ROE – Return On Effort

ROE – Return On Effort, is a phrase we’ve been using for years here at Relton Digital. We should all have a solid grasp of ROI (Return on Investment) and ROAS (Return On Advertising Spend), as these are key metrics.

However, have you ever been advised by a Business Coach that you have to have Social Media accounts and post regularly, or, gifting your products to influencers for free to get some exposure? The aforementioned are good examples of not getting an ROE. More importantly they can suck time, money, resources, and energy from other areas of the business, which are more vital to your day to day operations and business goals.

Don’t misunderstand us, social media is a necessity. It builds trust and enables users to contact you via another means that may be more suitable to them. But with all things, there’s balance! Take META, there was a time when you could build a business on it, but now it’s completely locked down. If you want to utilise META to build your business, you need to pay for advertising. The good news is that you can achieve some swift results, if executed correctly, but you will need to part with some cash!

CTA on Social Media paid ads

The other example, gifting influencers, will also swiftly suck your time, money, resources, and energy if not managed correctly. Rarely does it work without parting with some cash. Many influencers will say yes, some will post, but rarely will it be a planned choreographed exercise that will award you with an ROE. Just the cost of gifting free products alone can be significant.

An Influencer Marketing campaign should be choreographed, planned and executed to achieve as much noise online as possible over a specified period of time. Married up with other outbound and inbound marketing activity to achieve the highest possible conversion rate. Ideally, telling a choreographed brand story for maximum impact.

CTA on Influencer Marketing

There are other examples of not achieving an ROE. The point we’re making is ROE is as important as ROI and ROAS. Another KPI (Key Performance Indicator) is Cart Abandonment Rate; with a smooth cart process you will lose less orders and therefore make more money. ROE is a similar type of KPI, only it relates to time and resource, don’t lose time and resource to marketing channels that don’t achieve an ROE.

Focus on what actually moves the needle

If you’re investing time, money, or energy into marketing channels that aren’t delivering a Return on Effort, it may be time to reassess. At Relton Digital, we help businesses cut through the noise, prioritise high-impact activity, and build marketing strategies that work with your resources — not against them.

If you want clarity on where your effort is best spent, and how to maximise ROE alongside ROI and ROAS, let’s have a conversation.