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The Measurable and the Important

by Mike Mc

At a training session I recently attended, the instructor was a quote machine. Among the many gems he dropped was one that he (apparently improperly) indicated originated from quality guru W. Edwards Deming:

"We measure the measurable and miss what is important."

This got me thinking about measurement in our industry, specifically when it comes to the impact of the Web in the intermediary channel. At our Roundtables, the metrics discussions consistently focus on the very basic - software packages, page hits, unique visitors - and how these change over time.

I find myself wondering if these conversations, and the efforts firms invest in measuring the Web, really contribute much value. Think about what matters to firms: assets, both new and retained, for one; relationship building, both with advisors and key distributors, for another.

Does traffic data really provide insight into the Web's impact on either of these key issues? Isn't the quality of the traffic more important? Specifically:

• Who (i.e., which individual advisors) is coming to the Web site?
• What firms are they associated with?
• How much business do they do with the firm?

To some degree, the industry is the poster child for the quote above. While a handful of firms invest significant effort in trying to connect the Web to sales results, most instead appear focused exclusively on the readily measurable.

The effort required to improve measurement is certainly not trivial. However, the industry needs to take a step back... if we're not looking at our Web sites' success in terms of our primary business objectives, then what value are existing measurement processes truly providing?.

I see this as the critical "put up or shut up" e-Business issue in the coming years. I find myself wondering... what will the metrics conversation at the 2010 e-Business Roundtable sound like? Should be interesting.