Essentially, performance marketing is a results-driven form of digital marketing, where brands and businesses pay for specific measurable results such as a conversion, sale, click or registration sign-up.
When implemented correctly, performance marketing can deliver efficient and effective results that set up opportunities for return on investment to be earned.
History of performance marketing
Last year it was reported that internet shopping is more popular in the UK than in any other country in the world, with consumer eCommerce now accounting for 30% of the total retail market in the UK.
Thus, highlighting the appetite for online shopping in the UK has never been higher. But whilst appetite might be high, competition to be on page 1 of Google remains fierce.
For example, how does a fashion retailer stand out in their category, or how can a beauty brand ensure their online sales continue to grow and persuade consumers to purchase their products over other competitors?
Over the last decade in particular, ecommerce as an industry has grown exponentially, and with that so has the need for specialist performance marketing skillsets.
From specialist agencies to well-versed individuals going ‘in-house’, the rise in consumer brands in particular, needing a dedicated and reliable marketing channel that can deliver ROI is something that has become a necessity.
What to consider when building a performance marketing campaign
A successful performance marketing strategy is underpinned by data and insights. It’s the best way to make sure your campaigns are targeting the right audiences and are as impactful as possible.
The first element that needs to be considered when preparing to build a Paid campaign is determining what the goal(s) of the campaign will be.
Advert platforms such as LinkedIn Campaign Manager will require you to select the goal you are looking to achieve, often as the first step of setting up a campaign.
The first step is probably the most crucial stage of the process, as this will determine what KPIs are communicated back to you at the end of the campaign.
For example, if you are looking to raise brand awareness for B2B service, you would be most interested in seeing which businesses have clicked through your website. Whereas if you’re an ecommerce business you would be more interested in choosing an objective that would give you a KPI that focuses on the lifetime value of that opportunity.
Once the objectives have been identified for the campaign, it’s time to consider which channel will deliver the best possible results for you. As we’ve touched upon above, LinkedIn Campaign Manager would probably be the preferred choice for businesses that are selling to other businesses.
Whilst ecommerce and consumer businesses would probably see more success from using social media channels such as Instagram and TikTok which can dovetail with either an organic or paid influencer marketing strategy.
After selecting your platform and objective for the campaign, it’s time to get down to business and begin using your data and insights to identify exactly who your target audience is, what their pain points are, and ultimately how your product or service could improve that pain point for them.
Why should you have a performance marketing strategy?
Ultimately, a performance marketing strategy that has been set up effectively can scale your business at speed and deliver ROI which can be reinvested into future performance marketing strategies to ensure continued growth.
An example of this is the rise of D2C brands that have seen notable growth in the UK. The revenue that has been generated from online sales is directly reinvested back into performance marketing strategies to capitalise on demand.
Aside from the potential ROI that a performance marketing strategy can deliver, it also comes at a much lower risk. Marketers have much more control during the campaign and can optimise and tweak campaigns once they are live, the same can’t be said if a grammar error appears in a print ad or television advertisement.
If you would like to discuss how a performance marketing strategy could help scale your business, get in touch today. Alternatively, why not read on to find out how we tripled the growth of a luxury lingerie brand or increased online revenue for World of Wallpaper during lockdown.