People, Not Pages? We Need Some New Measurement Tools

June 9th, 2009 Comments

This week comScore announced the release of comScore 360. Instead of estimating audience size solely off a 2mm panel, comScore 360 will operate on a hybrid model — information from partner sites that implement the comScore beacon will be layered on top of panel data. This should give media planners a better view of audience size compared to just site user counts, which are inflated by cookie deletion, or just panel information, which is distorted by the relatively small sample. For a better understanding of how difficult it is to measure online audience, I recommend Quantcast’s Cookie Corrected Audience Data whitepaper.

A hybrid model is a big step forward for the “Gold Standard” of audience measurement tools, but it still doesn’t address the new challenges faced by media planners. As the “People, not Pages” approach gains greater acceptance, media planners will be less focused on choosing one media property over another. Instead of choosing between Maxim.com and AskMen.com, planners will choose between two ad networks offering the same segment targeting men 18-25 with an interest in fashion. But what is the reach and composition for each of the two ad networks offering that same segment? Right now, there is no independent 3rd party audience verification tool for targeted media. This is fine for direct response marketers, where targeting is simply a means to a very measurable end: online response rates. But for brand marketers who define success as reach and frequency against a key demographic, independent audience verification is key. Focusing on “People, Not Pages” allows marketers to be much more accurate and efficient, but marketers need assurance that they are getting what they pay for.

How do you see this issue being resolved? Through survey companies like Vizu and InsightExpress? Measurement companies like comScore? Pure-play data vendors like BlueKai? Data/media vendors like Aperture? I’m curious to hear your thoughts.

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  • It would seem to me that in a real-time bidding (RTB) environment, data feeds will be able to verify whether or not a single impression represents the targeting and frequency goals of the campaign. These feeds will be third-party and enabled by the extensible nature of the exchange model.

    So, is this a BlueKai, eXelate, Lookery or reasonable facsimile? Yes, something like that. Maybe a Media6, 33across data feed? Surveys and estimates will not be important for verification with the ability to wrap real-time data around a single impression. Curious your thoughts.
  • Hi John,

    Yes, RTB should make it easier for advertisers to layer on third-party data feeds and target their exact target audience. But for audience-centric buying to scale, advertisers will need some verification that the 3rd party data feed is accurate.

    An advertiser can pay to target an ad to a fashion forward, 52 year old male living in New York making $150k+ a year. But how do advertisers know that the audience data they are relying on is correct? The geo-targeting could be incorrect. The consumer might have lied about HHI on the registration data that is being used. The brand's ad might be shown the teenage daughter, instead of the father who uses the same computer. And is he the fashion forward one, or was it his daughter who was browsing on the fashion websites?

    When an entertainment site says they have the best reach and composition for men 18-34, agencies don't just take the publisher's word for it. They rely on independent 3rd party verification, in most cases comScore, to protect their client's investment. In the same way, audience focused buyers will need an independent 3rd party verification mechanism to determine the accuracy of the different data feeds they are purchasing. This isn't a hot topic now, but I believe it will become very important as agencies spend more and more on audience-centric buying.
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