What to measure when you market to specifiers
Specifiers research quietly and decide slowly. Judge a campaign on clicks alone and you will undervalue the work that wins specifications. Here is a simple ladder of measures — and how to read them together.
Why clicks mislead
Architects and designers rarely click an ad in the middle of their day. They notice, remember and come back later — often months later, when a project needs the product. Click-through rates alone miss most of that value, and can push budget towards audiences that click a lot but never specify.
The measurement ladder
- Reach — what share of the verified target audience saw the message, and how often. Example: a leading sanitaryware brand’s trade influencer program reached 93% of its target architects, designers, contractors and builders one-to-one in North India.
- Engagement — video completion, time spent and engagement rate. Example: a sanitaryware brand’s program for individual household builders recorded a 1.15% engagement rate.
- Action — enquiries, spec-sheet downloads, sample or CPD requests, dealer applications and contractor leads. Example: 180 dealer applications for a kitchen & interiors platform; 173 dealer applications and 128 contractor leads for a building-materials platform.
- Business — specifications won, new dealers activated, sell-through and growth in target cities.
Read the measures together
No single number tells the story. High reach with low action may point to the wrong message. Strong action with low reach may mean you are only talking to people who already know you. Look at the ladder as a whole, and set expectations for each rung before the campaign starts.
Set benchmarks by objective
- Awareness and launches — lead with reach and frequency among the verified audience.
- Specification influence — add engagement and technical content requests.
- Dealer and trade programs — lead with applications, leads and first orders.
Build a simple dashboard
One page is enough: reach against the verified universe, engagement by segment, actions by city, and a monthly line for business outcomes from the sales team. Review it with marketing and sales together, so both sides see the same picture.
- Clicks undervalue specifier marketing — specifiers research quietly.
- Measure the ladder: reach, engagement, action and business.
- Set benchmarks per objective and review them with sales.