The FORUM Effect

Measuring success, old school still applies

Many years ago, I first read the book Ogilvy on Advertising by David Ogilvy the founder of mega-agency Ogilvy & Mather.  In it, he speaks of measuring the effect of advertising.  He referenced a book entitled Scientific Advertising by Claude C. Hopkins.  Ogilvy minced few words in his recommendation of the book.

"Nobody, at any level, should be allowed to have anything to do with advertising until he has read this book seven times."

At a mere 64 pages, Scientific Advertising packs more useful information within its pages than books 10 times its size.

Hopkins speaks precisely on the concepts of return on investment; on the power of headlines; on the idea that advertising is an exercise in sales, not brand.  He strongly advocates testing messages against each other, down to the exact words.  He holds up all advertising against the harsh light of mail-order and its "traced returns."

As I read through the book, I was astounded how much applied to the Web.  The importance and methodology of measurement.  The establishment and implementation of quantifiable actions.  The need to test and refine message and method.  The entire book is relevant to the online world.

It was published in 1923.

I will confess to reading it only twice (so far), but it remains on my desk as a reminder that the paradigms of fundamentals rarely shift.

The full text of Scientific Advertising is available online at http://scientificadvertising.blogspot.com.

How Relevant Are These Communication Maze Results to My Organization?

One of the benefits of membership in the Association Forum is benchmarking.  The May 2009 article on “Finding Your Way Through the Communication Maze” on pages 32-35 is an example.  The information on the 14 organizations for the article on communication techniques (email, listserv, etc.) used for the different segments (board, committees, etc.) can help you determine the relevance for your specific situation. 

The descriptions are from page 175 of the 2008/09 Forum Directory.  Budget size is the first factor.  A single respondent has a budget under $500,000.  There were 2 organizations surveyed with budgets between $1 - 2.5 million.  Three were budgeted between $2.5 - 5 million.  Five are between $10 and $30 million and one is over $30 million.  Two management companies do not list budgets.   

 

Ten respondents are categorized as Professional/Society/Individual membership types.  There were no trade only associations in this sample, but two represent both Professional/Society/Individual and a trade association.  There are three multiple management companies.  One commented but did not respond to the survey and is not included in the 14 respondents.  The other management company responses referred to single organizations.

 

The final category refers to geographic scope, with all being national and international.  There were no responses from regional, state or local organizations.

 

As you compare your association to the ones here, please comment on how these results reflect the tools used by your organization for the various segments.  Specifics on tools, segments and size and type of membership are very appropriate and desirable, and will increase the value of this information.