Leslie Moeller
Senior Partner
Booz & Company
Excellence in Retail
Given that low consumer confidence in the United States has led to significant cutbacks across the media and retail industries, you might assume that Booz & Company's North American Consumer, Media and Retail practice might be horribly positioned in this economy. But you'd be wrong.
"We're as healthy as we were a year-and-a-half ago, if not healthier," says Les Moeller, a senior partner with the firm and the practice's leader. "And we've got a number of self-funding projects that will set us up even better when the economy recovers."
A significant reason for the practice's success is Moeller's approach to helping clients measure the ROI on their marketing investments. He stresses that clients should:
• Understand, classify, and choose specific analytics to monitor the success of their marketing efforts;
• Build a decision-support system to put the analytics to work;
• Establish processes that integrate the analytics and tools into
operations; and,
• Use organizational alignment to assure company-wide acceptance and execution of the system.
"I've visited tons of clients and have found that most have one or two, but you really need all four. After explaining the process, I've never had a client say anything other than 'yes, I need it,' " he says. Moeller's ROI Marketing strategy is detailed in his recently-published book, The Four Pillars of Profit-Driven Marketing.
Nailing the ROI on marketing achieves two goals: it prevents wasting money on unsuccessful efforts, and it helps to focus dollars on the biggest revenue generating opportunities. This fits Moeller's approach of investing in the future while reducing costs today.
"Everyone's P&L looks tough. Everyone is reducing costs. Even for companies that are growing and remarkably healthy, this is a good time to tighten their belts. That being said, a lot of companies are fundamentally healthy and are making money. They are looking at the future. This downturn presents a great acquisition opportunity," Moeller says. "I think it is imminently rational to do both at the same time."
—Jess Scheer
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