Beware of FOMO & Vanity Metrics

By Perry Rearick, Chief Editor, Follow Your Buyer

Nothing destroys a well-planned and adequately resourced B2B marketing strategy like a big emotional dose of FOMO and the uncontrollable urge to chase vanity metrics.

Here is an example. Your head of sales gets a call from his favorite tradeshow six weeks before the event offering a booth upgrade, twice as much space for the same cost. Of course, he accepts and signs the revised contract.

Then reality sets in when he informs the head of marketing who must get a new, larger design, have materials urgently produced and shipped at a higher cost, and ask the CFO for more budget. The CFO naturally says no, the current marketing budget must be re-allocated, and the marketing department’s well-planned strategy goes off the rails. They also lose credibility with the CFO. Did the larger booth bring in more business or simply make the sales team feel better?

Marketers must have the fortitude to say no to the emotional urges associated with FOMO. Same goes for chasing vanity metrics like opens, clicks and likes. These are data points, but not the most important measurements of marketing success. 

Sound B2B marketing strategies are built on engaging real teams of buyers in your target audience companies trying to overcome challenges and solve problems. If you’ve taken the time to develop your strategy, rely on it to guide you. 

So, when the emotional, knee-jerk ideas arise, and they can come from anywhere, including the C-suite, here’s what to do. Go back to your company’s business outcomes and the marketing strategy you so carefully developed to achieve them.

If the great, new idea doesn’t strongly support the direction of the business, just say no!