Here we are on the eve of the New Year. This time of year we are all inundated with lists of things that happened in the past year - the top ten news stories, the 50 greatest sports moments, the 100 top hits of the year, etc. At the same time, we are also encouraged to look forward and make a list of resolutions for bettering ourselves in the coming year. It’s New Year’s Eve and I don’t know whether to glance backwards or to look forwards!

Some people I know are very nostalgic about the past. They have no problem reflecting on all of the things that have happened during the last year. In fact, they kind of revel in reliving it all. On the flip side of the coin, I know people who are always looking forward to the next thing. They like dreaming about what could be, planning for the next big thing, scheming how they will meet their goals. For them, the pursuit of something new keeps them going. In marketing, both the backwards glance and the forward looks are necessary and this time of the year is a good time to do both.

Looking over my shoulder

It was management consultant Margaret J. Wheatley who said, "Without reflection, we go blindly on our way, creating more unintended consequences, and failing to achieve anything useful.” Marketing methods can become too much of the same old thing over and over again without any concern for the most important thing we do in marketing: impact sales. If you never measure the effectiveness of your marketing efforts, you are bound to create a cycle of mistakes. Following your marketing campaigns with some sort of measurement of your effectiveness will help you learn from mistakes and to champion your successes. Many clients have confided that they are afraid of throwing good money at poorly producing marketing methods. Keeping some sort of metrics on your success and failure will help you from doing this over and over again. Here is the truth about marketing: not all groups react the same towards one method or the other. It is a bit of a trial and error business. However, making the same error twice is a result of not keeping track of what works and what does not. Taking the time to measure everything you do will help you make wise budget choices. Beyond the finances, it will also help you understand the likes and dislikes of your target market.

Looking ahead

To measure marketing effectively, you must have a goal to which you are shooting. This is a product of forward thinking. So at the same time you are looking back at your successes and failures of the past year, take that information and form a goal for the next. In this way, you will have a benchmark to which you can measure. Otherwise you will not know whether you are making any progress. Forecasting the future can be tricky. I am not omniscient and neither are you. We don’t see all that is coming ahead of us. Goal setting is our best attempt to take the information we have at hand and to keep a challenging but realistic target in front of us. From this, we can start strategizing a marketing plan for achieving the goal.

In between the forward look and the backward glance

At regular intervals throughout the year, you need to do an assessment of your progress. Keep in mind that much of marketing takes time, so factor that into your thinking. If you need to adjust methods or goals, it should be based on the effectiveness of your marketing. Keep an eye on this. Year-end is not the only time for an analysis. Also, target markets can be fickle. People may be in love with a form of marketing now, but fall out of love with it by midyear. Know the people to whom you are trying to do business. This will help you make adjustments as needed.