Performance Tracking & Digital governance
Encourage Transparency and Demand Better Performance From Your Suppliers
Performance Tracking & Digital Governance
Performance Tracking and Measurement is a quantifiable way of determining whether success was achieved. It indicates where buying efficiencies and inefficiencies exist , if further process improvements are required, and what learnings can be taken and applied going forward.
By normalising for various market conditions it is possible to judge if you have received a better price this year compared to e.g. last year, for comparable placements, or if a commitment has been delivered/missed.
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Digital Governance Reviews examine the delivery against industry best practices and industry benchmarks, including areas where your online ads could be impacted by negligent management or criminal activity.
Brand Safety, Ad Verification and Ad Fraud.
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Digital Governance is particularly important when high value placements are in use, such as online video where unsafe environments (Brand Safety) or criminal activity (Ad Fraud) unnecessarily reduce reach, impact brand image and waste your investment. Ad Verification reports confirm that the impressions were actually delivered as reported, and that the activity was seen on screen.
An impactful and transparent digital governance review is most beneficial when a 3rd party verification partner is in place, such as IAS or MOAT. If you do not have this in place or your agency does not recommend using one of these providers please get in touch to discuss the potential issues you are opening yourself up to.
Performance and Accountability
It is important to understand the potential rewards, limitations and risks of any marketing activity you plan to invest in - but how will you measure it? How will you ensure those you have trusted are held accountable for how your investment has been managed, ensuring you get the best results for every €, £ or $ you spend on advertising?
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Where applicable, implementing performance indicators e.g. Cost per Thousand (CPM), Click Through Rate (CTR), View Through Rate (VTR), and safeguards such as minimum Viewability Rates into your contract or during the strategy and planning phase ensures your selected partners fully understand what they are tasked to deliver on your behalf... But how will they will be measured?
This question is even more important when their performance is also tied to a pre-agreed Performance Related Fee (PRF).
Do you have a process for agreeing results even when taking market changes into account, such as deflation / inflation, changes to available stations or user movement to or from a particular media channel, changes to the plans or formats, change of agency, operating across multiple markets and budget changes?
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There are many potential pitfalls when trying to evaluate a partners performance, and they will often argue it is not possible to conduct a review in various scenarios, or they will claim all successful performance was a direct result of their actions, not accounting for natural market changes such as general price decreases.
Will your agency partner confirm for you that they delivered as per the agreement, essentially "marking their own homework"? Do you have the necessary resources or background to evaluate their performance, ensuring they delivered as per the agreement?
The advertising Consultant
The Advertising Consultant can help using an experienced and agile approach to performance tracking and governance, which makes it possible to evaluate and agree results, to set benchmarks for the future and to ensure all activity is transparent and all parties are accountable.
We can work with you from the beginning to ensure you have the right performance based criteria and KPIs in place by channel and by market, and that any foreseeable market conditions and marketing plan changes are accounted for. This could be during a pitch scenario or when reviewing ongoing performance.
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Ensuring you and your agency are fully aligned on the final results is key. As such we work closely with your agency during the evaluation process so we can account for any extenuating circumstances, but also so we can challenge any context they have provided to either excuse or vindicate their performance.
Our approach also works in all markets* so you can compare performance directly on a market by market basis!
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Even if you are happy with the current cost performance you may want to have a look at your Digital Governance to ensure what is being communicated is fact and not fiction!
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