Most marketing strategies fail to show the full picture—Media Mix Modeling (MMM) changes that. As a longtime CMO and now an operating partner at Khosla Ventures, I’ve seen firsthand how the right approach to marketing measurement can be transformative for startups and established companies alike. Today, I want to share why MMM is a powerful tool for reshaping how we evaluate marketing effectiveness.
Breaking Free from the Attribution Trap
For years, marketers have been caught in the endless cycle of chasing attribution. We've become overly reliant on last-click models and multi-touch attribution (MTA) systems that focus on easily trackable channels like Google and Meta. These platforms certainly drive results, but they don’t give the complete picture.
The challenge is that as companies grow, they need to diversify their marketing mix. Traditional attribution models often undervalue newer or less trackable channels, which means these potentially game-changing opportunities get overlooked. This creates a self-fulfilling prophecy: marketers keep investing in Google and Meta because those channels seem to perform best, while others are starved of budget and fail to flourish.
Introducing Media Mix Modeling (MMM)
This is where MMM comes in. Unlike traditional attribution models, MMM takes a broader approach to measuring marketing effectiveness. It accounts for all marketing activities, including those hard-to-track offline efforts, and evaluates their incremental impact on overall business outcomes.
Here's why MMM is a game-changer for growth:
- Incrementality Focus: MMM measures the true incremental value of each channel, not just assigning credit after the fact. This ensures that you’re investing in the marketing channels that truly move the needle.
- Channel Agnostic: It treats all channels equally, allowing for fair comparison and better optimization—whether it's paid search, TV ads, or influencer campaigns.
- Long-Term Perspective: MMM captures both short-term and long-term effects of marketing activities, offering a more comprehensive view of ROI and brand impact.
- Adaptability: Modern MMM solutions can be updated frequently, enabling marketing teams to make agile decisions as conditions change.
- Privacy-Friendly: With privacy regulations like GDPR and iOS14 limiting user-level tracking, MMM's reliance on aggregated data makes it a compliant and effective solution for measuring marketing impact.
Is MMM Right for You?
It’s crucial to recognize that MMM isn’t for everyone, especially early-stage companies with limited marketing spend. MMM is most effective when:
- Monthly marketing spend is $250K+ across multiple channels.
- You have at least 6–12 months of spend data.
- The cost to acquire customers (CAC) is below $1K.
- There’s a clear need to diversify beyond the usual Google and Meta channels.
For companies meeting these criteria, MMM can provide a structured, incremental approach to marketing. However, without this scale or data maturity, MMM may not deliver the value needed to justify the investment.
From Data to Decision-Making
Implementing MMM isn't just about gathering better data—it's about transforming how marketing decisions are made. With frequent model refreshes, marketing teams can:
- Make data-driven budget shifts in real time.
- Continuously validate and refine the model.
- Integrate MMM insights into regular reporting, making it a core part of the strategy.
This shifts MMM from being a one-time exercise to an ongoing, strategic practice that drives continuous improvement and innovation.
MMM: Beyond the Hype
It’s important to understand that MMM isn’t a silver bullet. Like any model, it has its limitations and must be used alongside other tools. High-quality data is essential—poor-quality inputs will lead to poor-quality insights. Collecting and cleaning data from multiple sources can be time-consuming, but it's crucial for producing reliable results. Experimentation, such as geo-based tests, is also necessary to validate MMM insights.
The key is to view MMM as part of a comprehensive measurement stack. While MMM helps set the overall budget guardrails, tools like MTA can still play a role in optimizing within those guardrails—particularly for creative decisions and audience targeting.
Why CEOs and CFOs Should Care
For CEOs and CFOs questioning their marketing spend, MMM offers a way to make more confident, data-driven decisions. It provides a structured solution to the attribution challenge, enabling smarter allocation of budgets across diverse channels.
Companies that adopt MMM early are well-positioned to outmaneuver competitors and drive sustainable growth. The goal isn’t to create a perfect model—it's to develop a useful one that consistently drives better business outcomes. When implemented thoughtfully, MMM offers exactly that.
Ready to Unlock Growth?
Now is the time for forward-thinking leaders to harness the power of MMM to unlock their company’s growth potential. Start by evaluating your current measurement approach and identify opportunities to expand your mix beyond the usual suspects. Your future self (and your CFO) will thank you.