December 2024: Rockerbox Goldmine

As we close out 2024, we’re reflecting on the incredible momentum in marketing measurement and preparing for an even more impactful 2025. This month’s edition of the Goldmine is packed with insights to help you stay ahead: from the launch of our Unified Measurement Playbook to learnings from Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and actionable insights from our recent blogs. Plus, don’t miss your chance to register for our upcoming webinars to start the new year strong.

Let’s dive in!

Featured Launch: Unified Measurement Playbook

Marketing has never been more complex, but with complexity comes opportunity. That’s why we’re thrilled to unveil the Rockerbox Unified Measurement Playbook—a comprehensive guide for modern marketers navigating today’s multi-channel landscape.

This playbook is designed to empower marketers with a step-by-step framework for achieving accurate and actionable insights through Unified Measurement. It combines the strengths of Multi-Touch Attribution (MTA), Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM), and Incrementality Testing to create a holistic approach that goes beyond isolated methodologies.

Key Highlights of the Playbook:

Building Your Marketing Data Foundation: Centralize your data to create a single source of truth.
Deduplicated Attribution: Eliminate double-counting across platforms for consistent KPIs.
Validation Methodologies: Use MMM, Testing, and Surveys to refine insights and calibrate metrics.
Unified KPI: Leverage calibrated data to make informed decisions that drive growth.

Whether you’re scaling campaigns, optimizing spend, or exploring new channels, this guide provides the tools and insights to elevate your strategy.

Download the Playbook Now!

BFCM 2024 Learnings

Key Takeaways from This Year’s Trends
Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2024 presented a unique set of challenges and opportunities for marketers. Rockerbox analyzed the trends to uncover actionable insights for future planning:

Lower Overall Spend: Media spend during BFCM 2024 was 10% lower than 2023, normalized against early November spending. However, the ramp-up began earlier, with many brands starting their campaigns in late October.
Shift in Media Mix:
- Search and Affiliate Channels: These channels saw increased share of budgets, reflecting consumers hunting for deals on familiar products. Paid search captured nearly 30% of budgets, its highest share to date.
- Social and TV Declines: After gaining popularity in 2023, paid social dropped to 39% of budgets, while TV spend also decreased.
Challenging Metrics:
- Smaller Basket Sizes: Average order values decreased slightly.
- Rising CPAs: Higher cost-per-acquisition combined with smaller baskets resulted in lower ROAS across sectors.
Discounting Strategies:
- Many brands introduced lower discount percentages or early access for VIPs ahead of BFCM.
- Over 50% of brands launched sales ten days before Black Friday, spreading the shopping season across a longer timeframe.

Benchmarks to Note:
Efficiency varied significantly by industry, but early adopters of strategic planning in Apparel, Beauty, and Home Goods saw stronger relative performance. Brands offering larger average order values (>$1,000) faced the greatest challenges in balancing costs with returns.

Looking Ahead:
These findings underscore the need for precision in budget allocation and channel selection, as well as the importance of adapting to shifting consumer behaviors. Rockerbox’s Unified Measurement framework helps ensure you stay ahead of trends like these in 2025.

Want to learn more? Find these stats and more in Rockerbox Wrapped, dropping the first week of January. Join the Waitlist here.

Engineer Spotlight: Eddie Chu

Speaking of BFCM…

This month, we’re excited to spotlight Eddie Chu, Staff Software Engineer at Rockerbox, who played a critical role in helping our customers scale and prepare for Black Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM). Eddie’s hand in scaling infrastructure and ensuring 100% uptime during the busiest shopping period of the year was instrumental in delivering seamless performance for our customers. From optimizing our systems to handle peak traffic to proactively addressing potential bottlenecks, Eddie’s strategic insights and hands-on support ensured that brands could confidently navigate the holiday rush with uninterrupted service and unmatched reliability.

On the Blog

Bridging Contradictions in Measurement Data: MTA vs. MMM vs. Incrementality Testing

This post highlights how leveraging discrepancies between MTA, MMM, and incrementality testing can provide deeper insights and drive more effective marketing decisions.

Rockerbox Recap: Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2024
This post analyzes media spend data, consumer trends, and industry benchmarks from BFCM 2024, offering insights into overall spend, media mix shifts, and efficiency metrics across various industries.

Real-World Case Studies: The Power of Validation
This article delves into how validation and calibration in marketing measurement can uncover inefficiencies and drive measurable impact, featuring case studies that highlight the importance of moving beyond attribution assumptions.

Choosing the Right Methodology for Validation: MMM vs. Incrementality Testing
This post explores the role of validation in marketing measurement, comparing Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM) and Incrementality Testing to help marketers choose the appropriate methodology for their needs.

Beyond Attribution: The Case for Validation and Calibration in Marketing Measurement
This article discusses the importance of validation and calibration in marketing measurement, emphasizing the need to move beyond traditional attribution models to gain a clearer picture of performance.

Beyond the Basics: Redefining Marketing Measurement with Unified Insights
This post addresses the challenges marketers face in collecting and analyzing data, introducing unified insights as a solution to redefine marketing measurement and drive better decision-making.

Maximizing Cross-Brand Insights in a Multi-Brand Portfolio
This article offers strategies for businesses managing multiple brands, focusing on how to leverage cross-brand insights to optimize marketing performance across a multi-brand portfolio.

Going Deeper with Clickstream: New vs. Repeat Visitor Insights and Optimizing Engagement
This post explores how Rockerbox's Clickstream Dataset provides insights into new versus repeat visitors, helping marketers optimize engagement strategies based on user behavior.

Deepening Customer Insights with Rockerbox Clickstream: More Than Just Conversions
This article discusses how Rockerbox's Clickstream Dataset offers visibility into all user interactions on a site, providing deeper customer insights beyond just conversions.

Upcoming Webinars

2024 Advertising Trends Unwrapped: Insights from Rockerbox Wrapped
Host: Will Burghes, Head of Professional Services and Kelsey Kearns, Head of Customer Success
Date: January 7, 2025, at 2 p.m. ET

This session will delve into the critical shifts that shaped the 2024 advertising landscape, providing actionable insights to inform your 2025 marketing strategies. Topics include the decrease in Black Friday and Cyber Monday spending trends, the rise of TikTok and television as dominant media channels, and benchmark data on Cost Per Acquisition (CPA) and Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) across various industries and budget sizes.

Aligning Marketing Strategy with Unified Measurement for 2025
Hosts: Ron Jacobson, CEO/Co-Founder and Rick O'Toole, CTO/Co-Founder

Date: January 9, 2025, at 3 p.m. ET

This webinar will explore the importance of adopting a unified measurement approach—integrating Multi-Touch Attribution (MTA), Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM), and incrementality testing—to navigate the complexities of modern marketing. Attendees will gain insights into establishing a cohesive measurement system, aligning it with broader marketing strategies, and preparing scalable data foundations for 2025.

Thank you for being part of the Rockerbox community this year. As we step into 2025, we’re excited to continue equipping you with the tools, insights, and strategies to make smarter marketing decisions. From all of us at Rockerbox, happy holidays, and here’s to a new year full of growth and success! See you in January for more updates, insights, and opportunities to thrive.

Until next year!

The Rockerbox Team