What is Marketing Measurement?
What is Marketing Measurement?
Marketing measurement is the practice of tracking, analyzing, and interpreting data to understand how marketing efforts influence business outcomes. It helps marketers evaluate the effectiveness of their campaigns across channels, justify budget decisions, and optimize for better performance.
Why Marketing Measurement Matters
Marketers are under pressure to prove ROI across a growing number of channels. With increasing scrutiny on budgets and the rise of privacy restrictions, the ability to accurately measure marketing impact has become both more challenging and more critical. Done right, marketing measurement informs decisions about where to invest, scale, or cut back.
But traditional measurement methods—like last-click attribution or overly complex multi-touch models—often miss the mark, especially for hard-to-measure channels like podcasts, influencers, or TV.
Common Marketing Measurement Methods
Method | Description | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|---|
Channel-Level Metrics | Measures individual channel performance (e.g., ROAS, CPA) | Simple and fast | Can’t show full customer journey |
Multi-Touch Attribution | Credits multiple touchpoints along the path to purchase | Recognizes more complexity | Fragile to data loss, privacy restrictions |
Marketing Mix Modeling | Uses statistical models over time to assess channel effectiveness | High-level, strategic insights | Slow, expensive, not accessible to most DTC brands |
Incrementality Testing | Measures causal impact by turning channels off/on | Clean signal | Impractical for always-on media |
Survey-Based Attribution | Asks customers directly post-purchase where they heard about the brand | Fast, direct, fills in data gaps | Relies on customer memory; best with moderate-to-high order volume |
Key Challenges in Marketing Measurement
Signal loss from iOS/privacy changes
Walled gardens (like Meta and Google) over-reporting performance
Fragmented customer journeys across devices and channels
Undercounted or untrackable channels (e.g., word of mouth, podcast)
Over-reliance on ROAS without broader context
How to Measure Marketing Performance
Define success metrics – Set KPIs like ROAS, MER, CAC, LTV
Build a measurement stack – Use analytics, attribution models, and surveys
Collect customer feedback – Surveys fill in the gaps that pixels can’t
Triangulate data – Compare survey, model-based, and platform-reported data
Act on insights – Reallocate spend, test new channels, scale winners
Why Fairing Helps
Fairing’s Post Purchase Survey gives marketers the fastest path to attribution data—direct from the customer. By asking "How did you hear about us?" right after checkout, brands get actionable insights into high-impact channels that aren’t visible in traditional tools.
Fairing helps you:
Measure podcast, influencer, and TV spend accurately
Validate (or challenge) what paid platforms report
Compare survey data with MMM or MTA for triangulation
Build a single source of truth across your marketing mix
Bonus: Fairing installs in minutes, integrates with your e-commerce tools, and starts collecting data within seconds.
Real-World Example: From Doubt to Data
A DTC brand investing heavily in podcast ads saw low signal from promo code and vanity URLs. After implementing Fairing, they found that 18% of new customers credited podcasts as their discovery channel—data that wasn’t captured in click-based tools. This led to a reallocation of spend and more efficient CAC.
Final Thoughts
Marketing measurement is no longer optional—it’s the backbone of modern growth strategy. As privacy restrictions rise and channels diversify, relying solely on traditional attribution isn’t enough. Marketers need a full view of performance, and Fairing delivers just that.
Ready to close the gaps in your measurement strategy? Get Started with Fairing today
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