Scale: the thing we use for measurement. We are surrounded by scales. We measure everything from the distance to a destination to how much something (or someone) weighs to how long it’s going to take. Every measurement has a standard scale associated with it. For example, we measure distance in miles, weight in pounds and time in hours. It is second nature to us. It makes life easier and more meaningful. The same applies to everything else that is measurable including in the world of marketing. That’s where Key Performance Indicators, or KPIs, come in play.
In marketing world KPI is a standard scale to measure the success of things like marketing campaigns, a website’s performance and a brand’s position in a competitive landscape. The million dollar word here is STANDARD. If you are developing the best algorithms in the world to come up with the best KPIs, the most important thing to do is to make sure the KPIs you define are acceptable as the standard.
So let’s get to the important part. What are the ingredients to make KPIs standard? It’s a sequence of things. First and foremost is accuracy. You need enough benchmark and trends to show accuracy of your KPIs. When you have historical data to prove accuracy, you are in the market with something that you can be justified with evidence. You can make a case that there is a need for these KPIs because that’s the best measure of success. You have the confidence to let the early adopters–the progressive clients–kick tires and try it out. When accurate results emerge, the most important ingredient in the standards business comes in picture. Trust. Trust around KPIs leads to adoption, first by the early adopters and then by everyone else. And there you have it–a new measurement standard making the lives of people in the industry so much easier and quantifiable.
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