Second point and probably more relevant to your comment Lewis and that is Marketers don't set goals because their peers don't perceive goals the same way as we (marketers) do.

For example if I say to my production manager I need 12% more productivity out of his plants he can say yes it will be done, no it can't or yes but here is how much. Its a goal with a highly likelihood of a getting a predictable outcome.

Now with marketing you can say I want to increase customer purchase cycle by 10% (as Jacob points out) but I can't promise that this goal is very likely to occur like the production manager can. This means when i don't succeed and we as marketers do fail often, then our neck is on the line. No one has a clue that the failure was probable.

Cheers
@Roger
http://www.mightymouthmedia.com

I spent 12 years in the corporate world and have been a consultant for the past 11. I wish someone could help me understand why every marketer, in fact every department head, balks at creating measurable goals. They are easy to create and achievable when realistic. Furthermore, metrics represent the best ways to get our budget approved and to be seen as important parts of the revenue machine. I have never understood the resistance. Thank you for helping us both see how easy it is to set the measurable goals and for encouraging us to measure for success.