Brand trackers are commissioned, run for two quarters, and quietly discontinued more often than any other long-running marketing measurement programme. This specification is the version we wish every team had used at commissioning.
Six core metrics, no negotiation
Aided awareness, unaided awareness, consideration, preference, advocacy, and brand association strength against three to five owned attributes. Trackers that include more than ten metrics dilute the signal and invite cherry-picking. Trackers that include fewer than these six are not actually brand health trackers.
Sample design
Minimum sample of 400 per market per wave for B2C; 200 per market per wave for B2B with appropriate weighting. Quarterly waves at minimum; monthly only where category news flow justifies the cost. Always include at least three competitors in the question battery.
Reporting and use
A single quarterly report of no more than twelve pages. Trends over four waves displayed for every metric. Statistical significance flagged on every chart. Recommendations are made by marketing leadership, not the research vendor — vendor recommendations are evidence, not strategy.
When to retire the tracker
Retire the tracker if it has produced no decisions in four consecutive quarters. A tracker that produces no decisions is not measuring brand health, it is measuring vendor relationships.
Last updated May 2026 · Filed under Tools