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ACCOUNTABILITY
IN MARKETING
LINKING TACTICS TO
STRATEGY, CUSTOMER
FOCUS AND GROWTH
XAXIS PRESENTS
November 2017

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Dear reader,
We are proud to have worked with the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) to produce this
independent research exploring the demand for accountability in marketing and what matters
most to CMOs. The report provides a fascinating insight into marketers’ priorities and the
challenges they face, emphasising the importance of having the right KPIs, platform and
knowledge to really drive accountability in the marketing function.
At Xaxis, we understand that accountability is vital for marketers using digital advertising
in general, and programmatic advertising in particular. Done well, data-driven programmatic
advertising can help brand marketers increase conversion rates, cut wastage, and make
a measurable contribution to their company’s bottom line, while making advertising more
relevant and welcome for consumers.
Marketers know this too: according to IAB Europe, the total programmatic display advertising
market in Europe has been growing by double digits yearly since 2013 and last year totalled
€8.1bn, with just over half of display ad spend trading programmatically.
But many brands are still faced with challenges around the accountability of their digital media
investments. At Xaxis, we draw on seven years of experience in the programmatic space, which
has given us an expert understanding of how marketers can leverage data and technology,
to deliver measurable results.
We aim to drive better media outcomes to help advertisers overcome their accountability
challenge, and achieve strategic and tactical goals for their business.
I hope you enjoy reading this report as much as we have enjoyed working on it. In the end,
our common goal should be to delight consumers with fewer, but more relevant and creative
ads, for everyone’s benefit.
Warm regards,
FOREWORD
NICOLAS BIDON
GLOBAL PRESIDENT
XAXIS

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Darrell Sansom became Chief Marketing Officer
(CMO) of AXA UK in April 2017. After a review
of his role, however, he was renamed Chief
Customer and Innovation Officer to signal
his strategic role in the business. As with the
‘chief growth officers’ at Coca-Cola, Kellogg’s
Company and Mondelez International, his new
title reflects the wider range of responsibilities
now being assigned to marketing chiefs.
In addition to their outward, customer-facing
activities, marketing executives are working
more closely with chief executives to help fulfil
strategic targets, deliver innovation, and focus on
using data and analytics to segment and target
the consumer base. They are also increasingly
accountable for overall business growth.
However, a lack of visibility across both tactical
and strategic activities is undermining the
ability of marketing chiefs to meet their goals,
according to a survey of 250 CMOs and senior
marketing executives across Europe.
METHODOLOGY
The research was conducted by The Economist
Intelligence Unit (EIU) and sponsored by Xaxis.
Respondents were drawn from organisations
in Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Norway,
Spain, Sweden and the UK, spanning a broad
range of sectors. The study looks at how far
marketing executives have progressed in
achieving accountability both for their tactical
activities, such as short-term campaigns and
initiatives, and for their contribution to their
organisation’s overall strategic aims.
The survey data reveal that while marketers
recognise the need to achieve visibility of
their activities to demonstrate return on
investment (ROI), they are often restricted in
achieving their aim. Among the obstacles they
encounter are a tendency to focus too much
on the tactical at the expense of the strategic,
a lack of data integration, and inadequate data
analysis skills.
INTRODUCTION
GONE ARE THE DAYS WHEN MARKETING CHIEFS
FOCUSED SOLELY ON THE CLASSIC 4PS: PRODUCT,
PRICE, PROMOTIONS AND PLACE – THEY NOW
MUST TAKE AN INTEGRATED APPROACH TO DRIVE
COMPANY GOALS.

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Marketers are expected to demonstrate
their contribution to strategic
goals. More than eight out of ten
respondents say their department
is held at least partially accountable
for its contribution to strategic goals,
and 46% have their performance
assessed on that basis. Meanwhile, 60%
say improved accountability would
enhance marketing’s contribution to the
organisation’s strategic goals.
Tactical accountability is blighted
by poor data analytics capabilities.
Over half (55%) of respondents
report that their marketing platforms
are fragmented and do not offer a
comprehensive overview of tactical
marketing investments. About the same
percentage say that their organisation’s
data analytical skills are weak and data
analysis is unfeasible.
Ineffective tactical accountability
can undermine marketers’ ability
to demonstrate their contribution
to strategic goals. A strong focus
on tactical objectives is the biggest
challenge in establishing marketing’s
contribution to strategic goals, according
to 31% of respondents. Worryingly, only
30% say core marketing performance
indicators are defined in terms of the
organisation’s strategic goals, and 27%
say that tactical marketing objectives are
not aligned with these goals.
KEY RESEARCH FINDINGS
Specifically, this executive summary highlights the following survey findings:
IMPROVED ACCOUNTABILITY WOULD IMPROVE MARKETING’S CONTRIBUTION
TO THE ORGANISATION’S STRATEGIC GOALS.
Strongly disagree Strongly agree
Italy 18%30%6% 32%14%
Source: The Economist Intelligence Unit.
United Kingdom 52%28%14%6%
Germany 22%22%16% 36%4%
Spain 12%10% 28% 18% 32%
Nordics 16%22%8%4% 50%

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Marketing activities are traditionally divided into ‘strategic’ or above-the-line (ATL) and below-the-
line (BTL) activities. ATL activities are targeted at large numbers of people using mass media, such
as television, radio, digital and out-of-home advertising, to promote brands and to reach the target
consumer. BTL activities are more one-to-one initiatives, such as roadshows, email campaigns,
leaflets and the post, to promote a product or service. Measuring return on investment (ROI) is often
more difficult for strategic than for tactical marketing. But with the advent of the internet and other
technologies the boundaries are beginning to blur: attribution is becoming more and more available
and eventually turns into a requirement for most brands of the future.
AXA UK’s CMO, Darrell Sansom (interviewed for this report), sees three emergent categories:
“Traditional ATL; a middle ground that includes digital, programmatic and display advertising; and
day-to-day execution.” For the purposes of this research, we have differentiated between strategic
and tactical goals, as listed below.
Strategic goals Tactical goals
Growing revenue from existing products and services Improving customer satisfaction
Growing revenue from new products and services Driving engagement, e.g. with social messages
Increasing profit
Digital key performance indicators, e.g.
increase in click-through rates, visits to site,
brochure downloads, registrations, time spent
on site, conversion rate, lead generation etc.
Increasing share value Brand favourability/consideration
Expanding into new geographical markets
Positive press coverage and share
of voice
Digital transformation Membership/subscription rates
Increasing scale through mergers and acquisitions Reduced customer acquisition costs
Returning value to investors through acquisition by
another company
Organic traffic
Sustainability/corporate social responsibility New client(s) acquisitions
MARKETING GOALS EXPLAINED
60% SAY IMPROVED ACCOUNTABILITY WOULD ENHANCE
MARKETING’S CONTRIBUTION TO THE ORGANISATION’S
STRATEGIC GOALS.
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Gone are the days when marketing chiefs
focused solely on the classic 4Ps of marketing:
product, price, promotions and place. They
must now take an integrated approach to drive
company goals. The pressure to link activity
with tangible business results and deliver
growth as a CMO is becoming an essential
part of the job. Moreover, as trusted CEO
advisers, their remit extends from research and
development (R&D), innovation, pricing and
packaging to partnerships, joint ventures and
improving the customer experience across the
purchase funnel, both online and offline.
The new marketing chiefs are expected to
show not only that their activities provide a
return on investment (ROI), but also that they
help the organisation achieve its strategic
ambitions. “Irrespective of the job title, the
role is all about how business strategy can
be delivered through marketing to best serve
the customer,” says Darrell Sansom, Chief
Marketing Officer (CMO) of AXA UK. “You need
to be able to articulate, whether for a single
year or over the lifetime of the customer,
how marketing is adding value to the strategic
aims of the business, which in part have to
be financial.”
60% SAY MARKETING MUST
DO BETTER
Yet 60% of respondents say improvements
are needed if marketing is to make a better
contribution to the organisation’s strategic
goals. This view is much more common in
the UK (80%) than in any other region –
especially in Spain (44%). Increased marketing
accountability is cited as a primary marketing
priority by 20% of respondents, not far short
of improving customer loyalty (24%), customer
experience (23%), customer engagement and
reach of marketing channels (22% each), and
brand favourability (21%).
Simon Sproule, Vice President and
CMO at luxury sports car manufacturer
Aston Martin Lagonda, says he is “100%
accountable” for marketing activities and
adopts a ‘top down’ approach. “Ultimately,
the measure of marketing success is the
achievement of the business plan, both in
terms of sales and profitability. How many
cars do we need to sell to create a profitable
business? We work back from there when
deciding how to spend our pot of marketing
money,” he says.
FROM TACTICIAN TO STRATEGIST:
THE 21ST-CENTURY CMO
ULTIMATELY, THE MEASURE OF MARKETING SUCCESS IS
THE ACHIEVEMENT OF THE BUSINESS PLAN, BOTH
IN TERMS OF SALES AND PROFITABILITY
Simon Sproule, VP and CMO Aston Martin Lagonda

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TO WHAT EXTENT IS THE MARKETING DEPARTMENT IN YOUR ORGANISATION
HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR ITS ACTIVITIES AND INVESTMENTS?
MARKETING IS...
30%27%
6%
11%
15%
11%
Fully strategic
Partially strategic
Not strategic
Not tactical Partially tactical Fully tactical

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56% [OF MARKETERS]
AGREE THAT EFFECTIVE
STRATEGIC MARKETING
ACCOUNTABILITY CANNOT
BE ACHIEVED WITHOUT
ACCOUNTABILITY FOR
TACTICAL INVESTMENTS
Darrell Sansom,
CMO Axa UK
Strategic goals are of paramount importance
to CMOs – 27% of survey respondents are
held fully accountable for strategic goals
and partially for tactical, compared with just
15% fully accountable for tactical and only
partially for strategic. The most common form
of accountability among British, Nordic and
German respondents is accountability for both
tactical activities and strategic contribution
(UK 40%, Nordics 32%, Germany 28%). Among
respondents from Italy and Spain, it was more
strategic than tactical (Italy 38%, Spain 24%).
However, the survey suggests that ineffective
accountability for tactical marketing
initiatives is hampering respondents’ ability
to demonstrate their strategic contribution.
Indeed, 56% of respondents agree that
effective strategic marketing accountability
cannot be achieved without accountability
for tactical investments.
There is no shortage of mechanisms for
measuring the impact of tactical investments.
Only 10% of respondents say there is no
method or system in place to measure
marketing productivity and ROI. Just 13%
identify no link between the marketing
department’s metrics and the financial metrics
of the organisation, and only 16% admit to
having no process for measuring the valuation
of customer retention and engagement levels.
PROVING THEIR WORTH
However, in many cases this tactical
accountability does not help marketing
executives prove their contribution to
strategic aims. For example, 27% say tactical
marketing objectives are not aligned with the
organisation’s strategic goals, while only 30%
say key performance indicators (KPIs) are
defined in terms of the organisation’s strategic
goals. When asked what would be most useful
to achieve marketing accountability over the
next 2–3 years, 30% cite marketing KPIs that
reflect strategic goals.
This situation is exacerbated by the fact that
according to one-quarter of those surveyed,
there is a lack of understanding of what the
organisation’s strategic goals are. A focus on
tactical KPIs is not a problem so long as they
are in line with strategic goals, according to Mr
Sansom. “Providing that your day-to-day activity
is in concert with your longer-term strategic
ambition, it is fine. Both have a role to play,
but they need to be in balance. The customer
experience must be consistent, whatever the
engagement, whether online, in-store or a
campaign on TV, radio or billboards,” he says.
The biggest single challenge for companies,
says Mr Sansom, “is moving from a product-
orientated organisation to a customer-
orientated organisation.” At AXA, this means
encouraging people to live healthy lifestyles
by promoting fitness and well-being rather
than the traditional insurance approach, which
is more about supporting people when they
become ill. For example, the company is
working with Doctor Care Anywhere to deliver
a ‘virtual GP service’ for businesses that provide
their employees with symptom tracking,
medication reminders and other patient self-
management services. “We are still focused on
insurance as one of the largest providers in the
market, but the proposition needs to extend to
that health and well-being position as well.”
STRATEGIC MISALIGNMENT

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BLINDED BY METRICS?
But for many respondents, the need to focus on everyday tactics is a barrier to more strategic
accountability. When asked to identify the biggest challenge in establishing marketing’s
contribution to strategic goals, the most common answer, cited by 31% of respondents,
is an overemphasis on tactical marketing investment. This view is especially common among
respondents from Germany, Italy and the Nordics (36% each).
The tendency to get more tactical and lose focus on strategy can increase when people are
under pressure or there is a need to sell a particular product, according to Mr Sproule. “Or tactical
marketing might just focus on the wrong things, so it doesn’t really feed into strategic. Every
business faces that challenge. Most commonly, it is about not building or enhancing the brand.”
WHAT ARE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES IN ESTABLISHING ACCOUNTABILITY FOR
MARKETING’S CONTRIBUTION TO STRATEGIC GOALS?
A lack of understanding of the department’s potential
contribution to the organisation’s strategic goals.
24%
Marketing has no influence in shaping the
organisation’s strategic goals.
20%
Strong focus on tactical marketing can lead to neglect
of strategic accountability.
31%
We have no problems in establishing strategic
accountability.
23%
A lack of understanding about the organisation’s
strategic goals. 25%
There is no culture of accountability in marketing. 8%
Tactical marketing objectives are not aligned to our
organisation’s strategic goals.
27%

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Another concern highlighted by our research
is an apparent lack of cohesion and integration
across various marketing activities – 55%
of survey respondents say that marketing
platforms are fragmented and do not offer a
comprehensive overview of tactical marketing
investments. More than half admit that the
organisation’s data analytical skills are so
weak that data analysis is unfeasible. This
calls into question whether the mechanisms
underpinning tactical accountability are
effective.
Meanwhile, when asked what would be most
useful to achieve marketing accountability over
the next 2–3 years, 36% cite improved use of
data analytics, with UK respondents especially
keen (42%).
Interestingly, this is a much more common
answer among respondents who say their
marketing department is held accountable
for both tactical activities and contribution to
strategic aims (56%) than among those who
are mostly tactical (26%) or mostly strategic
(28%) in their accountability. This suggests
that data analytics is of particular use to
marketers that are expected to provide a
holistic view of the impact of their activities,
from top to bottom.
At Aston Martin Lagonda, the annual budget
process draws on a quite granular analysis of
the impact of its various marketing channels.
“It gives us the ability to track prospects
through their purchase cycle and look at
the interaction we had with them to gauge
whether the various activities we were doing
were successful in converting them to become
customers,” Mr Sproule explains. “So, when we
come to set our budget for next year, we can
base the decision on what was most effective
last year.”
ANALYTICAL FOCUS
A degree of marketing effort is wasted because
it is largely a “pebbledash, scattergun” approach,
says Mr Sansom. “There’s a lot of data out there;
the trick is getting it in the right place, in a
consistent manner, to allow people to analyse it
effectively to gain insight on the customer and
then to execute on it. Data is useless without the
ability to analyse it and gain insight that lets you
talk to the right customers at the right time and
makes you more likely to be effective.”
Like most organisations, says Mr Sansom,
AXA is scrambling to improve its use of data
and analytics. “We could do better in terms
of understanding specifically the impact a
marketing campaign has relative to day-to-day
activity, but we’re on the right path.”
Regarding the skills shortage, he says schools
and universities should rise to the challenge.
“Education needs to support the future labour
market. The requirement for data scientists and
analytics as a skillset will become increasingly
prevalent, and this needs to be reflected in the
education system.”
THE NEED FOR DATA ANALYSIS
TOOLS AND SKILLS
DATA IS USELESS WITHOUT
THE ABILITY TO ANALYSE
IT AND GAIN INSIGHT THAT
LETS YOU TALK TO THE
RIGHT CUSTOMERS AT THE
RIGHT TIME AND MAKES
YOU MORE LIKELY TO BE
EFFECTIVE
Darrell Sansom,
CMO Axa UK

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Ultimately, technologies such as artificial intelligence may help address the skills shortage, says
Mr Sansom, whose responsibility for innovation is explicit in his job title. Machine learning is already
being used at AXA to analyse pricing and underwriting, customer trends and performance. “It
has still more potential to be deployed for delivering customer insight and determining how the
company engages with customers from a marketing point of view,” Mr Sansom notes. He also helps
to foster innovation and agility by identifying potential partners or acquisition targets in areas
where the company is not an expert – particularly in service and support.
WHAT CHALLENGES DOES YOUR MARKETING DEPARTMENT FACE IN
ACHIEVING VISIBILITY ON TACTICAL MARKETING INVESTMENTS?
55% OF RESPONDENTS SAY MARKETING PLATFORMS ARE
FRAGMENTED AND DO NOT OFFER A COMPREHENSIVE
OVERVIEW OF TACTICAL MARKETING INVESTMENTS.
There is no method or system in place to measure
marketing productivity and ROI levels.
10%
There is no link between the marketing department’s
metrics and the financial metrics of the organisation.
13%
There is no process in place that measures the valuation
of customer retention and engagement levels.
16%
Marketing platforms are fragmented and do not offer a
comprehensive overview of tactical marketing investments.
55%
The level of data analytical skills in the marketing department
is weak and as a result, data analysis is unfeasible.
51%
Other (please specify) 8%

12. Senior marketing executives are keenly aware of the need to deliver growth and demonstrate accountability,
not just for their day-to-day activities but for their contribution to the bigger picture, too.
The main obstacles to achieving these objectives are a tendency to focus on tactical activities at the expense
of strategic goals, a lack of integration and alignment across tactical and strategic KPIs, and a scarcity of data
analysis skills.
Understanding customers will never be an exact science, says Mr Sproule. “The problem is that consumers
don’t behave rationally, and there is not usually one reason for a purchase.” Instead, a company must have
a clear idea of its strategy and define its KPIs accordingly, he explains. “In the end, the business plan is the
truth. All our KPIs ultimately have to be directly connected to that.”
Mr Sansom agrees: “While the overall strategic ambitions must have a financial element, the reality is a lot
of AXA’s KPIs are increasingly centred on customers, such as how many products each individual has –
an expression of loyalty and engagement.”
AXA also uses independent customer satisfaction measures such as Trustpilot and net promoter scores.
“They’re not in isolation, but all linked, because if customers are happy you gain more of them, and they
engage more with your products,” Mr Sansom says. “Then your financial performance improves, and you
are on track to achieving your strategic goals.”
As organisations such as AXA and Aston Martin Lagonda are discovering, ensuring that tactical marketing
investments are designed and measured according to their contribution to the company’s strategic goals is
the best way to guarantee that the marketing department’s value is recognised and realised.
CONCLUSION: MARKETING’S
CONTRIBUTION TO THE BIGGER PICTURE
ABOUT THE SURVEY
In August–September 2017, The Economist Intelligence Unit conducted a survey of 250
marketing executives in Europe. The countries represented were the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain
and Nordics (Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden) at 20% each. Fifty percent of survey
respondents were CMOs; all respondents were from the marketing function.
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