More bang, less buck: How to make your marketing dollars work harder
Too often, brands fall into the trap of chasing more. More channels, more touchpoints, more everything — in the hope it will cover all bases and drive better results. But more isn’t necessarily better. Sophie Murphy, marketing science partner at Mutinex, explains.
It’s tempting to believe marketing success means being everywhere at once, especially as audiences shift away from more traditional channels like linear TV and consume content across an increasing number of platforms. We know the importance of reaching category buyers and expanding reach across multiple platforms. But just because you can be on every platform doesn’t mean you should.
The fallacy of “more is better”
If you don’t invest enough, your brand fades into the background, making it tough to build mental availability that ensures consumers think of you when it matters. And in a world overloaded with content, attention is money. If you’re not investing to be visible, you could be handing that money to your competitors. Even the most brilliant creative won’t work if no one sees it.
As Byron Sharp states: “If you’re not remembered, you don’t exist.” Cutting through the noise requires sufficient spend not just at a total level, but at a channel level. Spreading budgets too thin will in the majority of cases lead to insufficiencies in both reach and frequency. Gufeng Zhou (Meta’s Marketing Scientist behind Robyn) recently published research on Frequency and Saturation Curves that reinforces this. Too little spend means you’re not building the exposure to actually move the needle.
When sufficient exposure is paired with strong creative and consistent execution, memory structures begin to form and stick. Without this combination, impact is limited and effectiveness starts to plateau before meaningful brand lift is achieved.
Sophie Murphy
The investment gap
Under-investment isn’t a new concept but we have the numbers to unpack where we stand. Mutinex data shows that almost 1 in 4 channels are underfunded, while budgets are being stretched thin across an average of 10 channels per customer. This means investment levels are falling short of the point where every additional dollar spent would yield the highest possible return, leaving growth potential untapped. So where is the real opportunity?
Above-the-line channels, often the heavy hitters for reach and revenue growth, are being sidelined in favour of cheaper, easier to measure alternatives. And when we zoom in on the weekly sufficiency levels across 2024, we can see the potential to drive impact becomes clear. Radio is underfunded 43% of the time, with TV also experiencing insufficient weekly investment at rates of 37%. In an effort to chase efficiencies, advertisers are pulling back from the channels that often drive the most reach and revenue growth when spend levels are adequate.
The irony? By reallocating funds to cheaper alternatives to optimise budgets, the effect is the opposite, weakening core growth drivers and limiting longer term returns. When adding multiple channels to tap into synergistic effects, the impact only holds if both channels have sufficient weekly spend. Simply increasing the number of touchpoints doesn’t guarantee better results, until you have considered a tipping point where underfunding dilutes effectiveness rather than amplifying it.
The focus should be on unpacking the interplay that exists between channels, to ensure spend is focused where it can move the needle.
The mindset shift
Ideally, we’d love to have enough budget to nurture all our channels and see them thrive. But the reality is, most advertisers don’t have that luxury. This means strategic decisions need to be made about where to invest for the greatest return.
Success comes from looking beyond individual channel performance and understanding the role they play in the bigger picture. Optimising spending in one place or allocating it to another, without fully understanding the ripple effect, can do more harm than good. A strong media mix isn’t just about what’s working, it’s about what’s working together.
And yes (incoming: shameless plug) this is exactly where good MMM steps in to co-pilot those decisions and make sure every marketing dollar is pulling its weight.
So, if you’re facing budget cuts (or just chasing bigger returns, because let’s be honest, when aren’t we?), it’s time to shift gears. The real win isn’t spending more; it’s spending smarter.
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