see the full article also by clicking on the link of the title:
Metrics Insider: CPA: Trend Or Permanent Move? by David L. Smith , Tuesday, October 21, 2008
THERE IS, ONCE AGAIN, AN increase in the market of CPA deals. This generally happens in a down market, when less inventory can be sold on a CPM basis due to market weakness. Mark Kvamme of Sequoia opined at a AAAAs management lunch in San Francisco last week that CPA would be THE sales metric of the future. (Sequoia is an investor in AdBrite which, according to Kvamme, is selling more and more CPA activity).We don't agree that CPA will be the only sales metric of the future.
There are two reasons for this: First, we can sometimes make better deals with CPM-based buys and second, sites cannot see the full picture from a metrics standpoint and CPA represents only a single dimension.Better Deals With CPM Buys?An astute buyer knows how to take a CPA buy and reverse-engineer it into a CPM buy based on acquisition rates and "allowables." We've always contended that with great creative and an aggressive buying stance, we can beat many CPA buys through CPM negotiations.
There are, of course, exceptions. But CPM deals give the buyer more control via contextual, behavioral and relevancy targeting -- and if one can do so and reach or beat the CPA offered (or CPW, as we like to call it -- cost per whatever a client is measuring), then that's great.CPA Only a Single Dimension?The seller does not have access to an agencies' 3PAS (third party ad server) data. They cannot see view-through, are dependent on 3PAS functions like Atlas' Universal Action Tag to dedupe between networks (we don't think it is a good idea to let networks put their tags up on our client sites without the UAT controls), and cannot see the overall value of other actions besides the end CPW that we'd do a CPA deal on.
The CPA deal might be done on a sale, but we might also value pages viewed, time spent on a site, downloads, requests for information or registration and other client engagement. Lastly, they cannot see the information the buyer sees relative to overall attribution management. The reality is that buyers will increasingly use attribution management tools to adjust the actual CPW to a virtual CPW based on consumer engagement with other elements of the buy before their transaction. We're open to either technique. But we feel that CPM as a sales metrics will survive, although it will have to weather a big storm in the current downturn.
Post your response to the public Metrics Insider blog.See what others are saying on the Metrics Insider blog. David L. Smith is CEO and founder of Mediasmith Inc. -- a full service advertising media agency, specializing in digital media with an increasing emphasis on emerging technologies. Mediasmith is headquartered in San Francisco.[Photo]Metrics Insider for Tuesday, October 21, 2008:http://blogs.mediapost.com/metrics_insider/?p=104[Photo]You are receiving this newsletter as part of your membership with MediaPost.[Photo]We welcome and appreciate forwarding of our newsletters in their entirety or in part with proper attribution. (c) 2008 MediaPost Communications, 1140 Broadway, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10001 [Photo]
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
This article made me think of starting this blog
So go ahead and visit it in entirety @ Geo Target Internet Advertising
But before you do, here is the excerpt or first part of it.
Digital Geo-Targeting: Four Steps For Successful National Campaigns
by Michael Nasif, Monday, Oct 20, 2008 7:00 AM ET
The breadth and depth of online advertising allows national advertisers to have more intimate and relevant relationships with potential customers than ever before. Unfortunately, traditional offline planning strategies are wholly ineffectual when it comes to developing and executing large scale, localized digital campaigns. All advertisers can - and should - take advantage of the "targetability" of digital campaigns, particularly geo-targeted campaigns that can isolate core audiences and markets.
Here are four steps to consider as you plan and roll out digital campaigns that are national in scale but local in scope:
1) Micro-Targeting: A traditional target audience might look something like this: Women, ages 25-54, household income $75,000+, outdoor enthusiast. When digital media planners get an audience profile like this, they can't help but snicker, because the number of viable Internet properties that can reach this target audience number in the hundreds. Naturally, there are many other psychographic filters we can layer onto a target like this, but considering the geographic nuances for this target is even more critical. Let's use a ski manufacturer as an example. It's quite plain to see how this generic, traditional target differs in Seattle vs. Miami. Obviously, the message will have far more relevance in the Cascade Mountains than on South Beach. Considering how easy and efficient it is to geo-target impressions, national advertisers should divide their general targets into these micro-targets before they start the actual media planning process.
2) Micro-Planning: Continuing with this simple example, smart micro-targeting has converted a generic, traditional audience segment into two or more, distinct micro-targets in each DMA, each requiring a different approach. Here's where the micro-planning comes in. The fact that geo-targeting impressions on national sites commands little to no premium is lost on many traditional media planners working in the digital realm. When working with a finite budget (isn't everyone?), the opportunity to isolate impressions and increase share-of-voice (SOV) against very specific targets is one not to be missed. The plan to reach affluent women ages 25-54 who are frequent travelers and live in Miami will look very different than the plan for the same micro-target in Seattle. In turn, they will very likely include an entirely different set of geo-targeted national sites that are most relevant and command greater "visitorship" for each individual region. National advertisers need to maintain their national scale, but think on a local level if they want to stand out from the herd.
3) Aggregation: So now we have numerous micro-targets and many, many more individual sites to geo-target in order to deliver a locally relevant campaign. Sounds like a lot of work! I have always lived by the belief that the capacity to execute a campaign should not dictate the campaign; rather, the needs of the campaign should dictate the resources required for its execution. We know that advertisers want to have that intimate, local connection with their customers, but their agencies are often strained to execute complex digital programs, especially when you add the critical pieces of reporting, optimization, reconciliation and billing. Hence, the dramatic increase in the number of "media services" who can centralize the management and execution of multi-market, multi-site campaigns. The idea of media aggregation is not a new development (think newspapers or radio); it is simply new to digital media. These companies serve as a cog in the new digital media supply chain, and smart agencies use them to manage the logistical and administrative chaos of complex campaigns.
4) Localized Creative: So now we have a fine-tuned campaign,
PS, if you have not left yet, know that this blog will list all of the Internet Advertising articles I find interesting. I read for about 1-3 hours a day worth of Internet Advertising related articles, I need a place to store them for me and others to see. So that i really why I stated to start this blog, come back and read them often, ya hear:-)
But before you do, here is the excerpt or first part of it.
Digital Geo-Targeting: Four Steps For Successful National Campaigns
by Michael Nasif, Monday, Oct 20, 2008 7:00 AM ET
The breadth and depth of online advertising allows national advertisers to have more intimate and relevant relationships with potential customers than ever before. Unfortunately, traditional offline planning strategies are wholly ineffectual when it comes to developing and executing large scale, localized digital campaigns. All advertisers can - and should - take advantage of the "targetability" of digital campaigns, particularly geo-targeted campaigns that can isolate core audiences and markets.
Here are four steps to consider as you plan and roll out digital campaigns that are national in scale but local in scope:
1) Micro-Targeting: A traditional target audience might look something like this: Women, ages 25-54, household income $75,000+, outdoor enthusiast. When digital media planners get an audience profile like this, they can't help but snicker, because the number of viable Internet properties that can reach this target audience number in the hundreds. Naturally, there are many other psychographic filters we can layer onto a target like this, but considering the geographic nuances for this target is even more critical. Let's use a ski manufacturer as an example. It's quite plain to see how this generic, traditional target differs in Seattle vs. Miami. Obviously, the message will have far more relevance in the Cascade Mountains than on South Beach. Considering how easy and efficient it is to geo-target impressions, national advertisers should divide their general targets into these micro-targets before they start the actual media planning process.
2) Micro-Planning: Continuing with this simple example, smart micro-targeting has converted a generic, traditional audience segment into two or more, distinct micro-targets in each DMA, each requiring a different approach. Here's where the micro-planning comes in. The fact that geo-targeting impressions on national sites commands little to no premium is lost on many traditional media planners working in the digital realm. When working with a finite budget (isn't everyone?), the opportunity to isolate impressions and increase share-of-voice (SOV) against very specific targets is one not to be missed. The plan to reach affluent women ages 25-54 who are frequent travelers and live in Miami will look very different than the plan for the same micro-target in Seattle. In turn, they will very likely include an entirely different set of geo-targeted national sites that are most relevant and command greater "visitorship" for each individual region. National advertisers need to maintain their national scale, but think on a local level if they want to stand out from the herd.
3) Aggregation: So now we have numerous micro-targets and many, many more individual sites to geo-target in order to deliver a locally relevant campaign. Sounds like a lot of work! I have always lived by the belief that the capacity to execute a campaign should not dictate the campaign; rather, the needs of the campaign should dictate the resources required for its execution. We know that advertisers want to have that intimate, local connection with their customers, but their agencies are often strained to execute complex digital programs, especially when you add the critical pieces of reporting, optimization, reconciliation and billing. Hence, the dramatic increase in the number of "media services" who can centralize the management and execution of multi-market, multi-site campaigns. The idea of media aggregation is not a new development (think newspapers or radio); it is simply new to digital media. These companies serve as a cog in the new digital media supply chain, and smart agencies use them to manage the logistical and administrative chaos of complex campaigns.
4) Localized Creative: So now we have a fine-tuned campaign,
PS, if you have not left yet, know that this blog will list all of the Internet Advertising articles I find interesting. I read for about 1-3 hours a day worth of Internet Advertising related articles, I need a place to store them for me and others to see. So that i really why I stated to start this blog, come back and read them often, ya hear:-)
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