In Marketing, success is driven by constant experimentation, creativity, and the willingness to take risks. Yet, many marketing teams struggle with stepping outside the comfort zone, often fearing the financial and operational impact of failed experiments. Jonathan Sasse, President and Chief Strategy Officer at Metova, has a solution offering for this challenge: set aside a portion of your marketing budget specifically for experimentation.
By creating a dedicated fund for trying new ideas, companies can empower their marketing teams to push boundaries without the fear of traditional ROI expectations weighing them down. Innovation often requires bold moves, and as Jonathan puts it, “Too often, we don’t want to spend a dollar unless we’re certain we can bring more than a dollar back, but always doing so can mean missing out on new ideas and even bigger wins.”
The Importance of a ‘Fail Fast, Learn Fast’ Mentality
One of the most significant advantages of having a dedicated experimentation budget is the freedom to fail—and to learn quickly from those failures. Risk-taking in marketing often comes with uncertainty, and not every new idea will be a home run. However, every experiment provides valuable insights, whether it’s a success or a failure. This “fail fast, learn fast” approach fosters a culture of growth and adaptability, which is critical in keeping up with constantly evolving customer needs and market trends.
Marketers need to feel comfortable with trying new tactics, whether it’s testing a new digital platform, exploring emerging AI technologies, or deploying creative campaign strategies. By removing the immediate pressure of a guaranteed ROI, teams are free to explore and refine their approaches, which can ultimately lead to breakthrough moments.
Driving Long-Term Growth Through Innovation
Jonathan’s approach emphasizes that calculated risk-taking is essential for driving long-term growth. Allocating a percentage of the marketing budget toward innovation allows teams to focus on finding what resonates with their audience and what can elevate the brand in unexpected ways. This structured experimentation not only fosters creativity but also keeps the company ahead of competitors by being at the forefront of new trends and technologies.
Innovation doesn’t happen by playing it safe. A team that has the tools and freedom to test new ideas is a team that will eventually find creative solutions to challenges that might otherwise seem insurmountable.
How to Implement a Budget for Experimentation
Marketing leaders can start by allocating a small percentage of their total budget for experimentation. This amount can be used to test new campaigns, tools, or platforms. Leaders should also clearly define the scope of these experiments—whether it’s running short-term campaigns, trying different audience segments, or exploring new creative approaches.
It’s important to track the results of each experiment to understand what works and what doesn’t. But, as Jonathan emphasizes, the goal isn’t to always achieve immediate success. Instead, the goal is to foster a culture where testing new ideas is part of the daily routine, and where teams are rewarded for their creative efforts, regardless of the outcome.
Read the full Forbes Communications article: Here
Other Forbes Council Member Contributions:
- Foster Psychological Safety
- Set Up Pre-Approved Parameters for Testing
- Lead by Example
- Embrace Failure on the Way to Success
- Build a Culture That Supports Risk-Taking
- Share Positive Examples from Other Brands
- Prioritize Creativity and Autonomy
- Celebrate and Defend Curiosity
- Organize Brainstorming Sessions
- Create Space for New Strategies
- Regularly Try New Things
- Promote a ‘Learn Fast’ Mindset
- Develop Their Risk Tolerance
- Set a Vision and Reinforce Priorities
- Embrace Healthy Aggression
- Share Inspirational Marketing Strategies
- Refuse to Punish Small Mistakes
- Reward Attempts, Regardless of the Outcomes
