When it comes to measuring and/or “optimizing” the impact of marketing, Analytic Partners is the industry’s current market leader, but Neustar is closing in and challengers ranging from Merkle to Nielsen are looming, according to the latest edition of Forrester Research’s “Wave” studies.

nified marketing measurement. The research revealed key insights:

1. Vendors are serious about data. As companies face massive digital data restrictions from Apple, Firefox, and, now, Google, vendors in this year’s Wave put data access and management at the forefront of their current offering. Vendors are taking data management and access so seriously that they’re ensuring that alternative measurement approaches exist that do not rely on third-party cookies to build unified measurement models. These vendors have continuity plans that keep their clients moving forward despite uncertainty from increased regulatory restrictions, walled-garden competition, and consumer anxiety.
2. Marketers need to care about short- and long-term impact. Marketers are hooked on measuring and optimizing to sales conversion, but this obsessive focus erodes brand value. Forrester researched how marketers can balance short- and long-term objectives through thoughtful planning, and measurement vendors agreed. This year, vendors touted how their measurement approaches optimize marketing’s impact against short-term revenue goals while observing the longer-term impact on KPIs such as brand value or customer lifetime value.
3. Measurement tools just aren’t enough. Marketers need a bit of hand-holding: They expect measurement vendors to translate findings and provide recommendations based on the model results. One reference indicated that its vendor really helps it to understand hard marketing questions and has become a key part of the marketing planning process. The research unveiled vendors developing more training, investing in services and support, and developing engagement strategies that help clients deconstruct insights and activate marketing investment recommendations.

Forrester clients can read the full report to see how the vendors stack up —?but keep in mind that the written report just scratches the surface of the full evaluation. Download the interactive scorecard tool and use it to customize the Forrester Wave model for your organization’s objectives. Check out our latest video blog to learn more.