Three Easy Ways to Track Advertising Are you really getting the most for your money? These methods will help you make sure.

If you're running a comprehensive marketing program, with asolid combination of advertising media plus direct mail and e-mail,chances are you've got leads and responses coming in from justabout everywhere. So how can you tell which of your marketingtactics are stellar performers and which need to be replaced?Tracking your marketing responses is easier than you think, andit's the smartest way to save marketing dollars by cutting thefat and eliminating any nonperforming media and tactics.

The best way to track your advertising responses is to key eachad with a unique code, so every sale or lead can be identifiedaccording to its original source. Here are three ways to make everylead identifiable:

1. Apply key codes. Key codes are used in printadvertising and direct mail. Suppose you were running an adcampaign in a group of magazines. In order to track the responsesfrom individual publications and issues, you would need to includea different key code in each of the response mechanisms. Yourdirect-response print ad in the January issue of Buildermagazine could be coded "BL-1," while another ad in theFebruary issue of Remodeling magazine might be coded"RE-2." These codes would appear in the "replyto" section of the ads, so when responses were generated, youcould immediately determine the source of each lead.

Key codes are often incorporated into the bounce-back mechanismsof direct mail. The next time you receive a direct-mail package,take a closer look. Chances are, you'll see that the responseenvelope is imprinted with a code (consisting of letters and/ornumbers), and you'll also find that code on the order form orthe response card.

2. Provide a unique number or URL. It's a good ideato acquire several toll-free numbers for use in different aspectsof your marketing program. For example, you might track the resultsof a direct-response TV campaign by using a unique, memorabletoll-free number--and use a different number to track the leadsfrom a concurrent print or radio campaign. For larger campaigns,inbound call centers can provide reports showing the number ofcalls to each toll-free number, including the percentage and numberof calls from every state and by time of day.

Another way to track responses from offline campaigns is toprovide unique URLs. By taking advantage of "domain parkingand pointing," you can have multiple versions of your domainname or different URLs that all point to a designated landing pageon your Web site. For instance, respondents to an outdoor adcampaign might type in a simple URL that's easy to remember,such as "MyBoat.com," and then be instantly forwarded toyour primary site. Your Web logs would reveal the number ofresponses that came to each URL.

3. Track online responses. Whether you're monitoringthe results of online ads or an e-mail campaign, it's importantto have unique tracking codes for each. One way to measureresponses to an individual ad or e-mail is to track hits to yourWeb pages by including a "?" after the URL, plus yourcode. For example, instead of using "mydomain.com," yourcoded link might be "mydomain.com?A." This will in no wayalter the landing page, and it will show up in your log files.Another alternative would be to create multiple copies of yourlanding page--each with a different file name--then link from youre-mail solicitations or online ads to specific landing pages.

Of course, the bottom line isn't merely to measure how manyleads you generate, but how many convert to sales. By tracking allresponses according to their sources, you can test individual adcampaigns to see which marketing approaches and offers produce themost profitable results for your company.