Money, Power and Influence in Measurement

Over time it became clear that these numbers had to be as accurate as possible objective unbiased and acceptable to all sides quotTrust mequot became less acceptable than quotlook at this dataquot Mind you sometimes we seem to be back in the quottrust mequot daysThus was born the Joint Industry Committee or JIC system In the UK this meant JICTAR for TV JICNARS for print JICRAR for radio Other geographies except the US followed suit so that today we39re at a point where the JIC concept is well and truly accepted Some would say it is embedded within the businessThe principle remains a simple one All sides that39s the media vendors the agencies and the advertisers sit in a room and decide what research to do to measure audiences They write a brief and jointly commission a research agency to do the workThe individual sides39 priorities are differentMedia vendors want the biggest possible numbers whatever the realityAgencies want something that gets them closer to defining and understanding the audience to an ad They also want to pay as little as possible and for the talking to end so they can get back to their day jobsAdvertisers want much the same as the agencies with one proviso historically they have been averse to paying anything As the great Bernard Balderston of PampampG the ISBA representative on every media committee there ever was used to put it quotWe39re paying for everything anyway It39s up to you to convince us to buyquotAnd so it was that the cost was largely carried by the vendor It was their audience that was being measured so they paid And of course they controlled after all he who pays the piper amp8230But things are changing as the industry edges towards measuring what has always been true consumers use multiple media forms so we need to understand how they fit together We need a framework for crossmedia measurementThat much is clear The problem has always been less about how and more about who pays amp8211 and crucially who controlsAgencies never have any money although strangely they seem to discover a magic money tree whenever award season comes around media vendors can39t be expected to prioritize research that by definition promotes others39 strengthsThat leaves the advertisersAdvertisers are the ones driving this car They ultimately benefit from better planning based on a comprehensive crossmedia frameworkThus advertisers have to pay but how can they ensure an industry consensusWhat if the large advertisers made it clear that they expect their agencies to support work done to improve the industry39s measurementsWhat if all pitch briefs and agency contracts made it clear that the client recognizes the benefit to the business of better crossmedia planning but also notes and values the significance of this work to the industry as a wholeAs a part of that expectation the client will play its part and pay for a proportion of the time that the agency allocates to industry affairs Not only will this time be allocated and measured as a deliverable but the agency should pay a share tooThe agency39s fees are adjusted to reflect this but the rule would be simple no industry involvement no business from usThere are alternatives One is the levy system proposed here several times and reportedly under considerationSuch tactics may be in part cosmetic at the end of the day the advertiser pays but as Bernard said they always do anyway It39s just howThe media vendors of all colors should be involved They have significant expertise and they can contribute a great deal to the conversation around what39s needed to improve planning across channelsBut they shouldn39t control or dictate They don39t get to drivePlanning is an intermedia discipline buying is intramedia Control over the shape of intermedia should be in the hands of those who plan and those who buy those plans the advertisers and their agenciesThe buying piece the currency remains crucial and that39s where the vendors39 control should remainIn any crossmedia measurement headline numbers by medium might go down as new considerations like attention enter the fray Media vendors shouldn39t argue on the basis that the bigger the better the smaller the poorerSmaller more engaged can be beautifulPlanning needs a crossmedia framework not a replacement for a currency not a new system to replace everything else A framework a way of bringing together knowledge and data to help improve and shape how we planAs our old friends Oscar and Richard had it quotWhen you know the notes to sing you can sing most anythingquotWe have the notes we just need help putting them in the right orderClick the social buttons to share this content 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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Money, Power and Influence in Measurement

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Brian Jacobs

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