I’m thrilled to sit down with Milena Traikovich, a true powerhouse in the world of demand generation and marketing strategy. With her extensive background in analytics, performance optimization, and crafting campaigns that nurture high-quality leads, Milena has helped countless businesses refine their approach to growth. Today, we’re diving into the evolving landscape of consumer behavior, the challenges of measuring marketing impact across fragmented platforms, and the innovative ways her expertise is shaping success metrics. We’ll explore how audiences are engaging with content in new ways, the balance between hard data and community impact, and the future of marketing measurement in a fast-paced digital world.
How have you observed consumer behavior shifting in recent years, particularly with the rise of streaming and fragmented content platforms?
Over the past few years, I’ve seen a dramatic shift in how consumers interact with content. It’s not just about passive watching anymore; people are multi-tasking—scrolling on their phones while streaming, shopping directly from shows, or sharing reactions online in real time. This fragmentation across platforms means that engagement is no longer a single touchpoint. It’s a web of interactions, and that’s made traditional measurement trickier but also more exciting because it opens up new ways to connect with audiences.
What impact do you think multi-platform engagement, like dual-screening, has on how we define and measure marketing success?
Dual-screening and multi-platform engagement have completely reshaped what success looks like. It’s not enough to just count views or clicks anymore. We need to understand how these layered behaviors—watching a show while tweeting about it or buying a product inspired by it—drive deeper connections. Success now means capturing the ripple effects of engagement across platforms, which requires more sophisticated tools and a broader view of what “impact” really means.
Can you share some specific audience behaviors, like real-time sharing or shopping, that you’ve seen grow, and how you’re tracking those actions?
I’ve noticed a huge uptick in real-time actions like sharing clips or memes from shows on social media and even shopping for products featured in content as they watch. These behaviors show how emotionally invested audiences are. To track them, we use a mix of social listening tools to monitor conversations and hashtags, alongside e-commerce data to see direct purchases linked to campaigns. It’s about connecting the dots between inspiration and action.
How are you adapting strategies to meet audiences where they are, across various platforms and spaces?
It’s all about being present in the spaces where audiences already spend their time. That means tailoring content for specific platforms—short, punchy videos for social apps, immersive experiences on streaming services—and integrating seamlessly into their daily routines. We analyze behavioral data to see where engagement peaks and then double down on those touchpoints, whether it’s a live event stream or a shoppable ad during a binge-watching session.
Can you tell us about a campaign or cultural moment you’ve worked on that really captured audience attention and drove active participation?
One campaign that stands out was a reality TV promotion we crafted that turned into a cultural phenomenon. We created interactive elements like live polls and behind-the-scenes content that fans could access during episodes, which drove massive online buzz. It became “appointment viewing,” where fans felt they had to tune in live to be part of the conversation. That kind of active participation is gold for building loyalty and engagement.
How do partnerships or collaborations amplify the impact of a campaign, and what makes them effective in engaging fans?
Partnerships can take a campaign to the next level by tapping into an existing fanbase or cultural trend. When you collaborate with an influencer or brand that aligns with your content, it feels authentic and sparks organic conversation. For example, integrating a well-known personality into a campaign can create viral moments that fans latch onto. The key is ensuring the partnership feels natural and adds value to the audience’s experience, not just a forced promo.
When measuring success, how do you balance qualitative insights, like fan reactions, with quantitative data, such as usage stats or time spent?
It’s a bit of a dance, honestly. Quantitative data—like daily active users or time spent on a platform—gives us the hard numbers to show impact. But qualitative insights, like fan reactions on social media or community feedback, tell us the “why” behind those numbers. I like to layer both: use the data to identify trends, then dive into fan sentiment to understand emotional resonance. Together, they paint a full picture of success.
What does building daily habits mean for a brand or platform, and how do you encourage consistent audience engagement?
Building daily habits means becoming a regular part of someone’s routine, whether it’s checking an app for new content or tuning in at a specific time. It’s about creating predictability and value. We encourage this by delivering fresh, relevant content consistently, using push notifications or reminders for key moments, and rewarding engagement with exclusive perks. The goal is to make the audience feel like they’re missing out if they don’t check in regularly.
Can you explain key performance indicators like incremental acquisition or churn reduction in simple terms, and why they matter?
Sure! Incremental acquisition is about gaining new users or customers directly because of a specific campaign or effort, beyond what would’ve happened naturally. Churn reduction focuses on keeping existing users from leaving—think of it as customer retention. Both are crucial because growing your audience and keeping them loyal are the foundation of sustainable growth. If you’re only focused on new users but losing current ones, you’re just spinning your wheels.
Have you introduced any new KPIs recently to reflect evolving audience behaviors or business priorities?
Yes, we’ve started focusing more on metrics like share of time spent across platforms and community engagement scores. These reflect how much of someone’s attention we’re capturing compared to competitors and how deeply they’re connecting with our content through comments, shares, or fan-driven content. These KPIs help us gauge long-term loyalty and cultural impact, which are becoming just as important as immediate revenue.
How do you measure something more abstract, like community impact or the strength of fandoms around content?
Measuring community impact is challenging but so rewarding. We look at qualitative signals like the volume and tone of social media conversations, fan-created content, and participation in events or forums. We also use surveys to gauge sentiment and track how often fans advocate for the brand organically. It’s less about a single number and more about building a story of how our content resonates and creates a sense of belonging.
With revenue often being the ultimate goal, how do you ensure other metrics like engagement don’t get sidelined?
Revenue is always the bottom line, but I believe engagement metrics are the stepping stones to get there. I advocate for a balanced scorecard approach, where we track financial outcomes alongside engagement, retention, and brand sentiment. By showing how engagement drives long-term revenue—like how a strong community leads to word-of-mouth growth—we keep leadership focused on the full ecosystem, not just the immediate dollar signs.
What challenges do you see in connecting paid and earned media when measuring overall marketing performance?
One big challenge is attribution. Paid media, like ads, is easier to track with direct clicks or conversions, but earned media—think organic social buzz or PR—often influences behavior in ways that are harder to quantify. The two work together, but linking them to show a unified impact is tough. We’re working on better models to connect the dots, like tracking how paid campaigns spark earned conversations, but it’s still a work in progress.
What progress have you seen in measuring paid media, particularly with concepts like incrementality, and how has that shaped your strategies?
We’ve made huge strides in measuring paid media through incrementality, which helps us see the true lift a campaign provides beyond baseline performance. For example, we can now better understand if an ad actually brought in new customers or just reached people who were already going to engage. This has shaped our strategies by letting us optimize budgets toward channels and creatives that drive real growth, cutting waste on efforts that don’t move the needle.
What is your forecast for the future of marketing measurement as consumer behaviors and platforms continue to evolve?
I think the future of marketing measurement is going to be even more integrated and dynamic. As consumer behaviors keep shifting with new tech and platforms, we’ll see a stronger push toward real-time, cross-channel attribution that captures every touchpoint. I expect AI and machine learning to play a bigger role in predicting outcomes and personalizing metrics for specific audiences. Ultimately, the focus will be on agility—being able to adapt measurement frameworks quickly to keep pace with culture and technology.
