Dublin, Ireland – 12 April 2012 – B2B marketers should share just two categories of metrics with senior management if they are to gain the respect of CEOs and CFOs, according to Marketo, the fastest-growing provider of Revenue Performance Management (RPM) technology. Revenue Metrics and Marketing Program Performance Metrics, which document the impact of effort and investment and directly link it to revenue and profit, will enable marketers to speak the financial language of business. Whilst tracking other metrics internally within the marketing department helps to make better marketing decisions, sharing these non-revenue related metrics will only serve to undermine marketing’s credibility with the C-Suite and board members.

Marketo has outlined five key areas where marketing metrics can often go awry. These include:
1. Vanity Metrics – Too often, marketers rely on "feel good" measurements to justify their marketing spend, instead of pursuing metrics that measure business outcomes and improve marketing performance and profitability. Typical examples include the number of Facebook likes, Twitter followers, and names gathered at a tradeshow.
2. Measuring What is Easy – When it is difficult to measure revenue and profit, marketers often end up using metrics that stand in for those numbers. Whilst this can be acceptable in some situations, it raises the question in the mind of fellow executives whether those metrics accurately reflect the financial insight they really want to know about.
3. Focusing on Quantity, Not Quality – Focusing on quantity without also measuring quality can lead to programmes that look good initially but don’t deliver profits.
4. Activity, Not Results – Marketing activity is easy to see and measure, but marketing results are hard to measure. In contrast, sales activity is hard to measure, but sales results are easy to measure. Little wonder then that sales tends to get the credit for revenue, but marketing is perceived as a cost centre.
5. Efficiency Instead of Effectiveness – Paying attention to the difference between effectiveness metrics (doing the right things) and efficiency metrics (doing – possibly the wrong things well). For example, having a packed event is no good if it’s full of all the wrong people.

"As the function that 'owns' the relationship with early stage prospects, Marketing is now responsible for a much greater portion of the revenue cycle than ever before," said Fergus Gloster, Managing Director EMEA for Marketo. "According to SiriusDecisions, seventy percent of the buying process is now complete by the time a prospect is ready to engage with sales. When executed well, revenue starts with marketing. Yet many marketers think of marketing ROI as reporting on the outcome of their programmes, often in the form of monthly reports. CEOs and boards don’t care about 99 per cent of the metrics that marketers track, but they do care about revenue and profit. The right metrics and marketing analytics will empower marketers to move from historical, backwards looking measurement to decision-focused management."

To address this, Marketo has created The Definitive Guide to Marketing Metrics & Analytics, to help marketers take more control over the revenue process, build the respect of their organisational peers, and earn a seat at the revenue table. The Guide is available for download at www.marketo.com/b2b-marketing-resources/best-practices/the-definitive-guide-to-marketing-metrics-and-marketing-analytics.php

Revenue Performance Management (RPM) Defined
Revenue Performance Management (RPM) extends beyond traditional marketing automation and lead nurturing technologies to optimize interactions with buyers across the revenue cycle and accelerate predictable revenue growth. It includes the full range of online and offline customer interaction channels, including web, mobile, social and events. Marketo's vision is to provide the tools, thought leadership, and best practices to change how marketing and sales work — and work together — to help companies of all sizes accelerate predictable revenue growth.

About Marketo
Marketo is the fastest growing provider in Revenue Performance Management. Marketo's powerful yet easy-to-use marketing automation and sales effectiveness solutions transform how marketing and sales teams of all sizes work — and work together — to drive dramatically increased revenue performance and fuel business growth. The company's proven technology, comprehensive services and expert guidance are helping more than 1,700 enterprise and mid-market companies around the world to turn marketing from a cost centre to a business-building revenue driver. Marketo also offers Spark by Marketo™, a new brand of marketing automation tailored specifically for small businesses – the fastest-growing and largest segment of today's economy.
Marketo was recently named one of "America's Most Promising Companies" by Forbes Magazine, the fastest-growing private company of 2011 by the Silicon Valley Business Journal, and the "2011 CRM Market Leaders Awards Winner for Marketing Solutions" by CRM Magazine. For more information, visit www.marketo.com, or subscribe to Marketo’s award-winning blogs at blog.marketo.com.

PR Contact:
Vanessa Land
Devonshire Marketing
Tel: +44 (0)7768 693 779
Email: vanessa[at]devonshiremarketing[dot]com

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