10 Ways to Prepare for Engaging an MMM Partner

Before you talk to a potential Marketing Mix Modelling (MMM) partner, you need more than just your marketing spend numbers — and the better prepared you are, the greater your chances of getting results that move the needle on your KPIs. Here are the top 10 essentials every marketer should have ready for the conversation.

1. Clear Marketing Objectives

Before you dive into MMM, your objectives need to be rock-solid. Are you looking to boost brand awareness? Drive sales for a specific product line? Cut down on acquisition costs? Or a combination? Having well-defined, measurable marketing objectives will allow your MMM partner to create a model tailored to your actual needs. Companies like Mutinex go beyond a typical SaaS solution, and provide you with a dedicated Marketing Science Partner to help you orient and clarify your goals.

If you’re unclear about your objectives, your model’s direction will be too.

2. Your Data Inventory

MMM relies heavily on historical data, so ultimately you’ll need as much data as possible: from past campaign performance to media spends, customer demographics, product launches, and pricing changes. The more detailed and comprehensive, the better. Of course, this data is often harvested during the onboarding process, with your MMM partner’s help — but even having a good idea of the kind of data your company works with, will help a lot. Luckily, products like Mutinex DataOS make data entry and processing easy.

Aim for as full a data inventory as possible before the MMM process begins.

3. Understanding of Your Budget Constraints

It’s good to be realistic about your budget before starting discussions. You’ll need to cover the costs of your provider as well as any internal resources you need to run the market mix. A trustworthy partner will work within your financial framework. And the good news is: compared to the old-fashioned consultancy route, a SaaS-delivered MMM service from a company like Mutinex means you’ll spend considerably less in the long run.

Set a budget after researching different providers and make sure that you consider internal and agency resourcing.

4. Timeline Expectations

Onboarding and producing a quality model takes time — but it’s worth every second. Just be realistic about your timeframe: knowing and communicating your ideal timeline will help your MMM partner adjust their approach and manage their (and your) expectations, especially if you’re aiming to align results with specific upcoming campaigns or fiscal cycles.

Have a timeline in mind to keep the project on track.

5. Cross-Departmental Buy-In

MMM involves multiple data sources and insights across teams — sales, finance, product, and beyond. Getting buy-in from these departments is crucial so that data is provided smoothly, and the resulting insights can be acted upon organisation-wide. Make sure all relevant teams understand the value of MMM and are on board with the process. Also, ask your marketing and.or media agencies if they’re familiar with MMM, as they’ll play a crucial role in the onboarding process, especially when it comes to collating all your data.

MMM is a team sport; make sure you have the players.

6. Flexibility with Your Existing Assumptions

Be ready to see your marketing assumptions challenged. MMM may show that your long-held beliefs about certain campaigns, channels, or audiences are off-track. If you’re too rigid about what you expect to see, you risk missing out on genuine, valuable insights.

Flexibility makes room for better insights.

7. A Plan for Acting on Insights

No MMM project is worth it if you’re not ready to act on the insights it reveals. Think ahead about how you’ll use the findings to adjust your budget allocations, campaign strategies, or channel investments. Aligning with stakeholders on this expectation beforehand can save you time and help you make changes quickly after the results come in.

Results mean nothing if you’re not willing to act on them.

8. Criteria for Measuring Success

While MMM will measure campaign effectiveness, you need to establish what success looks like for you in the context of the MMM engagement itself. Are you aiming for a particular increase in ROI? Trying to improve brand lift by a certain percentage? Set these criteria clearly, so you’ll be able to evaluate if the partnership has delivered on its promise.

Define success before you start, or you’ll never know if you hit it.

9. A List of Competitors and Market Conditions

Understanding the competitive landscape is vital to MMM. Not only do you need data on your own campaigns, but it’s helpful to have context about major players in your market and any significant economic or seasonal trends impacting your business. These factors will inform the model and ensure a more accurate picture of your performance.

Your results will be stronger with market context included.

10. Realistic Expectations for the Model’s Scope

MMM can provide a lot of insight, but it’s not an all-seeing crystal ball. Be clear on what you can realistically expect to understand from MMM, especially in the first iteration. Manage your expectations around the depth of insights you’ll get and remember that MMM is often an iterative process.

Knowing the limits of MMM will make your experience more productive.

The Bottom Line

Starting your MMM journey prepared isn’t just helpful; it’s essential for success. With clear objectives, a comprehensive data inventory, and a flexible, actionable mindset, you’ll set your MMM partner up to deliver powerful insights that you can actually use. Remember, the more you bring to the table, the better the end results will be. Prepare for your MMM conversation, and you’ll get the ROI to match.