Podcast

Episode 680 (Part 1): Why ROAS Sucks: The New Marketing Metric Everyone Should Use But Aren't

Ralph Burns · Perpetual Traffic Free Intermediate

Ralph Burns has run performance marketing at scale for over a decade, and this episode makes the case, with a real client story of an agency reporting 400% ROAS while the client's bank account was shrinking, for why MER and new customer acquisition cost are what actually predict business health.

• Argues single click ROAS has not kept up with cross device and cross channel attribution, and can be inflated by over crediting remarketing to existing customers.
• Recommends tracking MER, new customer acquisition cost, and top line revenue instead of chasing the in platform ROAS number.
• Suggests keeping 70 to 75% of budget toward prospecting rather than remarketing, so the ROAS number stops flattering you.