Everything You Need to Know About Meridian: Google’s Open-Source MMM for Marketing Mix Modeling

What Is Meridian? Google’s Open-Source Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM)

Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM) has long been a key tool for advertisers, especially large brands, to optimize their media mix across channels and platforms. At fifty-five, we have been offering MMM solutions for over 5 years, using advanced tools like our Digital Twin Model to simulate consumer behavior. Results clearly show the value of MMMs, as demonstrated in our case study with TotalEnergies.

Yet, MMM adoption remains limited. From our experience, many advertisers see them as:

• Opaque and hard to understand
• Complex to implement
• Expensive and less scalable

This is where Meridian, Google’s open-source MMM solution, can be an ideal fit.

Why Meridian Is Different

1. Transparency in Marketing Measurement

While traditional MMMs are often viewed as “black boxes,” Meridian changes this by being fully open-source: advertisers and agencies can configure the model independently, ensuring transparency and independence from Google.

Additionally, Meridian uses a Bayesian model, meaning ROI results depend on configuration choices, not hidden algorithms. Note that partnering with a specialized agency ensures accuracy, speed, and objective parameter setting.

2. Cost-Effective and Accessible

One of Meridian’s biggest advantages is price. Since the model is open-source, costs are limited to configuration and setup: roughly €40,000–€50,000.

For advertisers spending between €1M–€5M annually, the potential 5–15% increase in media productivity MMM can bring means ROI can cover project costs within the first year, making MMM projects more accessible than ever.

3. Simplicity and Speed

Meridian enables a fast start with Marketing Mix Modeling. In just a few weeks, agencies like fifty-five can deliver initial results, then refine them for accuracy or additional use cases. While configuration is still complex, our experience (two of the five alpha-testers in 2024 partnered with fifty-five) ensures smooth implementation.

Crucial point: While Meridian is simple to start with, advanced analysis still requires customization.

4. Scalability and Customization

Unlike SaaS MMM solutions, Meridian’s open-source code is fully customizable; advertisers and agencies can adapt the model to their needs. For example, they can integrate critical data preprocessing steps like completeness checks or collinearity analysis.

This flexibility ensures scalability across different use cases and industries.

Unique Meridian Features

Google’s open-source MMM includes capabilities rarely found in other solutions:

• Coverage & repetition analysis: optimize reach and frequency, especially for YouTube and video campaigns.
• Search management with Google Query Volume (GQV): unique competitive search data available only from Google.
• Geographical modeling: accounts for temporal and regional variations, improving correlation analysis.
• Dedicated data platform: allows certified agencies to access deduplicated Google media data, including GQV.

Why Meridian Matters for the Future of MMM

Combining transparency, affordability, scalability, and ease of use, Meridian is a next-generation MMM that can democratize advanced advertising measurement. For advertisers challenged by the limitations of GA4 or needing more accurate ROI measurement, Meridian provides a powerful alternative to traditional solutions.

fifty-five, the data company, is proud to be one of only 21 certified agencies worldwide on Meridian. With our proven expertise and early experience in implementing Google’s MMM, we can help you configure, deploy, and scale Meridian for maximum ROI impact. Contact us to learn more!

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