In 2017, on a global scale, advertising investment in digital media will exceed that of TV. Logically, as brand advertisers shift more of their media investment towards digital they also demand higher standards with regards to the efficacy and efficiency of their investment. In this context, new initiatives arise such as the certification of ad visibility, known as viewability, and the guarantee that a brand will not appear next to inappropriate content, known as brand safety, among others.
These advertiser led requirements signify a positive evolution for the development of the digital advertising industry and particularly so for advertisers who seek the maximum level of care for their brand image, and therefore ask for a redefinition of the meaning of “Premium” when it comes to digital media investments.
The meaning of Premium and the third variable, analytical data
At the beginning of this decade, Premium, in digital media for a brand, basically meant to be seen in a specific, renowned media channel within an integrated eye-catching format using some form of statistically relevant targeting.
Since then, as smartphones have taken over digital and data is ever more abundant, the meaning of Premium has evolved significantly embracing analytical data as the third essential factor of Premiumness. The quest for the perfect balance between optimal coverage and maximum affinity remains one the key objectives for any brand advertiser and today advertisers can equip themselves with exact/analytical data to reach users with very specific and exact demographic profiles at a large scale. Premium today is Media, Format and analytical Data at scale.
Walled Gardens and the danger of User Generated Content
On the internet, most advertising investment goes toward a duopoly of opaque walled gardens. Opaque, closed boxes that do not share the details of ad campaigns and are not fully audited by third parties. Because of this, brands are defenseless when it comes to certifying where, when and how many times their ads are shown. The problem is even greater in media where end-users are content creators since there is a greater risk of brands’ appearing alongside inappropriate unfiltered content. The lack of transparency and data certification of what goes on within walled gardens makes it impossible to guarantee the premium product brands today demand.
Open Web as the alternative
The alternative is the open web, which uses data-driven platforms to achieve massive coverage with deep affinity levels based on analytical data. These platforms are also third-party certified under brand safety and viewability industry standards offering brand conscious advertisers the transparency demanded to demonstrate the need of their increased digital media investment levels.
Nowadays, brand advertisers wishing to guarantee the premium quality of their growing digital advertising investment must seek out a suitable data-driven partner that provides transparent access to premium media, premium formats and premium analytical data. It’s after all, in everyone’s interest.
Álvaro del Castillo
Founder & CEO, TAPTAP Networks
