What Is MMP?

A mobile measurement partner (MMP) is an impartial third-party attribution company that helps app developers and publishers gather marketing campaign data and analyze the effectiveness of various advertising channels, sources, and ad networks.
Key Takeaways
  • MMPs can track impressions, time spent in app, revenue, clicks, installs, events, and more
  • They can track a user’s journey and measure behavior throughout their lifecycle
  • MMPs provide unbiased reporting and analytics to help assess which media source leads to the most conversions

How Does an MMP Work?

When app publishers and developers work with an MMP, they integrate its software development kit (SDK) into their app to register installs and in-app data. 

By implementing an SDK, the app allows the MMP to link ad contacts to app installs and in-app events. This allows greater insights into the marketing process: You can see where user traffic actually comes from and tie it directly to actions users take in an app.

Or you can alternatively integrate it via server-to-server connections. Once an MMP ad campaign is launched, this allows MMPs to track performance against events, such as installs, and track where users come from.

diagram showing how a mobile measurement partner works in adtech

Why Do I Need a Mobile Measurement Partner?

Anyone who is marketing an app or paying a third party to deliver traffic, installs, or actions needs an MMP. It gives publishers and developers all-important insights into which media source is driving conversions. 

A mobile measurement partner is also pretty useful for mobile marketers who want to measure performance from several ad networks.

One of the reasons an MMP is so critical to publishers and developers is that it gives you an unbiased assessment of your app’s performance, so you are not just relying exclusively on your ad platform for data.

What Are the Benefits of a Mobile Measurement Partner?

Straight out the gate, here is a more extensive list of reasons to use an MMP:

  • To track data that is inaccessible in ad networks: This includes vital metrics such as lifetime value (LTV), the medium of installs (organic or paid), and ROI. Publishers and developers get to see this all in one single dashboard. With these additional details, they can also carry out cohort analyses more easily and effectively.
  • To improve return on ad spend (ROAS): With accurate, granular data, it’s possible to allocate marketing spend to where the best return is after tracking performance in multiple channels. 
  • To save time: Whether paid or organic data, an MMP will aggregate, collect, organize, and report across platforms across all ad networks with a single source of truth and make it viewable in one centralized place. This makes analysis simple and quick.
  • To overcome the built-in limitations of Google and Apple’s analytics: While these platforms track an app install, they don’t give you any way to provide accurate attribution to the source. For instance, you can’t tell from looking at the reporting for iOS and Android whether the traffic comes from paid or organic sources.
  • To better prevent fraud: MMPs use a variety of real-time monitoring, machine learning, attribution modeling, blacklisting, and data validation to prevent fraud in ad campaigns.

How Do I Choose an MMP?

Selecting the right mobile measurement partner will ensure app publishers and developers save time and resources. 

As mentioned, they’ll also gain intel on where to scale their app’s business most effectively by investing in the right platforms. Here’s what publishers and developers should ideally look for in an MMP.

young person in black clothing holding a smartphone
  1. Robust Security

When working with an MMP, app businesses trust them with their user and proprietary data. They need to make sure they are safeguarding data appropriately and not selling or remarketing it.

  1. Built-In Fraud Protection

Ad fraud can be a serious problem, so when searching for an MMP, publishers and developers should make sure to inquire about how they identify and prevent ad fraud.

  1. Easy Integration and Usage

Apps need an MMP solution that is easy to integrate and launch, and it must be intuitive to use. 

  1. Lightweight SDK

Businesses want comprehensive data monitoring, but this needs to be within a lightweight SDK that won’t hurt load times or compromise app integrity.

Conclusion

Publishers and developers can spend (and waste) a lot of time, effort, and money trying to attract and engage users if they’re not carefully monitoring what’s working. 

That’s where a mobile measurement partner comes into play. Put simply, an MMP will provide businesses with peace of mind that they have the insights they need to make better data-driven decisions to boost their app’s growth.

FAQs


What Is an MMP?

An MMP is a mobile measurement partner that lets marketers track the performance of the advertising channels in relation to app behavior, such as installs and actions.

How Do I Choose an MMP?

Look for an MMP that provides transparent, accurate data in an easy-to-use dashboard that lets you drill down to granular detail. You also need an MMP with strong security features to protect sensitive information. It should also prevent fraud and be lightweight to avoid negatively impacting user experience.

How Does an MMP Work?

You can integrate with an MMP using either SDK integration or server-to-server (S2S) integration.

What Are Mobile Attribution Tools?

Mobile attribution tools help build an overall picture of app advertising. They are the mediators between all marketing tools and the app and help identify the best-performing conversion sources to improve overall app marketing performance.