Business Researchers, Inc., set out to use advanced statistical modeling methods to determine the incremental sales attributable to each marketing channel, based on actual historical marketing and sales data for a given organization. We’ve developed an approach to the problem that is unique in the industry: borrowing statistical methods used in clinical trials, we analyze the problem from a time-to-event perspective. This takes into account both the relative influence and frequency of various marketing channels, as well as recency of time-dependent variables.
In biostatistics, positive and negative risk factors include medical treatments (such as frequency and dosage of medication) and health risks, and the event being measured is illness/death. In a marketing world, the factors are marketing treatments, and the outcome being measured is customer conversion/purchase. In both cases, we factor in the types, frequency, and recency of various treatments, and identify the incremental difference in outcome by comparing the statistical buying behavior of groups that have experienced different “doses” of marketing.
Allocating sales accurately has important implications for a company: by balancing incremental sales against marketing costs, it allows marketing directors to fund marketing channels appropriately and optimize return. Customer segmentation and an analysis of the marketing treatments of individual customers enable marketers to target their efforts more effectively. An accurate understanding of the influence of a given marketing treatment over time can help you predict the appropriate or optimal frequency and cadence of marketing efforts.
As new and ever more personalized methods of targeting customers become available, understanding the actual effects of your marketing efforts will become increasingly more important. Business Researchers offers an avenue for gaining insight into the problem that is unique in the marketplace.
