Audience Measurement in 2020 — A Watershed Year

I sense this will be a watershed year for audience measurement but that doesn39t mean it39s time for a clear out Moving from an established proven system to a new approach can lead to deep regret and unintended consequences unless we are careful to save the best bits of the thing we39re junkingAlthough those sentiments can be applied to many things in the media world like the BBC how we39re measuring audiences is in fact of great significance when it comes to accountability of the mediaFor many years the ad business has been lucky to have a number of studies and services at its disposal each created to provide something deeply relevant to that particular medium amp8212 and each designed managed and verified by the industry as a wholequotThe industryquot translates to the media owners amp8212 broadcasters publishers and radio stations amp8212 and agencies that use the data and the advertisers whose money funds it allThis joint industry committees JIC approach has worked well in the past and indeed still works well today In the UK for example the Broadcasters39 Audience Research Board BARB is a brilliant way of measuring TV audiences while audience measurement company PAMCo and Radio Joint Audience Research RAJAR do what they39re supposed to do which includes providing the currency for the planning buying and selling of ad spaceThe funding has worked well too take TV for example Broadcasters largely fund BARB with the agencies paying for access to the dataThat39s as it should be the broadcasters use the data for far more than selling airtime It39s vital in selling programs overseas constructing schedules calculating artists39 worth and helps to justify additional costs such as the BBC license feeBut as we all know in the media world of today nothing is ever simple Once you move from TV to video you introduce a whole new set of issues for example what is a viewer quotEasyquot you may think but different deliverers of audiences have different opinionsWhose rules should dictate the way the research is conducted When I sat on the BARB Management Committee it was simple The broadcasters made the decisions and even if agencies huffed and puffed they couldn39t really do anything unless the broadcasters agreed Agencies could discuss debate argue amp8212 they were listened to and could even affect aspects at the margins but when it came down to it we all knew what was going to happen He who pays the piper calls the tuneIf you39re Facebook Google or YouTube you have your own set of rules and indeed your own set of data collected deterministically and hidden away from the prying eyes of those who would seek to validate or analyze it Why should you compromise your rules or share your data with the competitionOn the other side why would the broadcasters give the likes of Facebook and Google the measurement credibility that comes with the BARB imprint when doing so risks a loss of revenueThe people who most benefit from an allin holistic system are the advertisers and their advisers Their needs are clear They want and need a crossmedia measurement system But historically they39ve never paid for the research and the old argument that advertisers ultimately pay for everything is silly On that basis consumers amp8212 who really pay for everything amp8212 should fund audience measurement via a taxPlanners need industrywide crossmedia planning data to compare the impact and effect of advertising with PR influencer marketing and sponsorships Within advertising we need to be able to advise on TV versus streamed video versus online display versus social media versus radioThis is nothing new although the labels have changed We39ve always needed planning data and industryaccepted standards help to prevent a lot of pointless arguments laterThe buyside has been so focused on buying matters yet so unprepared to pay for anything that we have had to make do stretching and bending the currency data to try to answer planning questions for which the research was never designedNone of this is to suggest that we should junk the BARBs of this world nor does it mean that the currency data is somehow not as important as it has always been It39s just that not even being able to agree on what a viewer is has become rather importantThe elephant in the room is who pays Agencies never have any money unless it39s for Cannes entries and that aside the focus of anything they do spend is on proprietary research as pitch fodder TV broadcasters have no interest in funding research that might lead advertisers towards another media form The platforms are growing very nicely thank you and see little reason to do anything other than carrying on within their walled gardensThe key to solving this lies with the beneficiaries amp8212 and that means the advertisers But they will need to do more than issue whitepapers and speak at conferencesI have some thoughts and even partial solutions The next Cog Blog will reveal what they are and argue for their adoptionDon39t stop now Read more from the Brian Jacobs in The Cog BlogClick 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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Audience Measurement in 2020 — A Watershed Year

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Brian Jacobs

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Audience Measurement in 2020 — A Watershed Year

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