Summary of Significant Accounting Policies | 2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies The accompanying consolidated financial statements reflect the application of certain significant accounting policies as described below and elsewhere in these Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements. Principles of Consolidation The accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, TechTarget Securities Corporation (“TSC”), TechTarget Limited, TechTarget (HK) Limited (“TTGT HK”), TechTarget (Australia) Pty Ltd., TechTarget (Singapore) Pte Ltd., E-Magine Médias SAS (“LeMagIT”), TechTarget Germany GmbH and as of December 23, 2020, BrightTALK Limited and its wholly owned subsidiary, BrightTALK, Inc. (“BrightTALK”). TSC is a Massachusetts corporation. TechTarget Limited is a subsidiary doing business principally in the United Kingdom. TTGT HK is a subsidiary incorporated in Hong Kong in order to facilitate the Company’s activities in the Asia-Pacific region. TechTarget (Australia) Pty Ltd. and TechTarget (Singapore) Pte Ltd. are the entities through which the Company does business in Australia and Singapore, respectively; LeMagIT and TechTarget Germany GmbH, both wholly-owned subsidiaries of TechTarget Limited, are entities through which the Company does business in France and Germany, respectively. BrightTALK are entities which the Company does business for the BrightTALK webinar and virtual event platform. Use of Estimates The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. On an ongoing basis, the Company evaluates its estimates, including those related to revenues, long-lived assets, goodwill, the allowance for doubtful accounts, stock-based compensation, earnouts, self-insurance accruals, the allocation of purchase price to intangibles and goodwill, and income taxes. Estimates of the carrying value of certain assets and liabilities are based on historical experience and on various other assumptions that the Company believes to be reasonable. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Revenue Recognition under ASC 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASC 606”) The Company generates its revenues from the sale of targeted marketing and advertising campaigns, which it delivers via its data analytic solutions. Revenue is recognized when performance obligations are satisfied by transferring promised goods or services to customers, as determined by applying a five-step process consisting of: a) identifying the contract, or contracts, with a customer, b) identifying the performance obligations in the contract, c) determining the transaction price, d) allocating the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract, and e) recognizing revenue when, or as, performance obligations are satisfied. The Company’s offerings consist of: • IT Deal Alert . A suite of data, software and services for B2B technology companies that leverages the detailed purchase intent data we collect on enterprise technology organizations and professionals researching IT purchases via our network of websites and our webinar community platform. Through our proprietary data-capture and scoring methodologies, we use this insight to help our customers identify and prioritize accounts and contacts whose content consumption and online research activities around specific enterprise technology topics indicate they are “in-market” for a particular B2B technology product or service. The suite of products and services includes Priority Engine and Qualified Sales Opportunities. Priority Engine is a subscription service powered by our Activity Intelligence platform, which integrates with customer relationship management (“CRM”) and marketing automation platforms (“MAPs”) including Salesforce.com, Marketo, Hubspot, Eloqua, Pardot, and Integrate. The service delivers lead generation workflow solutions designed to enable marketers and salesforces to identify and prioritize accounts and individuals actively researching new technology purchases or upgrades, and then to engage those active prospects. We launched IntentMail AI TM in December 2023, which is Priority Engine’s AI-powered messaging feature, which enables sellers to automatically generate personalized email copy. Qualified Sales Opportunities is a product that profiles specific in-progress purchase projects via surveys and interviews with business technology professionals whose research activity and content consumption is indicative of a pending technology purchase. Qualified Sales Opportunities include information on project scope, purchase criteria and vendors considered. • Demand Solutions. Our offerings enable our customers to reach and influence prospective buyers through content marketing programs, such as white papers, webcasts, podcasts, videocasts, virtual trade shows, and content sponsorships, designed to generate demand for their solutions, and through display advertising and other brand programs that influence consideration by prospective buyers. We believe this allows B2B technology companies to maximize ROI on marketing and sales expenditures by capturing sales leads from the distribution and promotion of content to our audience of enterprise technology and business professionals. • Brand Solutions . Our suite of brand solutions provide B2B technology companies with direct exposure to targeted audiences of enterprise technology and business professionals actively researching information related to their products and services. We leverage our Activity Intelligence platform to enable significant segmentation and behavioral targeting of audiences to improve the relevancy of digital ads to researcher needs. Branding solutions include on-network banner advertising and digital sponsorships, off-network banner targeting, and microsites and related formats. • Custom Content Creation. We deliver market insights and guidance to B2B technology companies through our Enterprise Strategy Group annual research and advisory subscription programs, custom market research services, and consulting engagements. In addition, Enterprise Strategy Group experts author custom content products including technical and economic validations, white papers, infographics, videos and webinars. This content is leveraged by B2B technology marketers to support product launches, enable demand-generation campaigns, and to establish overall thought leadership. We also create white papers, case studies, webcasts or videos to our customers’ specifications. These customized content assets are then promoted to our audience within both demand solutions and brand solutions programs. Additionally, we offer off-the-shelf editorial sponsorship products on topics aligned to customer markets, enabling them to engage and generate demand via packaged content created by our editorial staff to educate technology researchers on new technology trends and feature options. • BrightTALK platform. Allows our customers to create, host and promote webinars, virtual events and video content. Customers create their own hosted Channels on the platform where they schedule both live and on-demand webinars for promotion to BrightTALK’s community of in-market accounts and individuals. The BrightTALK Channel also enables customers to self-administer lead generation campaigns, set up workflow integrations between the Channel and their CRM and MAP systems, and access reporting detailing the size and growth of their community of subscribers over time. Customers may also create an off-network embedded Channel page on their own corporate website featuring content in their BrightTALK Channel, as well as an embedded BrightTALK registration form that captures and converts interested individuals to marketing leads. Revenue from demand and brand solutions is primarily recognized when the transfer of control occurs. Certain of the contracts within demand and brand solutions are duration-based campaigns which, in the event of customer cancellation, provide the Company with an enforceable right to a proportional payment for the portion of the campaign based on services provided. Accordingly, revenue from duration-based campaigns is recognized using a time-based measure of progress, which the Company believes best depicts how it satisfies its performance obligations in these arrangements as control is continuously transferred throughout the contract period. Revenue from custom content creation is recognized over the expected period of performance using a single measure of progress, typically based on hours incurred. Revenue from Priority Engine and the Bright TALK platform are recognized over a time-based measure of progress, which the Company believes best depicts how it satisfies its performance obligations in these arrangements as control is continuously transferred throughout the contract period. To determine standalone selling price for the individual performance obligations in the arrangement, the Company uses an estimate of the observable selling prices in separate transactions. The Company establishes best estimates considering multiple factors including, but not limited to, class of client, size of transaction, available inventory, pricing strategies and market conditions. The Company uses a range of amounts to estimate stand-alone selling price when it sells the goods and services separately and needs to determine whether a discount is to be allocated based upon the relative stand-alone selling price to the various goods and services. Judgment is required to determine the standalone selling price for each distinct performance obligation. Fair Value of Financial Instruments Financial instruments consist of cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments, accounts receivable, accounts payable, long-term debt and contingent consideration. Due to their short-term nature and liquidity, the carrying value of these instruments, with the exception of contingent consideration and long-term debt, approximates their estimated fair values. See Note 4 for further information on the fair value of the Company’s investments. The Company classifies all of its short-term investments as available-for-sale. The fair value of contingent consideration was estimated using a discounted cash flow method. Business Combinations The Company uses its best estimates and assumptions to assign fair value to the tangible and intangible assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the acquisition date. The Company’s estimates are inherently uncertain and subject to refinement. During the measurement period, which may be up to one year from the acquisition date, the Company may record adjustments to the fair value of these tangible and intangible assets acquired and liabilities assumed, with the corresponding offset to goodwill. In addition, uncertain tax positions and tax-related valuation allowances are initially recorded in connection with a business combination as of the acquisition date. The Company continues to collect information and reevaluates these estimates and assumptions quarterly and records any adjustments to the Company’s preliminary estimates to goodwill provided that the Company is within the measurement period. Upon the conclusion of the measurement period or final determination of the fair value of assets acquired or liabilities assumed, whichever comes first, any subsequent adjustments are recorded to the Company’s consolidated statement of operations. Long-Lived Assets , Goodwill and Indefinite-lived Intangible Assets Long-lived assets consist primarily of property and equipment, capitalized software, goodwill and other intangible assets. The Company reviews long-lived assets, including property and equipment and finite intangible assets, for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. Conditions that would trigger an impairment assessment include, but are not limited to, a significant adverse change in legal factors or business climate that could affect the value of an asset or an adverse action or a significant decrease in the market price. A specifically identified intangible asset must be recorded as a separate asset from goodwill if either of the following two criteria is met: (1) the intangible asset acquired arises from contractual or other legal rights; or (2) the intangible asset is separable. Accordingly, intangible assets consist of specifically identified intangible assets. Goodwill is the excess of any purchase price over the estimated fair value of net tangible and intangible assets acquired. Goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets are not amortized but are reviewed annually for impairment or more frequently if impairment indicators arise. Separable intangible assets that are not deemed to have an indefinite life are amortized over their estimated useful lives, which range from eighteen months to nineteen years , using methods of amortization that are expected to reflect the estimated pattern of economic use, and are reviewed for impairment when events or changes in circumstances suggest that the assets may not be recoverable. Consistent with the Company’s determination that it has a single reporting segment, it has been determined that there is a single reporting unit and goodwill is therefore tested for impairment at the entity level. The Company performs its annual test of impairment of goodwill as of December 31st of each year and whenever events or changes in circumstances suggest that the carrying amount may not be recoverable using the two-step process required by ASC 350, Intangibles – Goodwill and Other (“ASC 350”). The first step of the impairment test is to identify potential impairment by comparing the reporting unit’s fair value with its net book value (or carrying amount), including goodwill. The fair value is estimated based on a market value approach. If the fair value of the reporting unit exceeds its carrying amount, the reporting unit’s goodwill is not considered to be impaired and the second step of the impairment test is not performed. Whenever indicators of impairment become present, the Company would perform the second step and compare the implied fair value of the reporting unit’s goodwill, as defined by ASC 350, to it carrying value to determine the amount of the impairment loss, if any. As of December 31, 2023, there were no indications of impairment based on the step one analysis, and the Company’s estimated fair value exceeded its goodwill carrying value by a significant margin. Based on the aforementioned evaluation, the Company believes that, as of the balance sheet date presented, none of the Company’s goodwill or other long-lived assets were impaired. The Company did no t have any intangible assets, other than goodwill, with indefinite lives as of December 31, 2023 or 2022 . Allowance for Doubtful Accounts The Company reduces gross trade accounts receivable for an allowance for doubtful accounts. The allowance for doubtful accounts is the Company’s best estimate of the amount of probable credit losses in its existing accounts receivable. The allowance for doubtful accounts is reviewed on a regular basis, and all past due balances are reviewed individually for collectability. Account balances are charged against the allowance after all means of collection have been exhausted and the potential for recovery is considered remote. Provisions for doubtful accounts are recorded in general and administrative expense. Below is a summary of the changes in the Company’s allowance for doubtful accounts for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021. Balance at Provision Write-offs, Balance at Year ended December 31, 2023 $ 4,494 $ 2,021 $ ( 1,487 ) $ 5,028 Year ended December 31, 2022 $ 2,514 $ 2,239 $ ( 259 ) $ 4,494 Year ended December 31, 2021 $ 1,754 $ 904 $ ( 144 ) $ 2,514 Property and Equipment and Other Capitalized Assets Property and equipment and other capitalized assets are stated at cost. Property and equipment acquired through acquisitions of businesses are initially recorded at fair value. Depreciation is calculated on the straight-line method based on the month the asset is placed in service over the following estimated useful lives: Estimated Useful Lives Furniture and fixtures 3 - 10 years Computer equipment and software 3 years Internal-use software and website development costs 3 - 5 years Leasehold improvements Shorter of useful life or remaining duration of lease Property and equipment and other capitalized assets consist of the following: As of December 31, 2023 2022 Furniture and fixtures $ 1,300 $ 1,361 Computer equipment and software 4,678 5,393 Leasehold improvements 3,786 3,867 Internal-use software and website development costs 70,233 56,340 79,997 66,961 Less: accumulated depreciation and amortization ( 55,080 ) ( 44,454 ) $ 24,917 $ 22,507 Depreciation expense was $ 12.4 million, $ 10.0 million, and $ 7.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021, respectively. Repairs and maintenance charges that do not increase the useful life of the assets are charged to operations as incurred. The Company wrote off approximately $ 1.9 million , $ 2.4 million , and $ 1.0 million of assets that were no longer in service during 2023, 2022, and 2021 , respectively. Depreciation expense is classified as a component of operating expense in the Company’s results of operations with the exception of certain depreciation expense which is classified as a component of cost of goods sold. Internal-Use Software and Website Development Costs The Company capitalizes costs incurred during the development of its website applications and infrastructure as well as certain costs relating to internal-use software. The Company begins to capitalize costs to develop software and website applications when planning stage efforts are successfully completed, management has authorized and committed project funding, and it is probable that the project will be completed, and the software will be used as intended. Judgment is required in determining the point at which various projects enter the state at which costs may be capitalized, in assessing the ongoing value of the capitalized costs and in determining the estimated useful lives over which the costs are amortized, which is generally three years. To the extent that the Company changes the manner in which it develops and tests new features and functionalities related to its websites, assesses the ongoing value of capitalized assets, or determines the estimated useful lives over which the costs are amortized, the amount of website development costs it capitalizes and amortizes in future periods would be impacted. The estimated useful lives of costs capitalized is evaluated for each specific project. Capitalized internal-use software and website development costs are reviewed for recoverability whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the asset may not be recoverable. An impairment loss would be recognized only if the carrying amount of the asset is not recoverable and exceeds its fair value. The Company capitalized internal-use software and website development costs of $ 14.2 million , $ 12.9 million , and $ 11.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021 , respectively. Debt Issuance Costs Costs incurred with the issuance of the Company’s convertible debt are deferred and amortized as interest expense over the term of the related convertible instrument using the effective interest method. To the extent the convertible debt is outstanding, these amounts are reflected in the consolidated balance sheets as a deduction of the convertible debt. Concentrations of Credit Risk and Off-Balance Sheet Risk Financial instruments that potentially expose the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist mainly of cash and cash equivalents, investments and accounts receivable. The Company maintains its cash and cash equivalents and investments principally in accredited financial institutions of high credit standing. The Company routinely assesses the credit worthiness of its customers. The Company generally has not experienced any significant losses related to individual customers or groups of customers in any particular industry or area. The Company does not require collateral. Due to these factors, no additional credit risk beyond amounts provided for collection losses is believed by management to be probable in the Company’s accounts receivable. At December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 , no customer represented 10% of total accounts receivable. No single customer accounted for 10% or more of total revenues in the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, or 2021 . Income Taxes The Company’s deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized based on temporary differences between the financial reporting and income tax bases of assets and liabilities using statutory rates. A valuation allowance is established against net deferred tax assets if, based upon the weight of available evidence, it is more likely than not that some or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. The Company records a liability for unrecognized tax benefits resulting from uncertain tax positions taken or expected to be taken in a tax return using a “more likely than not” threshold as required by the provisions of ASC 740-10, Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes (“ASC 740”). The Company recognizes interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits, if any, in income tax expense. Stock-Based Compensation The Company has stock-based employee compensation plans which are more fully described in Note 11. Stock-based compensation cost is measured at the grant date based on the fair value of the award and is recognized in the Consolidated Statement of Income and Comprehensive Income using the straight-line method over the vesting period of the award. The Company uses the Black-Scholes option-pricing model to determine the fair value of stock option awards. Comprehensive Income Comprehensive income includes all changes in equity during a period, except those resulting from investments by stockholders and distributions to stockholders. The Company's comprehensive income includes changes in the fair value of the Company’s unrealized gains on available for sale securities and foreign currency translation adjustments. There were no reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive income in the periods ended December 31, 2023, 2022, or 2021 . Foreign Currency The functional currency for each of the Company’s subsidiaries is the local currency of the country in which it is incorporated. All assets and liabilities are translated into U.S. dollar equivalents at the exchange rate in effect on the balance sheet date or at a historical rate. Revenues and expenses are translated at average exchange rates. Translation gains or losses are recorded in stockholders’ equity as an element of accumulated other comprehensive income (loss). Net Income Per Share Basic earnings per share is computed based on the weighted average number of common shares and vested restricted stock units outstanding during the period. Because the holders of unvested restricted stock units do not have non-forfeitable rights to dividends or dividend equivalents, the Company does not consider these restricted stock units to be participating securities that should be included in its computation of earnings per share under the two-class method. Diluted earnings per share is computed using the weighted average number of common shares and vested, undelivered restricted stock units outstanding during the period, plus the dilutive effect of potential future issuances of common stock relating to stock option and restricted stock unit programs using the treasury stock method. In calculating diluted earnings per share, the dilutive effect of stock options and restricted stock units is computed using the average market price for the respective period. In addition, the assumed proceeds under the treasury stock method include the average unrecognized compensation expense of stock options and restricted stock units that are in-the-money. This results in the “assumed” buyback of additional shares, thereby reducing the dilutive impact of stock options and restricted stock units. A reconciliation of the numerator and denominator used in the calculation of basic and diluted net income per share is as follows: For the Years Ended December 31, 2023 2022 2021 Numerator: Net income $ 4,461 $ 41,609 $ 949 Denominator: Basic: Weighted average shares of common stock and vested, undelivered restricted stock units outstanding 28,327,591 29,589,000 28,434,213 Diluted: Weighted average shares of common stock and vested, undelivered restricted stock units outstanding 28,327,591 29,589,000 28,434,213 Effect of potentially dilutive shares 166,953 4,483,131 1,039,678 Total weighted average shares of common stock and vested, undelivered restricted stock units outstanding and potentially dilutive shares 28,494,544 34,072,131 29,473,891 Calculation of Net Income Per Common Share: Basic: Net income applicable to common stockholders $ 4,461 $ 41,609 $ 949 Weighted average shares of stock outstanding 28,327,591 29,589,000 28,434,213 Net income per common share $ 0.16 $ 1.41 $ 0.03 Diluted: Net income applicable to common stockholders(1) $ 4,461 $ 44,173 $ 949 Weighted average shares of stock outstanding 28,494,544 34,072,131 29,473,891 Net income per common share(2) $ 0.16 $ 1.30 $ 0.03 (1) For the year ended December 31, 2022, we excluded $ 2.6 million of amortization and interest expense relating to our convertible notes when calculating net income for diluted earnings per share. There was no such adjustment in 2023 or 2021, due to anti-dilutive nature of the add-back. (2) In calculating diluted net income per share, 1.3 million shares, 107 thousand shares, and 14 thousand shares related to outstanding stock options and unvested, undelivered restricted stock units which were excluded for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021 , respectively, because they were anti-dilutive. Additionally, in calculating diluted net income per share, weighted average shares includes 3.9 million shares related to the if converted basis of our convertible notes for the year ended December 31, 2022. There was no such adjustment for 2023 or 2021 due to the anti-dilutive nature of the add-back. Recent Accounting Pronouncements Recently Adopted Accounting Guidance In December 2023, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2023-09, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures, which requires public entities, on an annual basis, to provide disclosure of specific categories in the rate reconciliation, as well as disclosure of income taxes paid disaggregated by jurisdiction. ASU 2023-09 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2024, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adopting ASU 2023-09. In November 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-07, Segment Reporting (Topic 280): Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures, which requires public entities to disclose information about their reportable segments’ significant expenses and other segment items on an interim and annual basis. Public entities with a single reportable segment are required to apply the disclosure requirements in ASU 2023-07, as well as all existing segment disclosures and reconciliation requirements in ASC 280 on an interim and annual basis. ASU 2023-07 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, and for interim periods within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2024, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adopting ASU 2023-07. In December 2022, the FASB issued No. ASU 2022-06, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 818): Deferral of the Sunset Date of Topic 848, which extends the period of time companies can utilize the reference rate reform relief guidance in Topic 848 to December 31, 2024. The guidance was effective upon issuance and had no material effect on the Company’s consolidated financial statements. In October 2021, the FASB issued ASU 2021-08, “Business Combinations (Topic 805): Accounting for Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities from Contracts with Customers,” which requires entities to apply Topic 606 to recognize and measure contract assets and contract liabilities in a business combination as if it had originated the contracts. The standard is effective for public companies for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2022. Early adoption is permitted. We adopted this accounting standard update on January 1, 2023 and it had no material effect on the Company's consolidated financial statements. |