Mutinex uncovers state of marketing ROI in inaugural index report

Mutinex data has revealed marketing investment has been flat since 2021, which Henry Innis, CEO and co-founder, says "won't come as a surprise to marketers."

The marketing mix modelling platform launched its inaugural Marketing ROI Index Report, examining over $2 billion in marketing investment to uncover the state of marketing ROI.

"They've [marketers] been telling us for some time that their budgets are down," Innis said. "What’s great about this report is that it’s not based on survey data, it’s based on real investment patterns that we’re seeing in market. Hard data doesn’t lie."

The index also demonstrates that marketers are treading water when it comes to ROI on their marketing investment. Traditionally, high periods of return, such as the Christmas and New Year period, are not performing as well year-on-year.

Results from 2023/24 were down almost 20 points since the seasonal peak of 2021/22, revealing the overall trend downwards and how tough conditions really are.

"I think we’re seeing some very tough conditions in market at the moment," Innis added. "With budgets flat, marketers are effectively doing more with less to even keep that ROI where it is."

The index also examined revenue drivers and the trend toward a higher share of revenue through performance channels.

Revenue driven from search has held steady and slightly increased in January 2024, while affiliate channels have also seen a steady and significant rise - doubling their revenue contribution since Q3 2022.

Mutinex noted that while diversification in revenue streams is a positive sign, it proves that marketers are increasingly dependent on lower funnel channels to drive returns.

Will Marks, head of marketing science at Mutinex, said: "There’s a couple of thing marketers need to review that might help them get out of this nose dive.

"A combination of truly understanding revenue drivers alongside an analysis of flighting and channel mix can really help marketers to understand where they can squeeze just a little bit more juice out of the budgets."

The release of the ROI Index Report comes after Mutinex launched DataOS, a companion product to its GrowthOS market mix modelling tool.

DataOS has been designed to reduce data provisioning for a range of marketing projects by providing a space for marketers to store and clean their data.

See also: Mutinex launches DataOS, a new solution for data warehousing