The curse of Lord Leverhulme

Gerry Pollak and Erwin Ephron

This article is adapted from a paper given at the ARF/ESOMAR World-wide Audience Measurement Conference in Los Angeles in June 2002.

The Curse Of Lord Leverhulme

Erwin EphronEphron, Papazian & Ephron Inc. andGerry PollakManagement Analytics Inc.

A clich is a truth that has become too familiar. The most damaging to advertising is, 'I know half my dollars are wasted, but I don't know which half'.

That is the curse of Lord Leverhulme (or John Wanamaker, for US readers), part joke, part dare. 'Half the dollars wasted' is generous if we think of the measure as sales response. Campaigns that measurably increase sales are outnumbered by campaigns that don't by at least two to one.

And the sharper...

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