Your ad dollars vanishing into black-box benchmarks. That’s the gut punch from AdExchanger’s latest comic, ‘Benchmarking’ — not some techie inside joke, but a stark reminder that everyday marketers are getting hosed by numbers nobody trusts.
Look. We’ve all seen the pitches: ‘Our DSP crushes benchmarks!’ But who cashes in? Not you.
Why AdTech Benchmarking Feels Like a Shell Game
And here’s the comic’s killer frame — a hapless buyer drowning in charts, each vendor swearing theirs is tops. It’s funny ‘cause it’s true. Twenty years in this racket, I’ve watched benchmarks go from useful yardsticks to weapons in the PR wars.
Remember the early 2000s? When page-view benchmarks ruled web ads, until everyone inflated ‘em with bots? History rhymes hard. Today’s video completion rates, viewability scores — same scam, fancier dashboards. The comic nails that exhaustion, the buyer’s squint at endless spreadsheets.
But dig deeper. Vendors cherry-pick. SSPs tout ‘fill rates’ ignoring latency kills. DSPs flaunt ‘ROAS’ from curated test buys, not your messy campaigns.
One buyer told me last week — off-record, naturally — ‘We switched DSPs on a benchmark win. Spend up 20%, results flat.’ Shocker.
It’s not just inefficiency. It’s theft-by-metric.
Behind its edgy marketing, Liquid Death faces a familiar CPG problem: Most sales happen at the register, where media measurement goes to die.
That AdExchanger must-read? Spot-on tie-in. Benchmarks shine online, but real sales? Crickets. The comic whispers what execs scream in bars: measurement dies where money’s made.
Is AdTech Benchmarking Actually Better Than Guessing?
Nah.
Let’s unpack the sprawl — benchmarks promise objectivity in a swamp of opacity, yet they’re built on vendor data. Kargo’s new AI platform? Beta-tested by Wpromote, sure, but who’s auditing the inputs? Linkby’s $15M raise bets on engagement pays, not impressions — smart pivot, maybe — but benchmarks there? Still murky.
Publicis dumps Trade Desk recommendations. Viant pounces. DSPs circle like sharks. The comic’s punchline? Every ‘win’ hides latency, thin inventory, hidden fees — the stuff benchmarks ignore.
My unique take: This mirrors the 2010 cookie collapse. Back then, third-party trackers benchmarked ‘reach’ until privacy nuked ‘em. Prediction? Cookieless benchmarks flop next year, sparking a walled-garden rush. Google, Amazon win. Indies die.
Europe’s TV mess via RTL? Fragmented benchmarks across borders — currencies, regs. Global advertisers nod knowingly at the comic’s chaos.
But wait — isn’t some benchmarking better than nada?
For tiny teams, yeah. Plug in, pick leaderboards. But scale up? You’re funding the illusion.
Here’s the thing. Real people — that agency media planner burning midnight oil, the brand CMO justifying Q4 misses — they suffer most. Budgets balloon on ‘benchmark-approved’ tech, while competitors sniff actual sales lift.
I’ve grilled execs at SSPs, DSPs. ‘Benchmarks drive 30% of RFPs,’ one admits. Translation: Vendors game ‘em, buyers chase ghosts.
Who Profits from This Benchmarking Circus?
Vendors. Always vendors.
Take DSPlease drama. Publicis bails on TTD; others swarm. Not for transparency — for market share. Benchmarks are the bait.
Liquid Death’s CPG trap? Edgy cans sell at checkout, unmeasured. Adtech benchmarks pretend digital’s the whole pie. Spoiler: It’s 20%.
Comic’s genius — that final glare from the buyer. ‘Show me sales, not scores.’ Exactly.
Wpromote’s AI strategy? Deeper look reveals hybrid human-AI buys. Benchmarks? They’ll adapt, claim ‘AI-optimized’ wins. Hype cycle spins on.
Skeptical vet mode: I’ve seen three benchmark kings dethroned in two decades. AppNexus (now Xandr), Rubicon (SpotX), MediaMath. All ‘benchmark leaders’ once. Bankrupt or sold cheap. Who’s next?
Linkby’s engagement pay? Fresh air — or benchmark bait 2.0? $15M says investors bet chaos breeds opportunity.
The Human Cost of Metric Mania
Picture this: You’re the mid-level buyer. Boss demands ‘data-backed’ choices. You run benchmarks. Pick ‘winner.’ Campaign flops — why? Unbenchmarked variables: creative fatigue, economic dip, competitor surge.
Blame game starts. Your job? Shaky.
Comic captures that dread perfectly. Short, brutal, true.
Europe advertisers navigating RTL’s video strategy? Benchmarks across languages? Nightmare fuel.
So, what’s the fix? Ditch vendor tools. Build private marketplaces — trusted partners, shared clean data. Costly? Yes. Better? Infinitely.
Or wait for regulation. EU’s got teeth; US? Lobbyist playground.
This comic isn’t fluff. It’s a flare — warning marketers: Question the scores.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is adtech benchmarking?
Adtech benchmarking compares DSPs, SSPs on metrics like CPM, viewability, ROAS — but often gamed by vendors.
Does benchmarking help pick the best DSP?
Sometimes for basics, but ignores real-world factors like integration costs and support — leading to costly switches.
Why do adtech benchmarks fail marketers?
They’re vendor-controlled, miss offline sales, and fuel hype over actual performance.
