Measurement Insights

Building Confidence in Attribution with Incrementality

Most attribution tools show display retargeting driving a $10+ return on ad spend. As a result, digital marketers invest millions of dollars annually on users who just left their website. Retargeting may receive millions in attributed credit, but what if 95% of those customers would have purchased without the display media? Through incrementality testing, we’re able to turn the “what if” question into a “here’s how” statement, adding a layer of precision and confidence that’s critical to understanding the true value of return-on-investment.

Marketers are aware of this limitation, but few have addressed it head-on. At Ovative, we partner with our clients to test the incremental value each channel has at the enterprise level. Brands that win are those that stop trying to maximize attributed revenue, and instead determine which channels are driving the most incremental enterprise revenue – then scale those channels accordingly. 

Not sure where to start? We’ve got you covered. Here’s what we recommend for getting starting with incrementality testing …

  1. Top down buy-in on the idea of incrementality is a key first step. Attributed revenue will remain the focus until media performance is no longer goaled on this incomplete metric.
  2. Prioritize which channels have the most imminent need to test incrementality (channels with highest investment is a great start).
  3. Leverage incrementality results to right-size media investment in each channel tested.
  4. Retest incrementality to account for seasonality and diminishing levels of return.

Brands spend millions of dollars annually on media channels that drive high volumes of attributed revenue, yet incremental revenue is notably lower. Those non-incremental dollars should be reallocated to other media channels that drive new customers, or assist in bottom-line savings. Organizations should not goal their media to an attribution source, but rather refocus on the purpose of their marketing investments – to drive consumer awareness and ultimately purchases that would not have occurred otherwise.

Ovative is committed to testing the incremental value of media investments and leveraging these learnings to properly balance attributed revenue when calculating Enterprise Marketing Return. Utilizing a unified metric that accounts for incrementality significantly increases confidence in the profitability and scalability of your digital media investments. 

Ovative is a digital-first media and measurement firm seeking to transform the measure of marketing success. At Ovative, we help brands move the needle. We are curious. We value your brand. We want to see you succeed. Connect with us to learn more!


Lillian Smith

Senior Analyst, Paid Social

About the Author

Lillian is a Senior Analyst on the Paid Social team at Ovative.

Dale Nitschke

Dale Nitschke

CEO & Founder

About the Author

Dale is the Founder and CEO of Ovative. After years of operating a large omni-channel business and leading a customer data initiative, Dale knew there was an opportunity to create a marketing firm that helped clients become more customer centric and drove better performance outcomes. A gap existed between business consultancies and advertising agencies that modern marketing approaches demand. He also believed that a strong, healthy culture could attract and develop smart, talented team members. In 2009, he formed Ovative to bring media, measurement, and consulting together under one roof to enable an enterprise approach that drives more revenue and grows clients’ customer base.

Prior to founding Ovative in 2009, Dale spent 23 years at Target Corporation where he served as President of Target.com and grew the ecommerce business from start-up stage to a $1 billion+ business and established the foundation of Target’s Guest database capabilities. Previously he served as SVP Merchandising at the Department Store Division of Dayton Hudson. Dale has advised retailers and brands globally on business, growth, marketing, and measurement transformation strategies.

Outside of Ovative, Dale is a leader on topics including business strategy, change management, and team leadership. He serves on the board of Allergy Amulet and on the Dean’s Advisory Board of the Wisconsin School of Business at UW-Madison.  He enjoys spending time with his family, up north in northern Wisconsin, playing golf, and cheering on Wisconsin sport teams.

Seth Brand

Senior Manager, Consulting

About the Author

Seth is a Senior Manager on the Consulting team at Ovative.

Amanda McCann

Senior Manager, Consulting

About the Author

Amanda is a Senior Manager on the Consulting team at Ovative, specializing in Retail Media Networks.

Jenny Reinke

Senior Analyst, Measurement Solutions

About the Author

Jenny is a Senior Analyst on the Measurement Solutions team at Ovative.

Annie Zipfel

Executive Vice President, Media

About the Author

Annie is the Executive Vice President of Media at Ovative. She oversees delivery and growth across paid and owned media (digital, traditional, and retail media) and creative services.

Annie has more than 30 years of experience in media, brand management, insights/analytics, marketing, and product. She has also developed large, high-performing teams and built new measurement capabilities. Annie led the marketing team at Andersen Windows & Doors, leading the digital, social, content, customer insights, and creative functions. Prior to that, Annie served in multiple marketing leadership roles at Starbucks, REI, Target, and General Mills, with a keen focus on brand, media, insights, analytics, and measurement.

Annie is an industry leader in brand management, customer insights, e-commerce, social media, and analytics. She enjoys hiking, traveling, cooking, fishing, and spending time with her sweet dog and two sons.

Bonnie Gross

Executive Vice President, Talent Services

About the Author

Bonnie is the Executive Vice President of Talent Services at Ovative. She is responsible for attracting and retaining top talent and creating a culture in which our team thrives personally and professionally. Under Bonnie’s leadership, Ovative has defined an industry leading leadership and development program and transformed our approach to talent recruitment with a focus on diversity, equality and inclusion. Prior to her current role, Bonnie led Ovative’s Client and Business Development team overseeing client satisfaction and new growth opportunities.

Before joining Ovative in 2014, Bonnie spent 13 years at Target Corporate as the VP of digital and Digital Marketing where she led the launch of Cartwheel, an industry-leading social shopping application. Bonnie was the VP of Marketing for Fingerhut for 15 years prior to joining Target.

Leander Cohen

Analyst, Consulting

About the Author

Leander Cohen is an Analyst on the Consulting team at Ovative.

Will Silva

Analyst, Measurement Solutions

About the Author

Will is an Analyst on the Measurement Solutions team at Ovative.

Sarah Chang

Sarah Chang

Analyst, Consulting

About the Author

Sarah Chang is an Analyst on the Consulting team at Ovative.

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