The Importance of Combinations in Ad Campaigns

The channels concerned may not all be paid advertising per se although of course many are We can all quote examples of a base TV campaign using OOH or radio to extend activity over time of video extending onto social of print newspaper or magazine activity being supported by branded content in the form of advertorials or something similarNot all combinations involve paidfor ads Remember those quotAs Seen on TVquot starbursts Or the shop window displays riffing off of a TV execution Or a TV ad music track morphing into a song released as a single and acting as a reminder every time itamp8217s played Or the PR story woven using the thread created by an online sensationCombinations work best They always have and always willAs media people we overobsess about reach but the more compelling reason for combinations has always been about appealing to different criteria the rational working alongside the emotional the engaged with the fleetingWe all know that media audience measurement is paid for in the main by the vendors the channels The vendors couldnamp8217t care less about combinations The agencies and the advertisers care but not enough to initiate at least not until recentlyAlthough they appear to care media agencies39 true love has from their inception been buying Buying39s fun it39s negotiation it39s alpha it39s about power and vendorfunded tripsTo trade both sides need a currencyAgencies may talk a good game when it comes to planning but they need their clients to push them towards any form of truly crossmedia initiativeThe agency community and I wouldn39t limit this to media agencies has failed to convince their advertisers of the true value they bring to the businessSo given that identifying and delivering real business value is tough it39s easier by far to stick to deals Easily measured easily demonstrated easy to justify and so often entirely irrelevant to the true task in handBuying remains important but my sense is it is recognized by more advertisers as an executional centerofexcellence not as the beallandendallOne reason is the lack of transparency It would be wrong to presume that this debate ended with the Jon Mandel case Ad tech has introduced a whole new realm of jargon complexity and deal opportunitiesTo paraphrase the great Irwin Gotlieb where there39s confusion there39s marginHowever it39s not all doom and gloom deals and hidden revenuesThe other week the UKamp8217s largest independent media agency the7stars hosted an interesting debate on quotThe New Effectiveness Normalquot It was subtitled quotMaking the Business Case for Advertising amp8230quotTwo things struck me First the place was packed with clients and I guess vendors Second the audience asked great questions They were engaged and keen to learn from the presentersThis for an event featuring market modelling and economic forecastingIamp8217m sure the7stars arenamp8217t the only agency doing things like this although theyamp8217re the only ones to have been kind enough to invite me Plus for their whole existence they have stood up for true transparency over any form of moneymaking deals with vendors Providing thinking and services around quotmaking the business casequot fits well within their offeringNot so with every other agencyI do think the plates are shifting and in such circumstances the audience measurement world needs to take stock This shift is happening for multiple reasons the growth of the giant platforms the focus on safe content the ability to understand factors like attention paid the failure to fit everything into a joint industry structure the rise of ad fraud the loss of trust in agenciesWhatever the reason the net is the growing significance of and involvement from advertisers in media affairs including audience measurementISBA is more of a force and a positive influence on many levels not just this one than I can remember in 50 years in the business More and more advertisers are hiring media and related specialists inhouse There39s more of a focus on true accountabilityIf we39re serious about accountability we need a framework to assess combinations And audience measurement plays a fundamental role in thisRethinking doesn39t mean dumping what we have rather it means broadening the discussion being more openminded as to the optionsThatamp8217s the big picture behind ISBAamp8217s Origin initiative the wide acceptance of a measurement funding levy and a boom in market modelling Thereamp8217s a desire from advertisers to learn more in order to help get the balance right a realization that whatamp8217s needed is a means to provide assistance to plan across all channelsThose channels and vendors who believe in sticking with a buying and selling model will do what they feel most comfortable doingWhat they do will always have its place but theyamp8217ll be playing in an evershrinking market as the phrase quotintegrated communicationsquot moves beyond a catchphrase in agency pitch decks to a principle driving budget allocationPosted at MediaVillage through the Thought Leadership selfpublishing platformClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

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The Importance of Combinations in Ad Campaigns

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Brian Jacobs

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The Importance of Combinations in Ad Campaigns

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