AT&T measures customer lifetime value

MIAMI, FL: Brands could benefit from including factors like customer lifetime value in their marketing-mix models, rather than focusing “maniacally” on sales, according to a leading executive from AT&T.

Greg Pharo, the company’s Director/Market Research & Analysis, discussed this topic at the Association of National Advertisers’ (ANA) 2015 Masters of Measurement Conference.

Most marketing-mix models, he reported, have a “maniacal” focus on transactions – an area that is clearly vital to consider, but not to the extent that other factors are then neglected.

“While transactions are important,” said Pharo, “there’s also a lot of value you can unlock by optimising on relationships, rather than just isolated transactions.” (For more, including further tips for improving marketing-mix models, read Warc’s exclusive report: How AT&T enhances marketing-mix modelling (link is external)

In better understanding the “why” alongside the “what” of each purchase, Pharo proposed that researchers double down on customer lifetime value.

The important matters to address here, he suggested, are “customer relationships, profitability over time, [insights] into the future and, very importantly, the impact on – or the profitability for – various segments of your customer base and potential customer base.”

Successfully analysing and incorporating such issues into marketing-mix models is complex, as they cover a wide range of revenue and cost drivers.

“That’s a lot of work,” he said, “but it pays benefits, because you will get more accurate optimisation – [and] better, more insightful results – if you’re able to optimise based on these customer relationships, rather than just on transactions.”

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