MER — Marketing Efficiency Ratio
Definition: Total revenue divided by total marketing spend. Unlike ROAS, MER captures blended performance across every channel — the number a CFO actually trusts.
Example
Channel-level ROAS looked clean, but MER told the real story: blended spend was only returning 1.8x.
When you'll hear it
MER shows up most often in board meetings, quarterly business reviews, and strategy off-sites. When someone uses it, they're usually referring to marketing efficiency ratio — and they expect the room to already know what that means.
FAQs
What does MER stand for?
MER stands for Marketing Efficiency Ratio.
What does MER mean in business and finance?
Total revenue divided by total marketing spend. Unlike ROAS, MER captures blended performance across every channel — the number a CFO actually trusts.
Where will I hear MER used at work?
MER comes up most often in board meetings, quarterly business reviews, and strategy off-sites. It's used as shorthand for marketing efficiency ratio, so people assume you already know the term.
Related terms
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