Five Questions Every CEO Should ask Marketing

Jerry Rackley

Jerry on 5 Questions

 

Recently I presented at an American Marketing Association conference. At the end of my session, one of the attendees came up to me and began chatting about his situation. He has a CEO who micromanages his marketing department. It’s so bad, that when his CEO is on vacation, he can’t get anything done because the CEO has to see everything. I’ve been where this guy is, and it is not a happy place.

 

CEOs do have the right to exercise oversight and authority over every corporate function, marketing included. But I have to ask on behalf of micromanaged marketers everywhere: is going over Pantone colors, picking out fonts and suggesting ad copy really the highest and best use of a CEO’s time? I’m quite sure this is not how the board wants its CEO spending his or her time.

 

There is a much better way.

 

The CEO is the chief vision-caster for the organization. Ideally, the CEO has team members who understand and support the vision, and who are empowered to do their jobs under its influence. If the CMO or anyone else on the team can’t execute on the vision without being micromanaged, then perhaps they don’t belong on the team. But if they can, then give them the freedom to do their jobs.

 

For the benefit of both CEOs and the marketers that serve them, let me suggest an appropriate set of questions for the CEO to ask of the marketing function. This list is representative, not comprehensive, of the kinds of fair, insightful, penetrating and even difficult questions to ask of the marketing function:
 

  1. What’s the status of our brand? Your brand is your organization’s trustmark. Marketing is the guardian of the brand and the builder of the brand’s equity. At any given point in time, marketing should know how healthy the brand is, how well it’s working and how it’s perceived. Demand Metric tools that can help:
     
  2. What plans are there from moving marketing from a cost center to a revenue center? Historically, marketing has been an expense with a fuzzy connection to revenue. Marketing has evolved and is a vital component to revenue generation in a measurable way. At the end of the fiscal year, savvy marketers know that the right discussion to have is not a negotiation on the size of the marketing budget, but on how much more revenue marketing can contribute with the right investment. Demand Metric tools that can help:
     
  3. How is marketing exploiting our differentiation in our marketing and communications? This question really gets at how the company and its solutions are positioned.  An experienced CMO will seek to understand it as well as the competitions’. Then, your CMO will work to refine, strengthen it and exploit it in every way possible, expertly showcasing your differentiation and why it matters. Demand Metric tools that can help:
     
  4. How pervasive is the marketing culture throughout the entire organization? If the CEO is the vision-caster, the CMO is the marketing cultural ambassador to the organization. Ideally, everyone in every department is indoctrinated to understand their connection to the customer.  It's a culture where everyone understands that marketing is not a box on the org chart, but something everyone does everyday. Demand Metric tools that can help:
     
  5. What measurements are being used to track the results of our marketing efforts? Activity is fine, but measurable results are what matter. Opinions abound about the quality of marketing’s efforts, but the data can’t lie. Competent marketers understand this and can support the value they create with metrics. Demand Metric tools that can help:
     

A good follow-up to each of these questions is this: “how do you know?” Anecdotal information is helpful, but not enough. Look for responses to these questions that have the weight and authority of objective measurements or research behind them.  

 
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