If ROI is so important, why don't we measure it?

A recent study by Forrester Research found that 66.5 percent of respondents said measuring marketing ROI is important or very important, yet 59.9 percent said they were dissatisfied with their company's ability to measure marketing ROI. Why the disconnect? First, we don't believe it can be measured,

at least not easily. Common wisdom is that there are too many variables to ascertain the ROI of any part of the marketing mix. A much better metric was brand awareness. Marketers have been measuring increases in awareness with benchmark and follow up studies for decades. The trouble is, CEOs' eyes glaze over when you show them awareness and preference studies, because all they really want to know is ROI.