e selle o goup of selle s a d diffe e iates the f o the o petitio . .
Sawhney & Zabin (2002) sho that i % of a o pa s a ket alue as ade up of
intangible assets compared with 69% in 2002, demonstrating the increasing need to view marketing
metrics as part of the wider business. Brand equity for example can not only help to improve the
ROI by having an advantage in the market place but, having a bigger presence can also increase the
value of the business as whole. While XXXXXXX brand equity is not currently used as a marketing
metric, it is an important consideration for future metrics.
Finally the improvement in social media metrics. It is suggested by Shaw, et al., (2010) that there is
an evolutionary social media path that organisations go through, disregard >> observe >> broadcast
>> involve >> integral. For XXXXXXX it is an integral part of business, however there is currently only
a presence on Facebook, Twitter and Google+ Currently the main use is of an enquiry source with
fu the et i s li ited i et i s e o d likes Fa e ook , u e of comments (Facebook) and
a ou t of e-t eets T itte .
These social media are created by organisations in part to help marketing do their jobs. If the
product and service is great and customers talk about it on social media they are effectively
providing free marketing, promoting the brand to their own communities. Introducing sentiment
analysis will help to evaluate the content posted on social media as positive or negative. Although
sentiment analysis is a useful tool the language software, current programmes used to measure data
may only be 70% accurate. This is due partly in the way in which the language used interrupted.
(CIM,)
There are always effects on the business that are impossible to predict trends. Environmental
changes can heavily affect the travel industry, airline incidents, financial struggles of both those
providing the product and the customer, natural disasters (e.g. volcanic eruptions). While metrics
are useful in showing trends it is difficult to prepare for these outcomes and know how they will
affect the business as they always vary.
To conclude, this report has highlighted the case for marketing metrics to add value to an
organisation and form part of the wide business strategy. How these metrics are communicated is
the key to ensure their acceptance. It is evident for the future of marketing metrics to succeed there
is the need for cross-functioning (matrix organisation) of teams. A le otes that A e
[marketing] metrics system should not just be a bolt on e isti g et i s a d eeds to adapt to fit
with the wider business requirements. The ever increasing need for marketing to justify and place a
value on itself will make it progressively more accountable to the organisation as it becomes
accepted as a justifiable financial investment.

19
1.1 XXXXXXX organisational summary
1.1.1 Overview
XXXXXXX is the trading name of a B2C leisure travel division of XXXXXXX UK Ltd which is owned by
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX; a global retailer listed on the Australian stock exchange. XXXXXXXXXXXXXX has a
global turnover of AUD 13.5bn (GBP 7.85bn) and employs 17,000 globally, operating in 12 different
countries including the UK. XXXXXXX UK has grown their business and team of experts across the
United Kingdom as well as developing new business areas to cover a range of different customer
types and their needs, XXXXXXX in one such division.
XXXXXXX has 65 sales staff with an annual target turnover for the 2014/15 year of £24 million. This
will contribute towards XXXXXXX UK s ta get of £ illio i tu o e fo the sa e fi a ial ea ,
making it the third largest travel retailer in the UK.
1.1.2 Proposition and customer base
Research from Experian show XXXXXXX ai usto e t pes a e p estige positio s % , it
p ospe it % a d su u a sta ilit % . These g oups ake up % of the t a el pu hases
and 80% of these customers types who are looking for long haul tailor-made travel and journey
experiences.
For XXXXXXX lead generation is the key performance indicator (KP). The current targets are to
achieve at least 80 enquiries per consultant (EPC) per month; based on the current staffing levels
gives a monthly target of 5,200 and an annual target of 62,400.
1.1.3 Competitors
XXXXXXX competitors; Audley Travel, Trailfinders, Kuoni, Virgin Holidays and Travel Nation currently
have 67% market share of this business. XXXXXXX market share is currently 7% with the aim for this
to grow to 15% amount over the next three years.
1.1.4 Other relevant stakeholders
 Shareholders
 Customers
 Employees
 Third party suppliers
1.1.5 Important information of note
XXXXXXX UK is going through a process of change, st ategi t a sitio f o t a el age to a o ld
lass etaile of t a el p odu t FLT a ual epo t FY i the fa e of i easi g o petitio .
Vertical integration though the recent acquisitions of ground handlers made by XXXXXXX have
helped to gain greater control over the margin and supply. With this new direction from XXXXXXX,
XXXXXXX are too going through changes, including a focus on long haul tailor-made travel, a
XXXXXXX p odu t a ge alled Jou e s .

20
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