TIRED OF ROI?

There’s no dispute that the subject of ROI (Return on Investment) measurement has been the hot topic for the past year and more. The great debate in the US incentive market is whether, when all is said and done, this subject is getting more than just lip service.

Many industry associations are spending thousands of dollars researching and developing methods of measurement. Some corporate users are applying ROI measurements to various programs including meetings and incentives. Still, many industry providers are skeptical about the seriousness of applying ROI measurements either because they don’t fully understand them or they believe the old adage of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Well, it is broke!

At the SITE International Conference a panel of international incentive providers discussed the fact that they are more and more called upon to provide additional, new services including proving the ROI of programs. True to fashion, Martin Lewis, panel moderator, summed it up by saying, "If your company is nothing more than a travel fulfillment company, in a couple of years you’ll be nothing more than a twitching corpse! "

In the same vain, if your company is not using ROI measurement to improve your programs, your programs are likely to expire as well.

We may lack Martin’s dramatic way with words but we agree with his conclusion. So, in the hope that we can keep more incentive industry companies alive and well, we will dedicate an article in each future issue of fourCE in Focus to the subject of measuring ROI. It is the future and none of us wants to get left behind.

fourCE.org develops strategies for companies to reap maximum benefits from incentive marketing programs. We work with both users and suppliers of incentive programs to enhance their success through implementation of customized management and marketing solutions.