Is the secret sauce to a positive or negative media efficiency ratio (MER) resting solely in the execution of your marketing campaign or is it juicier? It’s so much juicier. You’d be fighting a losing battle to debate that a poorly equipped customer service department doesn’t negatively impact MER in the way of bad reviews, viral social media posts, and decreased customer loyalty. So, what is the secret sauce that generates a positive MER? Let’s take a deeper dive.

MER is how a marketer decides whether or not a campaign was successful. A little simple math will go the distance for this. To determine whether your MER was positive or negative, divide the number of total sales by the cost of the actual media buy. Did you come out ahead? Great. Could the results have been better or even worse? Were you in the negative? If you answered yes, the culprit could be less about the media buy and more about an overlooked and wildly important factor in marketing. Let me paint a picture for you:

Your team managed to successfully cut through the white noise. The marketing department has put an obscene amount of their time and energy into this campaign, not to mention the substantial budget that’s been used. But it’s been worth it. The media buys are the definition of perfection, and your audience is champing at the bit to buy your product. Your customer service team is the best of the best. They know every single intricate detail of your campaign and its associated product offerings and promotions. You would go as far as to call them the “dream team.” All hands are on deck when your campaign reaches its perfect audience, yet somehow, your team is incapable of meeting the demand of calls coming through the shoot.

Why? What is the issue here? The issue is volume. Before your marketing team delivered its campaign, the customer service team handled it all, and they handled it well. However, now with the new infusion of customers, they are struggling and failing. This is because you have overlooked the deep bond between marketing and customer service.

The road to positive MER is not so clearly paved. Mobilizing a prepared customer service and sales team seems straightforward enough, yet, the demands associated with a well-executed media campaign can quickly expose potholes in a customer service team that appeared to be ready and able to tip your ROI into the black. How do you fill those holes? Or better yet, how do you ensure the road to your positive MER remains smooth and well-paved?

The success of a marketing campaign is dependent on the customer service team’s ability to systematically meet all customer demands. Your brand is directly impacted by the symbiosis (or lack thereof) of your marketing and customer service departments. To many, these departments may present as two separate, very different silos. That assessment would be not only incorrect but possibly bordering on negligent. Yes, marketing piques interest in your company and its products while driving traffic, but it is the customer service team who is responsible for building and maintaining loyalty to your brand. If this team is underprepared or overwhelmed it can lead to angry customers, or worse, angry rants on social media. The culprit of your MER taking a nose dive could be your customer service team. Albeit they are well-trained and ready, your team of aficionados are only capable of handling a set volume. When that volume spikes, the law of supply and demand goes haywire.

Even if every piece of your marketing puzzle falls flawlessly into place, what is the likelihood that your in-house customer service team will be able to miraculously scale and meet the increased and often unexpected demand of your customers? Scalability is the secret sauce, the missing ingredient, the mortar to the brick. Our approach addresses scalability in every facet of business, especially in the deployment of customer service and sales representatives. Extensive wait times are tragic for everyone involved, especially when all those marketing dollars are pining for a positive MER and a solid ROI. Unleashing a stellar media campaign imposes the necessity for a customer service team that seamlessly, efficiently, and effectively grows with the demand. As you move forward, take a look at how you are holistically supporting your entire marketing campaign. Remember, reaching positive MER isn’t just about ad spend. It’s about customer service scalability. Can your team meet the call?

Trisha Phillips

Content Marketing Manager
INFOCU5
www.infocu5.com
(970) 708-1060
trisha@infocu5.com

Author: Trisha Phillips joined the INFOCU5 team as the Content Marketing Manager in October 2018. She is based at the company’s headquarters in Telluride, Colorado. Marketing and business management in the hospitality industry account for the bulk of her career background, although Trisha spent the last year writing full time. When she’s not working, she is spending her time galavanting around the Colorado mountains.