Measuring Custom Publications: Challenge Your Clients and ROI Is Possible

It’s almost laughable that the custom publication, which has been around since the dawn of time and formalized in the late 1800’s, is still a struggle to measure by both marketers and custom publishers.

There Is a Solution
The solution seems easy enough—define the purpose, define the objective. If you can define the purpose, you can most likely find a way to measure it. Unfortunately, it’s never that simple. Most marketers still have only a basic understanding of the content marketing or custom publishing process. Most pure custom publishers or traditional publishers with custom divisions are more concerned with landing the job now and only worry about the consequences later. Frankly, in today’s technological age, both are unacceptable.

To publishers: Challenge your partners to determine that purpose. Get it on paper and put it in the agreement that you both sign. I am both saddened and amazed by the number of custom projects out there that have NO measurement to them at all. The solution is evident, and both sides must take responsibility to make it happen. Now that’s what I call a partnership.

Joe Pulizzi is chief content officer for Junta42, a content marketing/custom publishing search portal, as well as founder and president of Z Squared Media, LLC, a content marketing consulting firm. For more insight from Joe, check out his blog.