---
title: When KPI’s are flailing, DON’T use this.
description: Data analysis of KPI's to drive performance marketing
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---
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December 12, 2024
# When KPI’s are flailing, DON’T use this.
 By Sharon Herrman · 1 minute read
When KPI’s are flailing, DON’T use this.
From a strategic perspective, setting your KPI’s and benchmarks can be pretty straight forward.
But what happens when several months down the road, your business performance isn’t meeting these targets…and everyone in the marketing ops meeting turns and looks at you for answers. 👀
Well, one thing you should never use is this….
HOPIUM (/h’ope-e-um/)
It’s a term I’ve seen used to describe an ongoing addiction to “things will turn out ok if we give the campaign another 3 months to run”.
It won’t.
Now the immediate temptation is to capitulate to a downward adjustment of the KPI’s and benchmarks.
But if you do that, you are shortchanging the business and shirking your responsibilities.
Instead, shift your thinking…
Think about the outcome you are looking for, rather than a solitary number.
For example, instead of defaulting to a standard “Customer Satisfaction” KPI, ask the question “Are our customers happy with our product?” and identify the various components that reflect customer satisfaction – repeat purchase rate, AOV, recency of purchase, for sure…
But what about corresponding social media mentions, targeted email open rates, loyalty program or special discount redemptions?
Are those the KPI’s that **should** speak to Customer Satisfaction?
Understanding and tracking these actions will give you a more robust assessment than a single number, and may surface options for improving overall customer satisfaction…
And a much better outcome for the business.
Just say no to hopium. ✋🏻
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