Taking our seat at the table
by blogadmin on Jun.30, 2010, under Buyers Corner
Since the release of EYES ON Ratings in January, I’m still struggling with the issue of perception versus reality.
EYES ON has leapfrogged over not just the old DEC measurements system but over most other measured media. While this sounds great and I for one am proud of this achievement, does everyone get it? I’m not so sure. Why then aren’t we seeing more demand from advertisers for OOH on their advertising programs?
Frankly one reason is that adoption of anything new takes time and while EYES ON Ratings has taken us closer to where we belong, we’re not there yet. We need to remember that outdoor has indisputable advantages over other media that has been long known: reaching consumers on the go, tracking them from home to point of purchase, delivering messages that can’t be zapped or tivo-ed in ways that are often mind blowing and spectacular. EYES ON provides accountability, underscores trust and solidifies the sale, validating the argument we’ve been making all along.
Another reason we’re not there is because we’ve not as united as we should be. We need to be more open and accepting of other media types that reach active consumers such as mobile advertising and digital OOH. Traditional OOH needs to work with these other OOH types to deliver an all-encompassing OOH plan that reaches the on-the-go, active consumer. As chair of TAB, I’d like to see EYES ON expanded to include more OOH media formats.
Finally, we need to be more aggressive advocates of our medium, demanding our seat at the table, rather than just passively waiting for an invitation to join in. Of course we need to support EYES ON but we need more. Having fresh research about how consumers think and act in our space would help.
It’s a media war out there. No more Mr. Nice Guy. We need to pull together all the artillery we have at our disposal. I’m tired of reading articles that describe what outdoor used to be. We need to consistently and cohesively correct misconceptions about what today’s OOH is and can do. And we need to do it now.
Only then will we be able to drive more revenue into the OOH arena.
Jack Sullivan
SVP – OOH Activation Director
Starcom Worldwide
Audience is Killing Advertising
by blogadmin on Apr.08, 2010, under Media Mavens
by Erwin Ephron
It’s Media Malpractice — which may sound medical, but it defines the problem.
Media exposures share an ambiguity with medical exposures. Just as we can be exposed to the flu and not catch it, we can be exposed to a TV commercial and not see it. That is a major flaw in our measurement system.
A media exposure is someone seeing or hearing a media vehicle that is carrying advertising and not necessarily someone seeing or hearing an ad. This means some of the reported audience will not be reached by the advertising. Wouldn’t it be better to have “contact with the ad” as the standard currency measurement for media?
Well, that has happened in Out-of-Home. Out of Home’s new EYES ON definition of exposure is “eye-contact with the advertising.” . . . and it is available today for planning, buying and selling the medium.
Out-of-Home’s new EYES ON measurement is a major advance in media research thinking. It converts Opportunity to See into people SEEING ads . . . And uses that as its currency measure.
But why let it stop with Out-of-home? The measurement techniques pioneered by Out of Home should be applied to other media. All media should be reporting audience noticing advertising.
Advertisers are demanding accountability . . . but Advertising won’t be accountable until it provides more realistic estimates of people actually reached by advertising.
For this reason alone, I think adjusted data is far more responsible than the current misleading numbers we use today. Yet we continue to look at ways of improving the numbers we spend by, as a competitive advantage, not as an urgent industry need. And that is institutionalized ‘Media Malpractice’.
Audience is Killing Advertising. . . Let’s make it stop.
Erwin Ephron
The Ephron Consultancy
Making EYES ON hands on
by blogadmin on Mar.25, 2010, under Buyers Corner
Not that long ago, I was speaking to a client who had heard about the new EYES ON ratings system and was curious to know how it was done. After all, he mused, how DO they see who’s watching the boards? Are there little cameras perched on top? Is that why it’s called EYES ON?
While this may seem comical to those who’ve been involved with EYES ON from its inception, his confusion underscores the need for both education about, and experience with the new system. EYES ON has been much anticipated as the official new measurement currency for OOH media. We know the system was rigorously developed and offers robust information that solidifies our media investment decisions. We know it provides a common currency that allows easy comparison with other media. And as those charged with justifying our recommendations, we feel it offers more meaningful measures than we’ve ever had before.
The challenge is we have to step up the pace and make EYES ON hands on! It will take commitment to the process which is not much different from learning a new language: practice, practice, practice. Planners and buyers need to see the system in action, examining comparisons between DECs and EOI in order to see how the new metrics better serve their needs. Sellers need to communicate why a specific recommendation is right for a particular client and be fully conversant in the new currency so that they may educate their customers. Dialog between buyer and seller is key as well as a willingness to play with the system and learn through doing.
It will take more than a few webinars to get planners and buyers comfortable with these systems and familiar enough to explain the outcomes to their clients. Agencies will need regular guidance and support, whether through vendors or the companies developing tools utilizing EYES ON data. But buyers need to do their part as well by pushing suppliers to include EOI on their proposals and insuring that it’s not just another data point or column in a grid but fully understood so that we, in turn, can educate our clients.
In net, EYES ON needs to become hands on sooner than later and it’s everyone’s responsibility to make that happen.
Let’s just do it!
Norm Chait
Norm Chait is SVP, Director of OOH Investment and Activation for Mediavest Worldwide in New York City
TAB EYES ON is a reality… now what?
by blogadmin on Feb.26, 2010, under Joe's Notes
Welcome to the new EYES ON Blog!
As of January 1, 2010, EYES ON became the official measurement currency of out of home (OOH) media, the first of its kind to be based on people who actually see the advertising. OOH media companies are currently developing EYES ON rate cards and many agencies are already asking that proposals be submitted using EYES ON audience data.
For many of you, the migration from DECs to EYES ON ratings may feel like a daunting task. Yet over my career, I have been involved in the television industry’s various transitions from diaries to set top meters to people meters, which required that buyers and sellers incorporate new, improved ratings into their business practices. It wasn’t always easy but in the long run, well worth the effort!
What is so different about our transition is that we are moving into the world and language of other media. Finally we will be using numbers and talking about Out of Home (OOH) in the same way the advertising industry discusses and evaluates other media. But that language is new to many of us, and questions and issues are bound to arise.
EYESONBloggers is a place where the Out of Home media industry and advertising community can come to share thoughts and ask questions. It’s a place where dialogue can not only foster understanding of EYES ON aspects most useful to you, but also help the OOH industry establish best practices and standards that will instill confidence and drive growth.
Bottom line: we need to hear from YOU so start blogging now by subscribing to the RSS feed at the top of the main page or subscribe via email and be alerted whenever a new post is uploaded.
I encourage you to let us know which topics and issues are of greatest interest by leaving a comment here today. Through collaboration and cooperation, let’s demonstrate that OOH can transition to EYES ON faster and with greater rewards than those who have gone before us.
Thanks for your time & interest… I’m looking forward to an exciting dialog!
Joe Philport
Joe Philport is President and CEO of the Traffic Audit Bureau for Media Measurement and can be reached at 212-972-8075 or via email at joephilport@tabonline.com.