{"id":11273,"date":"2026-08-12T18:40:04","date_gmt":"2026-08-13T00:40:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/?p=11273"},"modified":"2026-08-12T18:40:04","modified_gmt":"2026-08-13T00:40:04","slug":"when-marketers-should-ignore-the-data","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/?p=11273","title":{"rendered":"When marketers should ignore the data"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"A<\/div>\n

The availability of more granular, real-time data means marketers can see performance change almost constantly. But more signals also mean more noise, and reacting to every change is a surefire recipe for failure.<\/p>\n

Marketers need to measure investments based on the value they\u2019re supposed to create, give them enough time to work, and be ready to move money when a real opportunity appears. Research on the financial impact of marketing in the Marketing Strategy Journal offers a way to address this.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cNot all change is equally pertinent: most changes in firms\u2019 business performance are just temporary in nature and have little or no strategic consequences for the firm,\u201d write Profs. Marnik G. Dekimpe, KU Leuven, and Dominique M. Hanssens.<\/p>\n

Start with what you\u2019re trying to accomplish<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s tempting to measure investments using the metrics you already have: conversions, revenue, acquisition costs, clicks, or pipeline. However, you need to start with what you\u2019re trying to do, not with what you can count.<\/p>\n

Marketing is, understandably, focused on generating and reporting immediate sales. That can result in less emphasis and measurement of building customer relationships, brand strength, and market position. All of which affect future cash flows, financial risk, and company value.<\/p>\n

So before spending, marketers need to know what they expect to change and how that change creates financial value.<\/p>\n

For performance media, the connection can be fairly direct. Brand investment takes a different route, potentially moving awareness or preference before customer behavior and financial results change. Customer investments can work through satisfaction, retention, or customer value.<\/p>\n

The measurement plan needs to fit the investment.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

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Stop putting every investment on the same clock<\/h2>\n

Digital marketing has trained everyone to expect quick answers. That\u2019s fine when the thing you\u2019re measuring changes quickly.<\/p>\n

The report warns that \u201cthe increased emphasis on reaction speed may overlook the fact that most intangible assets are inherently slow-moving.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sales and campaign response can move within days. Brand attitudes and customer relationships usually take longer. Just as watching a pot won\u2019t make it boil faster, checking those measures more frequently won\u2019t speed up changes in the numbers.<\/p>\n

That gives performance programs an advantage when budgets come under scrutiny. They produce results marketers can point to quickly, while brand and customer investments need more time to show their value.<\/p>\n

Set the metric and measurement period before the money goes out the door. Some campaigns can be judged in days or weeks. Customer and brand investments need longer.<\/p>\n

A moving number doesn\u2019t always require a response<\/h2>\n

Real-time measurement creates an obvious temptation: Something changed, so let\u2019s fix it.<\/p>\n

Most changes in business performance are temporary. The challenge is separating normal fluctuations from changes that alter the potential return on marketing.<\/p>\n

Examining the high-performance camera market, the researchers found that positive reviews in professional photography magazines created brief windows when brands could accelerate sales growth. Brands that increased their marketing spending during those windows saw a larger and sales lift, and the gains persisted after the initial bump. Competitors, meanwhile, didn\u2019t increase their spending, so they missed the opportunity.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe more able a firm is at monitoring its business environment and acting swiftly when trend-setting opportunities or threats occur, the more effective its marketing investments and its long-term viability.\u201d<\/p>\n

Every market will have different signals. A change in demand, competitor activity, product reception, or economic conditions could make additional spending more valuable than it was a week earlier.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s where faster data becomes useful. Marketers need it to spot opportunities that deserve action, rather than to give themselves more reasons to tweak campaigns.<\/p>\n

Leave room in the budget to move<\/h2>\n

Of course, spotting an opportunity isn\u2019t much help if every dollar is already spoken for.<\/p>\n

Annual planning needs some flexibility for opportunities nobody could predict months in advance. When the evidence shows the potential return on marketing has changed, marketers need resources they can move.<\/p>\n

That doesn\u2019t mean shifting budgets every time a KPI dips. The point is to keep enough flexibility to act when something meaningful changes.<\/p>\n

When budgets get tight, investments with immediate, attributable returns have an obvious advantage. Brand, customer, and market-building investments can be harder to defend because their financial effects take longer to show up.<\/p>\n

The researchers confirmed that companies that respond to falling stock prices by cutting marketing spending improve short-term financial results at the expense of longer-term company value.<\/p>\n

Marketers need evidence for both short- and long-term investments. That means tracking whether brand and customer spending are building the intended assets, then connecting those changes to business performance over the appropriate period.<\/p>\n

Accountability still matters. The timeframe for that accountability matters, too.<\/p>\n

Marketing technology keeps making it easier to react. The harder skill \u2014 and potentially the more valuable one \u2014 is knowing when to leave things alone and when a signal is important enough to move money.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe financial impact of marketing: Looking back and moving forward\u201d by Marnik G. Dekimpe of Tilburg University and KU Leuven, and Dominique M. Hanssens of UCLA, appears in the December 2026 issue of Marketing Strategy Journal. It can be <\/em>downloaded here<\/em><\/a>. (No registration required)<\/em><\/p>\n

The post When marketers should ignore the data<\/a> appeared first on MarTech<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The availability of more granular, real-time data means marketers can see performance change almost constantly. But more signals also mean more noise, and reacting to every change is a surefire recipe for failure. Marketers need to measure investments based on the value they\u2019re supposed to create, give them enough time to work, and be ready … <\/p>\n

Read more “When marketers should ignore the data”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11273","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"featured_media_urls":{"thumbnail":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"medium":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"medium_large":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"large":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"inspiro-featured-image":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"inspiro-loop":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"inspiro-loop@2x":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail@2x":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-masonry":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-masonry@2x":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail_cinema":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail_portrait":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail_portrait@2x":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail_square":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/the-right-data-800x450.png",0,0,false]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11273","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11273"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11273\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11273"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11273"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11273"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}