• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, May 29, 2012

Ace Metrix, the research firm that helps advertisers test creative before launch and conduct analysis after, has finished an $8 million funding round. Holding company WPP and three venture capital firms accounted for the intake.

Executives from each, including WPP director George Rogers, have a seat on the company’s six-member board. WPP first invested in the company in 2010.

The other three investors, Leapfrog Ventures, Hummer Winblad Venture Partners and Palomar Ventures, also had previous stakes in the company. Leapfrog signed on when it led a $6 million funding round in 2009.

To many audiences, Ace Metrix is known for releasing lists of the most effective ads each quarter. A spot for the Samsung Galaxy Note finished first in the first three months of 2012 and was deemed the most effective spot in the Academy Awards. An ad for a Samsung smart TV finished second for the Oscarcast.

In late May, Ace Metrix announced Samsung had become a client of its product offering “real-time creative effectiveness measures.” Samsung was one of 12 new advertisers Ace Metrix said it had signed in the previous three months, helping it more than double revenue over a comparative 2011 period.

Ace Metrix works with TV and online video ads. The company is headed by CEO Peter Daboll, who held top positions at Yahoo and comScore Media Metrix.