The Dollar Value of Experiential Marketing Impressions

The fact that dollar value is created from experiential marketing impressions isn’t in dispute. Counting and valuing these impressions is the hard part. PortMA has been tackling this challenge for some time now.

Any impression’s value matches the cost of purchasing that same impression through an equivalent paid media channel.

This is known as an Ad Value Equivalence (AVE) modeling of media value.

The AVE model integrates impression value into overall campaign ROI and anchors any ROI analysis.
AVE usually represents a small share of total campaign value.
However, news exposure or a celebrity moment can cause its value to spike rapidly.

Using an Average CPM to Estimate Impression Value

At the heart of AVE modeling is the cost of media buys. Media impressions are traded using CPM, or cost per thousand. We estimate a brand’s typical CPM to reflect its standard investment profile.
Unless directed otherwise, we assume a $12 CPM, equal to $0.012 per impression.

We base the $12 CPM on a rough median across common media buys. For example, in-store floor graphics average $22, online banners $3, direct mail $15, and FSIs $7. We use the $12 CPM as the starting point and adjust it if the brand team specifies a different average.

Generating an Event Marketing Impression Value

It all comes together with relatively simple math. Let’s take, for example, a campaign that generated 10,000 impressions. To derive the dollar value of these impressions, we estimate what it would have cost to buy those 10,000 impressions targeting a similar demographic through print, TV, in-store, online, etc. (The goal is to choose a channel that the brand uses or an estimate across all channels.) Using an estimated $12 CPM allows us to estimate that those 10,000 impressions were worth $120 to the brand simply because that would have cost to buy the same level of exposure through an alternative channel.

How this method is actionable

We measured a spring break event marketing campaign last year that was limping along. The event set was on the fringe of all the action, and things moved along as expected. Impressions were coming in at a predictable and boring 10 to 15 thousand a week. Then MTV did a break-out piece that caught the event set branding in the background. The impression count quickly shot into the millions. At a value of $12,000 per million, this exposure quickly came into focus and played a key role in the brand team’s planning for this year’s activation.

Additional Reading

• How to Use MMM Frameworks to Measure Experiential Campaigns and Marketing ROI
• How Demonstrating Value Strengthens Client Relationships in Experiential Marketing
• How the RIV Paradigm Approach to Reach and Impact Drive Marketing ROI
• How Compelling Proposals Strengthen Client Relationships
• How Predictive Event Analytics Strengthens Client Relationships