How Telstra is applying machine learning to marketing mix modelling

Understanding the impact and optimal combination of marketing and media tactics for success is an increasingly complicated task for marketing functions. It's even more difficult if you want to interpret the data in a quick enough timeframe to optimise, pivot or swap out marketing programs while they're still in-market. But this is exactly what Telstra is becoming able to do thanks to a new marketing mix modelling approach based on machine learning, rolled out in June. Telstra director of research, insights and analytics, Liz Moore, told CMO the ASX-listed telco built an econometric approach to marketing mix modelling about five years ago based on the need to better understand the ROI of marketing at a strategic level. While it satisfied one organisational need – namely, giving the CFO a view of marketing ROI – it was an expensive exercise, taking 4-5 months to gather more than 300 data sources, plus months to build the modelling.