The folks at A+E
Networks understand the value of a careful process. Now, as they announce
the launch of their Audience Based Advertising Solutions for both Digital and
Linear platforms, all of the critical elements that have taken years to
achieve, are now in place. “Seven years ago we started the digital iteration of
precision,” noted Peter Olsen, Executive Vice President, Ad Sales and Content
Partnerships, “three years ago we added the linear focus. And last year we
launched the attribution-based performance system.”
Although the digital and linear marketplaces are very different,
the complex integration of data, the streamlining of processes and the ability
to customize and then guarantee results places this initiative in a new, higher
class of offerings and just in time for the upfront.
Addressing Marketplace Frustrations
Why do all
of this? Olsen explained that there are two big frustrations for advertisers.
One is the price of entry into the digital and, even more, in linear marketplaces
where it is perceived as cost prohibitive. “That is why we launched a new
product called Precision One or P1 which is a single network optimization tool
intended for clients that want to test in this space or people who aren’t currently
big spenders in TV,” he stated. In this way, smaller clients could participate
in television where now, as in digital, they could get rich data and advanced
targeting opportunities “as a way to welcome new people in.”
The other frustration, Olsen posited, is the general inability
to do cross-platform or multi-platform strategic target optimization. “There is
the lack of common currency as well as other measurement issues out there, but
we are willing to take a leap and say ‘you give us your target and we will buy
the audience wherever it may be.’ Essentially, we need to be able to optimize
any target audience wherever they are watching.”
“These are the new initiatives,” stated Jason DeMarco, Vice
President, Programmatic and Audience Solutions, “but the underlying foundation
remains, which is to find a solution that is beneficial to all parties involved.
We are focused on optimizing the user experience with relevant targeted ads and
keeping intact the premium experience of our content.”
Premium Programmatic
How does the
team at A+E overcome the nagging but incorrect perception of programmatic as
remnant inventory? “I have been fighting that fight for a good seven years,” admitted
Olsen. “Programmatic started as a race to the bottom because basically it was a
way to sell off distressed inventory.” But the reality is, he added, “No
inventory, whether on TV or in digital should be considered distressed when you
are applying data sources to it. Each and every impression will be relevant and
valuable to someone.”
When it
comes to the premium viewing experience, the relevant ads within that
experience will have greater resonance as well as brand safety. In addition,
there is a wider rotation of ads so viewers will not see the same ads over and
over again. “We have identified the ability to increase the frequency of
advertisers to have a more well-balanced delivery of ads and creative which
helps the consumer on the user experience side,” Olsen noted. On the advertiser
side, this method avoids saturation so that, “the premium is maintaining that
TV-like environment across all platforms and screens.”
Technology Partnerships
A+E Networks
has also partnered with several technology firms to replicate the TV experience
on digital platforms. Ethan Heftman, Senior Vice President, Precision and
Performance Advertising Sales, explained that, “The SVOD services are taking
viewership and therefore impressions away from the ad-supported video market.
Where do we turn? Do we go to unsafe, hard to measure spaces that get gets
brands really nervous but help on the efficiency? Or do we find ways to explore
places in the premium market?” To that end, A+E Networks is placing more of
their premium content on Hulu, Roku and Pluto. In this way they can keep the
ecosystem “healthy and also retain clients who understand that video works while
also making it affordable.”
The ability
to blend of all of the different datasets from both the household and
individual level is another selling point to this initiative. “This is where we
find the best in class partnerships,” noted DeMarco, like LiveRamp,
DataPlusMath and iSpot for data, ad serving and tech stack partnerships such as
FreeWheel as well as trade desks on the buy side like dataxu. There are a lot
of test cases using ingested client data, matching it with viewership data and
delivering against targeted audiences with results expected in the next several
months. For the upfront, there is the promise that all of these datasets will
enable cross-platform measurement and deliverability for advertisers.
“A+E offers
the premium content and distribution to deliver audiences. We are partnering
with the best in class technology and data to bring together all aspects of
cross-platform viewership synchronized, collaborative way,” concluded Olsen,
who backs up his beliefs by guaranteeing the buy results.
Next Steps
While the
full holistic integration of digital and linear is possible, it is not simple.
Heftman summed it up, “We think that the only way to compete and not
overpromise and under-deliver, is to have a product that, from a cost
perspective, reduces the barriers to entry for new advertisers and move from
digital and into a linear television world with reduced complexity.”
The response
from advertisers has been encouraging. “We were the first in market with
outcome guarantees which created initial demand,” Heftman added. Now bring on the
upfront!
This article first appeared in www.MediaVillage.com
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