#16 Are Your Ads Bringing Incremental Value? Dominic Williamson, Director of Marketing Strategy and Analytics at Instacart
Nov 14, 2023
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Dominic Williamson, Director of Marketing Strategy and Analytics at Instacart, shares his expertise in analytics and strategy. They discuss the importance of geo level testing and the dynamic between finance and marketing. The significance of objectivity in marketing and finance collaboration is emphasized. They also talk about the value of open source models and building in-house. Factors to consider when counseling brands on marketing spend are discussed, as well as a fun football team and player discussion.
Marketers should adopt a growth mindset and be open to finding areas where their spending may not be as effective as assumed.
Holdout tests provide valuable insights without significant opportunity loss and help marketers assess the true impact of their efforts.
Deep dives
Measuring the Impact of Marketing
Dominic Williamson, an experienced analytics professional, discusses the importance of measuring the impact of marketing and making investments more effective. He emphasizes the need to analyze marketing spend and determine its worth. By investigating different techniques, marketers can understand where to invest and how to improve their marketing efforts. Dominic highlights the role of objectivity in analyzing data and challenges the assumption that marketing always delivers positive results. He suggests that marketers should adopt a growth mindset and be open to finding areas where their spending may not be as effective as assumed.
The Power of Holdout Tests
Dominic Williamson explains the value of conducting holdout tests in marketing. He recommends implementing user-level holdout tests whenever possible, as they provide valuable insights without significant opportunity loss. By isolating a portion of users or audience and comparing their response to a marketing campaign against those who were not exposed, marketers can assess the true impact of their efforts. Dominic also discusses geo-level holdout tests, which are particularly useful for measuring the effectiveness of TV campaigns and understanding regional variations in response. He highlights the importance of designing tests with clear objectives and actionable outcomes.
The Role of MMM Models
Dominic Williamson delves into the benefits of Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM) in understanding the effectiveness of marketing strategies. MMM involves analyzing various marketing channels' influence on sales by using regression models and accounting for external factors like seasonality and competitors. Dominic highlights that MMM models are agnostic to specific attribution methods like last-click or impression-based models, providing an independent and reliable view of marketing impact. These models offer a holistic understanding of marketing ROI, assisting in decision-making, forecasting, and benchmarking. Open-source MMM models, like Robin, provide accessible solutions for businesses looking to leverage MMM analysis.
Data Literacy and Testing
Dominic Williamson stresses the importance of data literacy in marketing teams. He explains that having access to reliable and comprehensive data allows teams to make informed decisions. Dominic recommends fostering a growth mindset and a strong data-driven culture, where marketers and finance professionals collaborate to optimize marketing spend. He advises conducting user-level tests, pulse-based tests, and geo-level tests to gather valuable insights for future optimizations. Dominic also mentions the need for clear experimentation objectives and emphasizes the importance of being objective and open to finding areas for improvement.