Marketers often know when a campaign could perform better. The challenge is knowing what to change. Is the creative underperforming? Are the media placements wrong? Or was the creative flawed from the start?
The reality is that most measurement approaches don’t provide those answers. Seventy percent of marketers say they face moderate or significant challenges measuring campaign ROI, and two-thirds struggle to demonstrate campaign impact to stakeholders, according to Marketing Dive. And, when the picture finally comes together; the campaign is over.
Full-funnel campaign optimization in real-time
What marketers need is a single system that connects them to performance insight in real time, not in post-mortems.
MarketCast’s newest offering, Total Effect provides a unified intelligence layer linking creative, media performance (Linear, OLV, Social), and business outcomes. Its proprietary engine identifies in-flight optimization opportunities as the campaign runs. Weekly updates enable marketers to make ongoing, actionable adjustments — not just end reports.
Case study: How a big-box retailer can use predictive intelligence to optimize campaigns in-flight
The big-box retail space is crowded with messages and promotions, yet it remains rich with opportunity for brands that can capture consumers’ attention, and their dollars. Standing out in this competitive category requires a sound advertising strategy, precise media investment, and the ability to act on performance data in real time — not after the budget has been spent.
When MarketCast Total Effect analyzed the Q4 advertising for a big-box retail leader, the findings were clear: the brand left nearly 9% more performance sitting on the table. Across three distinct levers — pre-flight creative testing, in-flight publisher selection, and creative optimization — they had measurable, actionable opportunities to drive more site visits and search activity. These are the kind of opportunities that disappear the moment the campaign ends.
Path to improved campaign performance
PRE-CAMPAIGN IMPROVEMENTS
5.21% is available through creative testing improvements by focusing on the following Ad Effect metrics:
- Confusing
- Aided Brand Recognition
- Ease of Branding
IN-FLIGHT IMPROVEMENTS
2.65% is available through creative optimization on the top three creatives:
- Creative A (:15)
- Creative B (:15)
- Creative C (:15)
1.02% is available through media optimization by prioritizing investment in the top publishers:
- Peacock
- Tubi TV
- Programmatically Served Digital
With predictive insights fueling their campaign strategy, the retailer could see a significant return on their advertising spend. MarketCast Total Effect’s weekly intelligence cadence now provides marketers with the enhanced ability to act rapidly on signals while the campaign is still in flight — moving from what could have been, to what is.
Optimize your campaigns today with MarketCast Total Effect
Learn more about how MarketCast Total Effect is changing ad measurement, fill out the form and we’ll get you started on the path to full-funnel optimization.
In-flight campaign optimization is the practice of adjusting an ad campaign’s creative, media spend, or targeting while the campaign is still running — rather than waiting until it ends. It matters because most campaign performance losses happen in real time. By the time a post-campaign analysis surfaces the issues, the budget is already spent and the opportunity is gone.
Full funnel campaign measurement connects creative testing, media performance, and business outcomes into a single view — rather than measuring each in isolation. When those signals are unified, marketers can see exactly where performance is breaking down and act on it, whether that means adjusting creative, reallocating spend, or refining targeting before the campaign ends.
The impact can be significant. In an analysis of a retailer’s Q4 advertising, MarketCast Total Effect identified opportunities that could have driven an 8.88% lift in outcomes including site visits and search activity — through smarter publisher selection and better creative prioritization, with no increase in budget required.
Most ad measurement tools are retrospective — they tell you what happened after the campaign ends. Total Effect delivers a unified intelligence layer updated weekly, linking creative performance, media results, and business outcomes in real time. That weekly cadence is what makes the difference between a post-mortem and an actionable optimization strategy.