Measuring Media ROI

Today, most online campaigns are evaluated by calculating metrics such as media cost-per-acquisition (CPA) and return on advertising spend (ROAS) at the tactic, placement or keyword level based on a single click that drives a desired outcome.  However, this method used by some analysts and many campaign tracking tools disregards the user experience and multiple touchpoints involved in achieving the actual conversion. 

For example, prospect #1 sees a display ad for an online retailer on ESPN but does not click.  The next day, she hears a radio ad and decides to search for a new laptop online.  She clicks on a natural search ad and spends some time on a manufacturer’s website researching the product features.  Two days later, she searches a shopping site to read customer reviews and asks for feedback on her decision on her blog.  Then, having finally decided, she searches on Google for the name of the online retailer, clicks on a paid search ad, goes to the site and purchases the product.  Which channel gets the “credit” for the acquisition?  Is it the original display ad, the radio ad, the ratings site, the final search click?  Could that channel have produced the same result on its own?   

There are a number of ways to gauge the impact of multiple channels.  One approach is to conduct a cross-channel study, looking at lifts associated with brand messaging and purchase activity per individual channel and then in combination.  This research includes analyses of both online and offline media to provide a more integrated picture of advertising effectiveness.  When completed, results will show changes in key metrics tied to specific channels and offer insights such as “prospects exposed to a magazine ad and an online display ad were more likely to purchase than those who were exposed to a TV commercial and a search ad.” 

 Another method that is becoming more of a standard, particularly in the digital space, is attribution analysis (sometimes called “engagement mapping”).  In this study, analysts look at the path to conversion for a particular customer or segment and attribute partial credit to all of the touchpoints that led to the desired action, reflecting the fact that each played an integral role in the eventual outcome.  While the credit can be assigned evenly, the ideal scenario is to identify those interactions that consistently lead to a conversion and weight their contribution more heavily.  So in the situation above, the ESPN display ad and the paid search listing may prove to be the most influential in driving success.  Therefore, these tactics will be allocated more credit, affecting their CPA and ROAS values in a positive manner.  The result of this analysis is a more accurate representation of ROI for each of the media channels and a better understanding of critical elements for future campaigns.    

To read more about attribution analysis, check out: 

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