The MSIGHTS Blog

Brands have been in-housing at a higher rate than in the past. We believe that part of the reason behind this decision is thanks to a four-letter word: D-A-T-A.

Data has become a valuable asset. In a traditional agency relationship, advertisers hand off data for the agency to use, manage, analyze, and share with key vendors. But relinquishing that control can have key disadvantages, including giving up ownership of their data which is one their most valuable assets.

In the name of control, we’ve seen brands make the decision to in-house their marketing at multi-dimensional levels. Those who have in-housed boast that the benefits include work efficiency and agility, reduced costs, and greater control of the brand voice. But some of those brands have also come to realize the negatives, such as finding and retaining talent, and having the breadth of insights to create effective and engaging marketing campaigns. It’s important to remember that the more marketing functions you bring in-house, the higher level of expertise you will need for success.

As we have watched this trend develop over the last few years, we’ve realized that the decision to in-house marketing is less about a desire to build an in-house marketing team with hands on keyboards running and executing campaigns. It’s more about a need to control decision making and improve visibility of the partners doing the hands-on work. Which means that this discussion should include a collaborative or hybrid solution, such as out-sourcing programmatic while in-housing the data.

In-housing data gives brands the keys to their own platforms. When brands keep their data under their control, they have the freedom to in-house any function of their marketing and never lose data, historical intelligence, or productivity. It also means they can share the data and insights with whatever relevant parties they so choose.

Gaining control of data is a good beginning step for any brand that is considering experimenting with in-housing marketing functions. Here are 10 reasons we recommend you in-house your data:

Unbiased perspective.

By controlling and managing your own data, you have a full and unbiased view. Your agency may be trustworthy, but they always have a stake in how the data looks.

Historic intelligence.

If you control your data, it’s yours to introduce to new partners or agencies, as needed. You don’t lose historic data when you switch vendors.

Continuity of metric definitions, business rules, and media tags.

Own your data and it is set up the way you want it, with all the calculated values you need to make accurate decisions. And those rules stay with the data, not an external agency or tracking technology partner.

Access media plan details plus complete media buy details.

Past media rates tell you exactly what rate to negotiate to achieve a targeted ROI. It also allows you to calculate negotiated media savings by agency partner and access critical information for negotiating with media companies and publishers.

Agency accountability.

Unbiased data lets you evaluate your agency based on objective performance. Let the numbers tell the performance story rather than a rose-colored PowerPoint presentation.

Optimization.

You’ll be working off agreed-upon numbers, so your agency will focus on optimization instead of discussing trends you already know.

Productivity.

If you do change agencies, your new partners will have instant access to all you know, including what’s worked and, perhaps more valuable, what hasn’t. They won’t have to reinvent the wheel, so they can jump right into strategy and implementation.

Data continuity.

Changes in internal management, acquisitions, restructures, and even new tracking technology companies can disrupt your data flows unless you keep data independent and in your control.

Keep agencies focused on their core value.
Use your agency for what they do best: strategy and analytics. And let data experts do the integration and data cleansing.

More creative control.

Access to your own data gives you the ability to monitor marketing efforts without needing agency reporting, so you can maintain control and act quickly on marketing performance insights.

As many companies are moving marketing functions in-house, they face the challenge of merging data together. That’s where we come in. MSIGHTS helps ease the process of in-housing because we act as a central source of truth. We are a neutral space to house all your data. We make sure your data stays in one centralized place to act as the data record, so you never have to worry about losing your data.

Whatever approach your company chooses, we bring together results from your multi-tactic digital campaigns, including in-house marketing, external agencies, or a hybrid. MSIGHTS can help you maintain positive agency relationships and control over your data.

If you’d like to learn more , check out our resources page for more helpful information.