Career Boost 2Career Boost 2 is membership in an elite group: those who possess a rare skill that senior managers are demanding. In my consulting work with clients in advertising and public relations, I've learned that approximately 1 person out of 50 does any profitability (ROI) measurement. Many people do some navigational measurement to tune their advertising or PR programs. That's all well and good, but senior managers are not impressed with it. Join an Elite GroupOnly 2 percent of advertising and PR people do any evaluative or ROI measurement. That's a sad commentary on our profession, but it's also an incredible opportunity for you. Think about the implications of this career boost. All you have to do is set up a simple measurement system and you can become a member of an elite group: the 2 percent who can demonstrate the dollar-denominated value of their programs. This is Career Boost 2.The members of the elite group are the people that senior managers are looking for. And this has been true for a long, long time. Just listen to William T. Esrey, chairman and chief executive officer of Sprint. In 1995, Mr. Esrey delivered a blistering speech to the annual convention of the American Association of Advertising Agencies. As quoted in The Wall Street Journal (4/28/95), the Sprint chairman warned the agency people that clients are "going to hold [ad agencies] more closely accountable for results than ever before. That's not just because we're going to be more demanding in getting value for our advertising dollars. It's also because we know the technology is there to measure advertising impact more precisely than you have done in the past." The Journal also said that it was the second year in a row that "a major client stood before the Four A's annual convention and delivered what amounted to a shape-up lecture." The year before, it was Edwin L. Artzt, chairman of Procter & Gamble. It's for Advertising AND Public RelationsAnd you've heard the same kinds of demands for proof in public relations. Here's Donald E. Frischmann, communications operations director of IBM United States:"If PR people want to continue working for major companies, they must show management better proof of PR's effect on the bottom line." (Jack O'Dwyer's Newsletter, 10/7/92) When leading companies such as Sprint, P&G and IBM make this kind of noise in public, it's wise to listen closely. They're describing Career Boost 2. CEOs Are Tired of Hocus-PocusThis trend has continued to the present day. Senior managers are fed up with our traditional ways of measuring. They are tired of hearing only about gross rating points, unaided recall, media impressions and pass-along readership.Those metrics are useful to the marketing department, as navigational tools. But they are of no direct interest to senior managers, who think of them as hocus-pocus. They prefer to see the kinds of metrics they are used to: metrics that have dollar signs in front of them. Career SecurityIn a way, Career Boost 2 is really the ultimate long-term career security, isn't it? Possessing a skill that senior managers are demanding, and that only 1 in 50 people can supply!I can attest to the power of this distinction, because I've seen it in action. I've been in the ad/PR profession for decades. I've worked for three Fortune 500 companies and three large PR agencies. And I was lucky, because I happened to work for bosses who believed in measurement. I saw them use their measurement skills to impress CEOs and presidents. Anyone who can talk profits stands above the crowd. Now let's look at Career Boost 3, the third way that using ROI metrics can boost your career:
Career Boost 3.
Return from Career Boost 2 to Boost Your Career
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