Metrics for Measuring Ad Campaign Effectiveness

Advertising is not an exact science. There's no precise way to measure the success of an ad campaign. You can't, for example, determine how many sales dollars are generated by each advertising dollar you spend. But there are methods that will give you a rough idea of whether or not your ads are hitting the mark.

To assess the effectiveness of your advertising campaign, you can monitor sales, new customers, requests for information, phone inquiries, retail store traffic, Web-site traffic or clickthrough rates. Use these tactics to gauge the power of your ads:

• Track retail traffic by counting the people who enter your store. Don't forget to monitor traffic before you start the ad campaign, so you'll have a basis for comparison.

• Compare sales before, during and after an ad campaign. Keep in mind that advertising often has a cumulative or delayed effect, so ad-driven sales may not materialize immediately.

• In print ads, include a coupon that customers can redeem for a discount or gift with their purchase. Code the coupons so you can determine which ad or publication generates the best results.

• Offer an incentive for customers to tell you they're responding to an ad: "Mention this ad and get a 10 percent discount on your first order."

• Use magazine response cards. Some publications offer response cards — also known as bingo cards or inquiry cards — that let readers request information from advertisers. You can also run your own response card in conjunction with an ad. Remember to code the cards if you place them in more than one publication.