Meridian, the open-source marketing mix model that Google initially introduced in March 2024, is available to all data scientists and marketers globally, starting Wednesday.
The industry’s lack of addressability and the decline in the use of cookies has spurred marketers to seek more holistic measuring frameworks, and Google is framing Meridian as a solution to those issues.
Google said it has been testing Meridian with hundreds of brands globally since last March and incorporating their feedback, and it introduced a partner program with more than 20 measurement partners that are trained and certified on the platform.
Agencies like Dentsu Digital Inc., Jellyfish, and Analytic Edge have been using Meridian. Australian financial company Finder has been using Meridian to make better financial decisions.
“We now have much more confidence in our ability to measure the impact of our investments,” said Jennifer Snell, gm marketing & loyalty, at Finder. “The insights we’ve gained have reinforced the additional value that YouTube drives beyond what’s visible with standard conversion tracking.”
When it first released Meridian, Google cited research from Deloitte, which found that C-suite-level leaders who placed high importance on MMM were over two times more likely to top their revenue goals by at least 10%.
“Consumers engage with your brand while streaming, scrolling, searching, and shopping, frequently doing them at the same time,” Harikesh Nair, senior director, data science, Google explained in a blog post on Wednesday. “Traditional MMMs, built for offline media and branding, have historically been unable to fully measure performance media, like search ads, and artificial-intelligence-powered campaigns. They lack a modern approach, which may lead to inaccurate budget decisions … (Meridian) relies on a Bayesian approach to incorporate your prior knowledge and real-world data, leading to more accurate and insightful models.”
Nair added that Meridian gives advertisers access to Google’s MMM Data Platform, with core data for Google media, such as clicks, cost, and impressions, as well as Google Query volume.
Meridian’s open-source modeling framework enables customization by modifying code and model parameters to fit specific needs.
The platform analyzes campaign performance based on key performance indicators, including conversions, profit, sales, and website visits, with the option of including non-media variables. Video, for instance, is measured by frequency and reach, and not just impressions.