Rethinking media mix modeling for today’s complex consumer journey

Reimagining Media Mix Analysis for the Modern Consumer Experience

Media mix modeling (MMM) provides businesses with insights into how their marketing expenditures influence profitability. Initially, MMM emphasized broad-reach platforms like network TV, print, and radio to evaluate brand impact and reach. These traditional channels were prized for their reliability and measurability, serving as primary instruments for cultivating brand awareness and driving conversions. However, the current consumer journey is significantly more intricate and dispersed.

This complexity necessitates that brands reevaluate their media approaches and redefine the metrics for success. It’s important to consider a broader array of media channels, incorporating essential touchpoints such as:

  • Streaming audio.
  • Podcasts.
  • Gaming.
  • Augmented reality (AR).
  • Digital out-of-home (DOOH).
  • Influencer marketing.

This shift to adopt innovative strategies that leverage emerging channels, while prioritizing the comprehensive customer experience, can lead to impactful outcomes.

Rethinking traditional metrics and broadening perspectives

Traditionally, MMM has emphasized extensive visibility, depending on metrics like reach, impressions, and costs. It presumed that channels with significant reach inherently delivered superior results. As a result, priority was placed on broad-visibility channels, often neglecting others that struggled to prove their effectiveness, thus leaving emerging platforms underfunded despite their engaged user bases.

However, not all impressions carry the same weight, even when quantitative measures appear similar. For example:

  • Linear TV impressions are averaged across expansive demographic groups.
  • Digital video impressions are counted on a per-user basis.

The type of ad format influences engagement levels differently — a 15-second streaming pre-roll ad typically holds more engagement compared to a static display. For effective marketing success measurement, it’s vital to evaluate not only reach but also the quality and relevance of audience engagement with each channel.

Emerging media channels present substantial opportunities for brand engagement, appealing to both broad and niche audiences. Gaming, for instance, has seen remarkable growth in the last decade, particularly during the pandemic, reaching a broader demographic. It allows targeting based on interests and lifestyles, making it highly effective for connecting with diverse groups.

Consumers actively engage with these mediums; however, the difficulty in linking them to traditional attribution models often results in inadequate investment. Many brands regard these avenues as secondary, rather than integral to their media strategies.

Consider these channels as components of a cohesive strategy instead of isolated investments. By understanding how various channels — especially the newer ones — interact, you can more effectively influence awareness, consideration, and conversion, thereby gaining a clearer view of the entire customer journey.

Conversion analytics should encompass both direct and indirect metrics, acknowledging channels that contribute to an ad’s effectiveness, whether directly or indirectly. Move beyond relying solely on last-touch attribution by employing various attribution models to capture each channel’s impact on consumer behavior more comprehensively.

Explore further: Uncovering the complete customer journey through advanced marketing measurement models

Embracing a bottom-up approach centered on consumer journeys

With evolving data regulations and the phase-out of cookies, MMM must adapt to a bottom-up strategy focusing on authentic consumer journeys. It’s crucial to comprehend where, when, and how consumers allocate their time, using these insights to inform media planning. This examination includes the types of media that engage consumers and assessing how much time they spend on each channel, alongside evaluating your brand’s share of voice in those environments. Time spent and share of voice are vital determinants for allocating investments strategically for optimal outcomes.

Taking DOOH as an illustration, it’s often considered a subset of out-of-home (OOH) advertising, covering placements such as screens in stores, gas stations, cinemas, and elevators. These ads excel in capturing consumer attention in environments where they are more likely to absorb messaging, especially during periods of prolonged engagement. When paired with digital or audio ads, DOOH can enhance visibility in settings where consumers are more focused on brand communications.

Platforms like streaming audio, podcasts, and gaming provide highly tailored and immersive experiences, playing significant roles in consumers’ daily routines. Dismissing these as optional can result in missed opportunities to connect with engaged audiences. Incorporate these channels into larger campaigns, complemented by digital, social, and traditional media, utilizing their unique advantages to achieve improved results.

Reassessing investment: Prioritizing the consumer journey

Take a fresh look at your conventional media budgets. Rather than concentrating exclusively on established channels that were once viewed as major success drivers, it’s essential to evaluate how shifts in consumer behavior correlate with effective touchpoints. Contemporary MMM models should emphasize where consumers dedicate their time and attention, rather than solely focusing on what is easiest to quantify.

Allocate advertising expenditure based on the quality of engagement, time invested in platforms, and share of voice. This approach doesn’t mean foregoing established channels; instead, it involves merging them with new, high-impact opportunities for enhanced results.

Utilize qualitative consumer research, such as focus groups, panels, and surveys, to ensure your media spending aligns with the customer experience. For example, insights from podcast research might reveal whether listeners prefer ads read by hosts or integrated advertorials.

Explore further: Understanding marketing’s effect: Transitioning from metrics to growth

Crafting a multichannel future

The consumer journey has evolved from a straightforward, linear process into a complex network of interactions. To effectively navigate this landscape, MMM must extend beyond conventional metrics and familiar channels. Modern brands require strategies that harmonize both emerging and established channels, guided by deep insights into consumer behavior, time dedicated to various platforms, and the interplay between channels.

By adopting a consumer-centered, bottom-up approach, your brand can make a greater impact — reaching audiences where attention is most concentrated and delivering value at every interaction. In this fragmented environment, it’s crucial to identify what truly resonates with consumers. A media mix model that transcends single-channel attribution and recognizes the synergistic effects of different channels can create seamless, engaging experiences, foster loyalty, and drive results across every phase of the journey.

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