ANA on Media Transparency: One Year Later -- The Full Breakdown

It would be easy to think that media transparency is all about media trading incentives such as rebates given the furor surrounding the ANAK2 Intelligence report published in June 2016 amp160This sparked a firestorm of debate which overshadowed the full extent and true importance of media transparency for advertisersThe K2 Intelligence report defined transparency as quotthe full disclosure of relevant information required for informed and intelligent decisionmakingquot This transcends the financial elements and covers all the practices that comprise effective media stewardship amp160It embraces all media and the full range of media management practices from media strategy through to measurement and reportingamp160This full range was covered comprehensively in quotMedia Transparency Prescriptions Principles and Processes for Marketersquot which included recommendations issued by the ANA one year agoamp160and was authored by Ebiquity and FirmDecisions amp160It contains seven key strategic platforms that provide advertisers with the roadmap for effective media stewardshipHowever the ultimate objective for advertisers is to improve media effectiveness and achieve improved returnoninvestment amp160Effectiveness and the demonstration of success should be everyone39s aim and the rewards for successful advertising should benefit advertisers their commercial partners and the whole advertising industry amp160Media transparency is an important step towards that objectiveWhat follows are the seven strategic platforms contained in the ANA39s guidelines to help achieve improved media effectiveness1amp160amp160Agent versus principalWhere the advertiser agrees to the agency acting as a principal the advertiser should have disciplined reliable processes to manage the potential conflict of interestAdvertisers should actively pursue the most effective media strategy planning and buying and this should not be compromised by the advertisers39 trading partners39 own interests amp160Advertisers need to be clear on the basis of their relationship with their chosen media agency amp160A clear focus on media effectiveness requires that any potential conflicts of interest that may affect either planning or execution should be identified at the planning stageAdvertisers should benefit from quotprincipal tradingquotamp160that is advantageous and as long as they are able to achieve the right level of visibility over the media process2 amp160Contract contentAdvertisers should ensure that contracts with their media agencies contain robust provisions to deliver full transparencyThe relevant contracts should be set up to ensure that the advertiser can maximize quotworkingquotamp160dollars while rewarding their trading partners well with transparent termsoftrade throughout amp160Contracts should reflect the mutual commitment to the advertiser39s best interestsamp160amp160amp1603 amp160Contract audit rightsAdvertisers should have robust and farreaching audit rights which allow them to fully track contract compliance and measure media value deliveryIf one of the main objectives of a good contract is the maximization of quotworkingquotamp160dollars it follows that the ability of the advertiser to ensure that outcome will contribute to media effectiveness4 amp160Contract governanceamp160 Advertisers should implement strong disciplined internal processes to deliver contracts which ensure strict accountability compliance with effective management principles rigorous process governanceamp160and significant senior management oversightAdvertising budgets represent a significant investment in working capitalamp160and should be subject to the same kind of scrutiny as any other large capital outlay so companies should review the way they structure their investment processes and specifically have governance responsibility allocated to a quotchief media officerquotamp160or someone with a similar functionThe measurement of marketing and advertising effectiveness should be a systematic and rigorous part of any company39s operationsamp160 Advertisers should also constantly review their external resource needs and the resultant contracts5 amp160Data and technologyAdvertisers should take ownership of data and exert control over the media technology used on their behalfThe programmatic market is comfortably the least transparent to advertisers and there is a persistent issue with the effectiveness of programmatic partially caused by the high proportion of advertiser budgets consumed by service and data costs amp160Advertisers shouldCreate a data management frameworkSelect the most appropriate partnersOwn and control dataMeasure resultsManage programmatic tradingEffectiveness in programmatic in particular requires a highly structured approach by advertisers with a high degree of advertiser control6 amp160Advertiser responsibilitiesAdvertisers are responsible for more active stewardship of their media investments and fair compensation of their agency partnersAdvertisers need to manage their channels more actively to maximize effectiveness amp160This carries obligations such as the need to put in place compensation arrangements for partners that are fair and which motivate and incentivize the right performance and behaviors amp160Included in this is the need to pay providers in a timely way in recognition of their own obligations amp160Good governance can make an identifiable contribution to media success7 amp160Code of ConductAdvertisers and media agencies should establish a culture of trust in their relationships via a specific code of conductA mutual code of conduct is the recommended way to enable good daytoday operational practices amp160There are responsibilities that the advertiser owes but the most important obligation of the practitioner partners is to work in the interests of the advertiser in all aspectsIn summary advertising needs to constantly prove its worth so accountability is crucial amp160Advertisers should create the environment whereby advertising has the best possible opportunity to succeedThe other stakeholders in the industry agencies ad tech companies media vendors and measurement providers rely on the success of advertising to both justify their role and earn their rewards amp160An increased focus by advertisers on media transparency to improve effectiveness is therefore good for the whole advertising industryClick the social buttons above or below to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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ANA on Media Transparency: One Year Later -- The Full Breakdown

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