Evaluating the Cost-Effectiveness of a Quality Reporting Project

Report sponsors often want to know whether the reporting project was a good use of limited resources. While it is often difficult and inappropriate to try to justify the expense of an entire quality reporting project based on quantifiable results, it is feasible and useful to compare the costs and results achieved through specific strategies and tactics.

One area where comparing costs and results can be very helpful is in marketing and promotion. For example, let's say you are trying to determine which of several advertising strategies was most effective at conveying your message and getting potential users to your Web site. You can use free “Web analytic” tools from common search sites to identify:

• Which particular ads and sources are driving people to your site?
• Which pages in your report are people accessing most often?
• What’s the cost for each person who “clicks through” to your Web site?

Example: Evaluation of a Web-Based Marketing Campaign

Also in "What You Can Evaluate"

• Evaluating the Process
• Evaluating Results
• Evaluating Cost-Effectiveness