Agency accountability: Getting the most out of your QBRs
Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs) are a crucial tool for maintaining transparency and productivity between you and your digital marketing agency. They provide a structured way to ensure your marketing goals are being met, assess campaign performance, and adjust strategies as needed. However, QBRs shouldn’t just be about reporting numbers—they also serve as an opportunity to celebrate successes, rally your teams, and identify new opportunities for growth.
By striking a balance between reviewing performance and metrics while celebrating wins, QBRs can foster a collaborative, forward-looking partnership that drives ongoing success. Here's a breakdown of key elements to focus on in your QBRs:
Overall Activity and Performance: Holding Your Agency Accountable
1. Performance Metrics and KPIs
The cornerstone of any QBR is a detailed review of performance metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). These metrics should align with the goals you set at the beginning of the quarter. Your agency should provide:
Clear KPI Tracking: A thorough analysis of how the marketing efforts have impacted your KPIs. This might include metrics like conversion rates, customer acquisition costs, lead generation, and overall ROI.
Example Scenario: If your goal was to increase lead generation by 20%, your agency should present data showing the number of leads generated over the quarter, compare it with the previous quarter, and analyze whether the 20% increase was achieved. If it wasn't, they should explain why and offer solutions to meet this goal in the next quarter.
Data-Driven Insights: Beyond just the numbers, your agency should offer insights that interpret these metrics. For example, if there was a spike in traffic but a dip in conversions, the agency should analyze why this occurred and how it can be addressed.
Example Scenario: Suppose there was a significant traffic increase after launching a new PPC campaign, but conversions decreased. Your agency might explain that while the campaign drove more visitors, the landing page wasn’t optimized for conversions. They would then propose A/B testing different landing pages to improve conversion rates.
Benchmark Comparisons: Your agency should compare the current quarter’s performance against previous quarters and industry benchmarks to provide context and highlight trends.
Example Scenario: If your industry benchmark for email open rates is 20%, and your current quarter’s rate is 18%, the agency should acknowledge this gap and suggest strategies to improve, such as better subject lines or segmentation.
2. Campaign Performance
Each QBR should also include a breakdown of individual campaigns. This section allows both you and your agency to review what’s working well and where there are opportunities to improve, using data to drive better decisions moving forward
Campaign Summaries: A clear recap of each campaign’s goals, tactics, and results helps ensure that everyone is on the same page regarding what’s driving success. Wins should be highlighted to maintain momentum, but any underperforming areas should be addressed with a strategic lens.
Example Scenario: If a social media campaign successfully increased brand awareness, celebrate that result while discussing the tactics used (e.g., influencer partnerships, targeted ads) and the specific demographics targeted, as well as how to enhance engagement and conversions moving forward.
Results & ROI: Your agency should provide detailed results for each campaign, including metrics like engagement, conversions, and ROI.
Example Scenario: If a paid search campaign was run with a budget of $10,000, the agency should report how many conversions were generated, the cost per conversion, and the overall return on investment.
Learnings & Recommendations: What worked, what didn’t, and how these learnings will inform future campaigns. Successes can drive excitement, but it’s equally important to use these reviews to identify areas for improvement.
Example Scenario: If a video ad on Facebook outperformed static images, the agency might recommend allocating more budget to video content in the next quarter.
3. Financial Transparency
A clear understanding of how your marketing budget is being used is essential for both performance assessment and planning future investments. Reviewing financial data is as important as celebrating cost efficiencies and investments that delivered a high return. Your agency should provide:
Budget vs. Actual Spend: Your agency should provide a breakdown of the allocated budget versus actual spend, ensuring your resources are being used efficiently. If savings have been achieved through optimization, celebrate those wins, but also hold your agency accountable for any overspend.
Example Scenario: If you allocated $50,000 for digital ads and only $40,000 was spent, the agency should explain why the full budget wasn’t used—perhaps due to lower-than-expected ad costs or pausing underperforming campaigns.
Cost Efficiency: Analysis of how efficiently the budget was used, including any areas of overspend or savings.
Example Scenario: If the agency saved 10% on a campaign by optimizing ad placements, they should report this saving and discuss how it can be reinvested.
ROI Analysis: A comprehensive look at the return on investment for each marketing effort, ensuring that every dollar spent is contributing to your business goals.
Example Scenario: For an email marketing campaign, the agency should calculate the ROI by comparing the revenue generated from the campaign against the costs of email creation, management, and distribution.
4. Market and Competitive Insights
Your agency should demonstrate an understanding of the broader market and competitive landscape. Expect them to cover:
Market Trends: Key trends in your industry that could impact your marketing strategies.
Example Scenario: If there’s a growing trend in sustainability in your industry, the agency might recommend incorporating eco-friendly messaging into your campaigns to resonate with consumers.
Competitive Analysis: Insights into what your competitors are doing and how your efforts stack up.
Example Scenario: If a competitor launched a successful loyalty program, the agency might suggest creating a similar program or enhancing your existing one to stay competitive.
Opportunities: New opportunities for growth or adjustments to your strategy based on market insights.
Example Scenario: If the agency identifies an emerging social media platform gaining traction with your target audience, they might recommend testing ads on that platform.
5. Strategic Adjustments
Based on the performance review and insights gathered, your agency should propose strategic adjustments for the next quarter. This is an opportunity to collaboratively build on the wins and course-correct in areas where improvement is needed.
Next Quarter Goals: Celebrate what’s been achieved, but also use the QBR to set new goals and propose adjustments that align with evolving business objectives. Ensure that both the agency and client teams are motivated and aligned on the path forward.
Example Scenario: If a previous goal to increase website traffic by 15% was met, the agency might propose a new goal to improve the conversion rate from this traffic by 10%.
Strategic Initiatives: New campaigns or adjustments to existing strategies that align with your evolving goals.
Example Scenario: If the agency noticed a shift towards mobile traffic, they might recommend optimizing your website’s mobile experience or launching mobile-specific ad campaigns.
Action Plan: A clear plan of action with timelines and responsibilities to ensure accountability.
Example Scenario: The agency could present a roadmap for the next quarter that includes specific deadlines for launching new campaigns and milestones to track progress.
Website-Specific Activity and Performance: Holding Your Agency Accountable
If your agency is responsible for managing your website’s design, development, and overall performance, it’s essential to include a dedicated section in the QBR that focuses on this area.
Here’s what should be covered:
1. Website Performance Metrics
Your agency should provide a comprehensive analysis of your website’s performance, including:
Traffic Analysis: Detailed insights into website traffic, including unique visitors, page views, and session durations.
Example Scenario: If there’s a drop in traffic, the agency should investigate potential causes, such as technical issues, SEO ranking drops, or changes in ad spend, and propose corrective actions.
Source Breakdown: Where your traffic is coming from (e.g., organic search, direct, social, referral).
Example Scenario: If organic search traffic is decreasing, the agency might suggest an SEO audit or content refresh to regain lost ground.
User Behavior: Metrics such as bounce rate, time on site, and pages per session to understand how users are interacting with your site.
Example Scenario: A high bounce rate on a key landing page might prompt the agency to recommend A/B testing different layouts or improving the page’s content to better meet user expectations.
2. SEO Performance
Search engine optimization (SEO) is critical for driving organic traffic. Your agency should report on:
Keyword Rankings: Changes in your website’s rankings for target keywords.
Example Scenario: If a high-value keyword’s ranking dropped, the agency should analyze competitors’ content and suggest optimization tactics like content updates or link-building efforts.
Organic Traffic Growth: Analysis of organic search traffic and its impact on overall site performance.
Example Scenario: If organic traffic is growing but not converting, the agency might explore on-page optimization or better aligning content with user intent.
Backlink Profile: Progress in acquiring high-quality backlinks and improving domain authority.
Example Scenario: If there’s a lack of new backlinks, the agency should present a plan to increase outreach efforts to authoritative sites in your industry.
3. Content Performance
If your agency is involved in content creation, they should provide:
Top-Performing Content: Insights into which content pieces are driving the most traffic and engagement.
Example Scenario: If a blog post is consistently generating high traffic, the agency might suggest creating similar content or expanding on that topic in other formats, such as video or infographics.
Content Strategy: Updates on the content strategy and how it aligns with your business goals.
Example Scenario: If the goal is to establish thought leadership, the agency might propose creating more in-depth, research-based content pieces or whitepapers.
Engagement Metrics: Data on user engagement with your content, such as time on page, social shares, and conversions.
Example Scenario: If a high-engagement article isn’t converting readers into leads, the agency could suggest optimizing the call-to-action (CTA) or placing lead magnets more strategically within the content.
4. Technical SEO & Website Health
Maintaining a healthy, fast, and user-friendly website is crucial. Expect your agency to cover:
Technical Audits: Findings from any technical SEO audits, including fixes for issues like broken links, crawl errors, and site speed improvements.
Example Scenario: If the audit reveals slow page load times, the agency should outline specific steps taken to improve speed, such as image optimization or code minification.
Mobile Optimization: How well your site is performing on mobile devices.
Example Scenario: If mobile users are experiencing higher bounce rates than desktop users, the agency might recommend redesigning the mobile layout for better usability.
Security Measures: Updates on security measures to protect your site from potential threats.
Example Scenario: If there was a security breach, the agency should explain what happened, how it was resolved, and what steps have been taken to prevent future incidents.
5. Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)
Conversion rate optimization is key to maximizing the effectiveness of your website. Your agency should report on:
Conversion Metrics: Data on how well your site is converting visitors into leads or customers.
Example Scenario: If the conversion rate on your e-commerce site is lower than expected, the agency might suggest changes to the checkout process, such as simplifying form fields or offering multiple payment options.
A/B Testing: Results from any A/B tests conducted to improve conversions.
Example Scenario: If an A/B test on CTA buttons showed a 20% increase in clicks when using a particular color, the agency should recommend applying this change across similar pages.
Funnel Analysis: Insights into the conversion funnel and areas for improvement.
Example Scenario: If the funnel analysis shows a high drop-off at the checkout stage, the agency might propose implementing abandoned cart emails or improving trust signals, like adding security badges.
6. E-commerce Performance (if applicable)
If your website includes e-commerce, expect a detailed analysis of:
Sales Data: Overview of total sales, average order value, and top-performing products.
Example Scenario: If a specific product category is underperforming, the agency might suggest promotional strategies, such as discounts or bundling, to boost sales.
Cart Abandonment: Metrics on cart abandonment rates and efforts to reduce them.
Example Scenario: If the abandonment rate is high, the agency could recommend optimizing the checkout process or sending personalized follow-up emails to recover lost sales.
Customer Behavior: Insights into customer behavior on your site, including product views, clicks, and purchase patterns.
Example Scenario: If data shows that customers frequently view a product but don’t purchase it, the agency might explore pricing adjustments or improving product descriptions to increase conversions.
Conclusion
QBRs should not only serve as an accountability measure for your digital marketing agency but also as an opportunity to celebrate progress and motivate both teams for future success. By balancing performance review with recognition of wins, and identifying both opportunities and areas for improvement, QBRs can become a critical tool for building a stronger, more collaborative partnership.
Remember, QBRs are about creating a clear path forward that combines data-driven insights with excitement and optimism for what’s to come. When done right, they foster trust, transparency, and a shared sense of success between client and agency.