In this feature, business development advisor and commercial strategist Michel Žalac examines the critical tension between shopping centre landlords and retail tenants when measuring marketing performance: when a campaign is declared a success, whose definition are we actually using? Addressing the disconnect between aggregate footfall figures and individual store profitability, he outlines why aligned expectations, realistic customer journey timelines, and candid data-sharing are vital to establishing true commercial return. By moving beyond surface-level footfall to analyze tenant costs, incremental spending and long-term asset value, this article demonstrates how genuine cross-departmental collaboration turns campaign evaluations into decisive operational action.
Key take aways:
- Whose Success Is It Anyway? (Landlord vs. Tenant Alignment): While a shopping centre may celebrate spikes in visitor footfall and headline sales, individual tenants must balance that turnover against heavy discounting, added staffing, and operational strain. A campaign’s objectives and benchmarks must be mutually agreed upon before launch, preventing data from being used retrospectively to settle conflicting priorities.
- Evaluating Beyond the Immediate Campaign Window: Real customer journeys—built on advisory service, repeat visits, and delayed gift card redemptions—rarely conclude when the promotional period ends. Measuring true incremental spend requires looking beyond immediate footfall and comparing results against what customers would have spent anyway.
- Cross-Disciplinary Reviews Leading to Action: Campaign outcomes should involve joint reviews across marketing, leasing, property management, and asset management to differentiate between promotional efficacy and fundamental merchandising or location issues. Every post-campaign review must result in a clear, actionable mandate: repeat it, adapt it, or stop it.
