Every investment made in a company should yield a return. Just like financial investing, there are a number of options. You select the ones that produce the highest return or address your highest priority needs. In business, the yield may be more customers, higher quality or lower costs in producing the work, employees who stay with the business over the long term, or increased revenue. With all of these, it’s critical to define your expected return on investment (ROI).
Nowhere is this concept more important than with investments being made to market your business to potential customers. There are an abundance of options to choose from. These include conducting effective sales meetings, tracking sales activities, and proper call planning for meetings arranged by your salespeople — whose time is likely the largest single marketing investment being made. That being said, there are a variety of events and activities where both money and time are being invested but possibly not closely scrutinized … although they should be.