Content Category
A sponsored MarTech article of October 15, 2026 reports Optmyzr's analysis of 5,886 accounts. In Black Friday-Cyber Monday 2024, advertisers using seasonality adjustments saw CPCs up 34% and ROAS down 15.7%; those who did not saw ROAS up 5.7%.
Why it matters
Google's Smart Bidding already learns from past seasons, so an extra adjustment can double count the lift.
A MarTech contributed column by consultant Tom Leonard, published October 19, 2026, argues incrementality evidence lets marketers change budgets and align with finance on contribution profit instead of ROAS. Its numbers are hypothetical.
Why it matters
Reported ROAS can overstate returns, and finance teams want contribution-level evidence.
The Video Advertising Bureau's October 20, 2026 infographic claims 21 premium platforms outperform YouTube on US CTV, with co-viewing 60% versus 45%. It does not name TVision, the data source, or the different session thresholds used.
Why it matters
Platform comparisons guide CTV budget splits, and thresholds and indices change what the numbers mean.
Comscore's State of Audio 2026 report, emailed October 20, leads with a 13% rise in minutes versus July 2023, but its chart shows July 2026 below July 2025's 310 billion by about 36 billion. A survey of 3,242 US listeners supplies the rest.
Why it matters
Audio budgets use trend claims, and the choice of comparison year changes the story.
Comscore's first monthly Score Report, published October 21, 2026, ranks TV platforms by share of ad exposure time for August: broadcast 43.2%, cable 34.5% and streaming 22.3%. Devices and data sources were not stated.
Why it matters
Ad exposure time is closer to what advertisers buy, and it shows streaming at less than half the share Nielsen's Gauge gives it for viewing.
Salesforce announced on October 13, 2026 that it will buy Loops, an AI analytics startup that explains why business metrics changed. The price was not disclosed and closing is expected in early November.
Why it matters
It fits Salesforce's push for proactive, agent-driven analytics, and it makes driver analysis a likely feature in Tableau.
A Lumen Research study with Amazon Ads and Cint of 270 campaigns finds a median 47 seconds of cumulative attention for purchase intent. The full white paper is gated, and the method and markets are undisclosed.
Why it matters
If attention thresholds hold, frequency and reach plans could be judged by cumulative seconds looked at, not impressions served.
A marketing mix study announced October 7, 2026 by Circana and Best Buy Ads says Best Buy Ads' ROAS was 79% higher than other media, and nearly 16% of associated sales occurred at competing retailers. The method was not published.
Why it matters
Retail media measurement often stops at the retailer's own transactions, so a cross-retailer figure changes how halo effects are valued.
Google's October Demand Gen update claims over 20% average conversion uplift for advertisers with tag gateway, and adds a Data Strength Uplift metric. The footnote for the figure was not visible, and The Zebra reports 16% more conversion volume.
Why it matters
Better signal can raise reported conversions without raising sales, so teams need to separate measurement gains from real demand.
DoubleVerify's "Scroll, Stop and Shop" report, emailed October 14, 2026, surveyed 22,000 consumers in 21 countries and 2,020 marketers in 25. Social purchasers fell to 25% from 30% and influencer influence to 48% from 54%.
Why it matters
Social commerce budgets often assume rising purchase behaviour, and a survey-based decline is a reason to check your own data.
