How we calculate Earned Media Value.

What we measure

Earned Media Value (EMV) is an industry-standard estimate of the equivalent cost a venue would otherwise pay to acquire the same creator-driven distribution through paid creator partnerships. It translates the impressions delivered by your Marlo campaigns into a dollar figure benchmarked against the Australian paid creator market.

EMV is an estimate, not a guarantee of revenue or attributed conversion. It quantifies the value of distribution, not the value of outcome.

What we benchmark against, and why

Marlo replaces paid creator partnerships. That is the channel a venue would otherwise use to commission content from a creator of comparable calibre. Our EMV benchmarks reflect the Australian paid creator market: the cash fees, agency commissions, and distribution costs that combine into the real CPM a venue pays when buying creator content directly.

We do not benchmark against paid social platforms like Meta or TikTok Ads. Paid social is not a substitute for creator-driven distribution. It trades on different attention dynamics, carries different trust signals, and serves different campaign objectives. Comparing Marlo against paid social would understate the saving and misrepresent what Marlo actually replaces.

What's included in the calculation

EMV is calculated on the three primary content formats Marlo campaigns deliver: Instagram Reels, Instagram Feed Posts, and TikTok Videos. These are the formats with reliable, platform-reported impression data and clear paid creator market benchmarks.

Marlo campaigns also typically include Instagram Stories as supporting content alongside a primary post or Reel. Stories amplify the primary content and drive supplementary engagement, but they are not included in the EMV calculation. Story impression data is less reliable to capture consistently across platforms, and Stories are not commissioned as standalone deliverables in the Australian paid creator market, so they have no clean benchmark. Excluding them keeps the EMV figure focused on the content with the strongest defensible market reference.

The formula

For each primary content piece delivered in a campaign, we multiply the impressions it receives by the relevant Australian paid creator CPM benchmark for that content type, then sum across all content pieces. All figures are denominated in Australian dollars.

Inputs

Impressions

Sourced directly from platform-native analytics (Instagram Insights, TikTok Analytics) provided by the creator at the close of the campaign content window. We use platform-reported impressions, not estimates derived from follower count or engagement.

Where a platform reports both reach and impressions, we use impressions. Where only views are reported (TikTok video views, Instagram Reels plays), we treat platform-defined views as impressions for the purpose of this calculation.

CPM benchmark by content type

We do not apply a single blended CPM across all content. Different content formats carry materially different media values in the Australian paid creator market, and treating them as equal would distort the calculation. The benchmarks below are set conservatively against published Australian paid creator rates.

What we do not include

• Engagement multipliers. Some EMV methodologies assign a dollar value to each like, comment, save, or share, in addition to impressions. We do not. Adding engagement multipliers inflates EMV without a defensible market reference, and double-counts attention already implicit in the CPM benchmark.
• Creator follower count uplift. We do not apply premium multipliers based on creator tier. Impressions reflect actual reach; we value the reach delivered, not the audience theoretically available.
• Sentiment or content quality scoring. EMV measures distribution value only. Qualitative content assessment is reported separately and is not folded into the financial figure.
• Content asset reuse value. Creator content licensed for venue reuse carries additional production-cost value, but this is not included in EMV to keep the figure focused on earned media distribution.
• Story impressions. Stories are delivered as supporting content but are not a standalone paid creator deliverable, and their impression data is less reliably captured. They are excluded from the calculation.
• Gifting comparisons. Some venues operate informal gifting arrangements with creators outside of structured commercial agreements. Gifting is not a like-for-like substitute for paid creator partnerships, and we do not benchmark against it. The creator cohort accepted on Marlo operates above the gifting tier.

Currency and rounding

All EMV figures are reported in Australian dollars (AUD). Where source benchmarks are originally denominated in USD, we apply the prevailing AUD/USD rate at the time the benchmark was set. Final EMV figures are rounded to the nearest whole dollar.

Versioning and review

This methodology is reviewed at minimum annually, and any time the underlying benchmark sources publish materially updated figures, or Marlo's standard campaign deliverable spec changes. CPM benchmarks in the Australian paid creator market have shown year-over-year volatility of 15-30%; our review cycle is designed to keep our figures aligned with current market reality without introducing short-term noise.

Historical EMV figures reported in venue dashboards are not retrospectively recalculated when benchmarks change. Each campaign's EMV is calculated against the methodology version in force at the time the campaign content was delivered, and that version remains the basis of record.