What are Geo Pods?
Geo Pods are the geographic units Triple Whale uses to run incrementality tests, including GeoLift tests.
Instead of relying on traditional Designated Market Areas (DMAs), Geo Pods are built using U.S. Census Bureau county-level geography. Counties are grouped into clusters, while campaign targeting and exclusions are activated at the ZIP code level.
This allows Triple Whale to assign ad spend to precise, statistically sound test and control geographies that align with how digital advertising platforms deliver ads.
Why Triple Whale uses Geo Pods
Traditional incrementality testing tools often rely on DMAs, a media-market geography system originally developed for television ratings. This creates several limitations when testing digital-first, DTC-focused advertising:
DMAs were not built for digital ad delivery. Platforms such as Meta, Google, and TikTok support geographic targeting at levels such as ZIP code rather than using traditional media-market boundaries as their primary targeting structure. Using DMAs creates a mismatch between how a test is configured and how the platform delivers spend.
Broad boundaries can blur results. DMAs can combine suburban, urban, and rural markets with different customer behaviors, potentially diluting the signal the test is designed to isolate.
DMA boundaries are fixed. DMA definitions do not adapt to population shifts or reflect how DTC brands acquire customers today.
Geo Pods are purpose-built to address these limitations. Because they are based on Census county geography and activated at the ZIP code level, Geo Pods align more directly with how advertising platforms deliver spend. This creates more precise test and control groups.
That precision is especially important for DTC brands, where a single DMA may hide meaningful differences between the suburban, urban, and rural customers a brand is trying to reach.
How Geo Pods work
Geo Pods are created and activated in three stages:
Foundation: Each Geo Pod is built from one or more U.S. counties using Census Bureau geographic definitions.
Clustering: Counties are grouped into pods based on population, market characteristics, and statistical suitability for test and control matching.
Activation: When you launch a test, targeting and exclusions are activated at the ZIP code level within the relevant pods. This aligns the test with how platforms such as Meta, Google, and TikTok deliver ads geographically.
Geo Pods serve the same core purpose as DMAs, dividing the country into test and control regions, but are designed around how digital advertising spend is delivered.
Where Geo Pods appear
You’ll see Geo Pods in the Campaigns step of the Incrementality Test Setup Wizard. This is where you select your primary metric, regional granularity, and test scope.
Under Regional Granularity, Geo Pods is selected by default. You can also select State.
In subsequent steps of the wizard, Geo Pods are identified by location name, such as Atlanta, GA, rather than by a DMA name or number.
Regional Granularity options in the Incrementality Test Setup Wizard
What this means for you
Your testing workflow remains the same. Geo Pods work behind the scenes in the Incrementality Test Setup Wizard. You’ll see Geo Pods when selecting your regional granularity, but the overall workflow does not change.
Geographic targeting and exclusions are more precise. Because activation happens at the ZIP code level, geographic inclusion and exclusion can be more accurate than with DMA-based approaches.
No action is required. Existing tests do not need to be changed. For new tests, Geo Pods are selected as the default regional granularity, but you can select State instead.
Frequently asked questions
Do Geo Pods replace DMAs entirely in Triple Whale?
For incrementality testing, yes. Geo Pods are now the standard geographic unit in Triple Whale.
Will my historical test results still be valid?
Yes. Historical results are not affected. Geo Pods apply to how new tests are configured going forward.
Can I see which counties or ZIP codes make up a Geo Pod?
Not directly in the product. Geo Pods are identified by location name, such as Atlanta, GA, rather than by their underlying county or ZIP code composition.
If you need that level of detail, contact your Triple Whale team.
Do Geo Pods affect MMM or MTA in Compass?
No. Geo Pods are specific to geographic incrementality testing. They do not directly affect MMM or MTA methodology.