SBP 106: Why Cutting Marketing Budgets is a Mistake. With Hilary Borndahl.

In this episode of The Sleeping Barber Podcast, Marc Binkley and Vassilis Douros welcome Hilary Borndahl to discuss the critical role of measurement in marketing, with a focus on marketing mix modelling (MMM) and its impact on ROI. They explore the challenges marketers face in justifying budgets, the importance of understanding ad stock, and the consequences of cutting marketing spend. The conversation also covers the evolution of digital marketing, the balance between performance and brand marketing, and the value of MMM in providing a holistic view of marketing effectiveness. Marc highlights the growing need for integration between paid and organic search, the influence of audio advertising on consumer behaviour, and the complexities of modern consumer journeys. Other key topics include targeting strategies, AI’s role in marketing measurement, and the necessity for CMOs to be data-savvy. The episode also examines the effectiveness of creative in campaigns and the rising significance of metrics like the Marketing Effectiveness Ratio (MER) in evaluating media performance. Our Guest: Hilary Borndhal, CEO & founder of Miix Analytics Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hilary-borndahl/ Follow our updates here: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/sleeping-barber/⁠⁠ Get in touch with our hosts: Marc Binkley: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbinkley/ Vassilis Douros: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/vassilisdouros/⁠Follow Our Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction to Measurement in Marketing 02:56 - Introduction to Hilary, Miix Analytics & the Insights Association 06:07 - The Wanamaker Dilemma and ROI Challenges 08:59 - Understanding Ad Stock and Its Importance 11:49 - The Impact of Cutting Marketing Budgets 15:08 - The Role of Digital Marketing Today 18:03 - Performance Marketing vs. Brand Marketing 20:51 - The Evolution of Measurement Techniques 24:04 - Marketing Mix Modeling Explained 26:56 - Benefits of Marketing Mix Modeling 30:14 - Review Cycles for Marketing Mix Modeling 33:01 - Balancing Brand and Performance Investments 39:42 - The Integration of Paid and Organic Search 42:07 - The Role of Audio in Marketing 44:58 - Consumer Behavior and Search Dynamics 50:37 - The Complexity of Consumer Journeys 54:21 - Narrow vs. Broad Targeting in Marketing 58:43 - The Impact of AI on Marketing Measurement 01:01:15 - Post-pod Discussion - Marc and V's key takeaways and insights from the conversation