LPM Tools Offer Faster Make-Good Resolutions

Nielsen Media Research's local people meter, which measures TV audiences in select local markets, is revolutionizing the way most of the $22 billion in spot TV ads are bought, sold and analyzed. The good news is that advertisers and agencies have access to more precise data about the makeup of local TV audiences than they've ever had before. The bad news: buyers are swamped with oceans of data they never had to manage in the pre-LPM days. Donovan Data Systems, which supplies most of the big agencies with software to manage their buying schedules, is working on an LPM interface, though it won't confirm word that the interface is scheduled for implementation later this year. But two agencies—Initiative and Mindshare—decided not to wait and have developed proprietary systems that link clients' local TV flights with overnight data from Nielsen (owned by Adweek parent VNU). Agency execs say their systems automatically alert buyers to shortfalls so they can quickly demand "make good" spots from stations, saving them thousands of hours often spent pouring over ratings data. According to Sue Johenning, executive vp, director of local broadcast for Initiative, the agency's so-called "Overnight Alert System" takes "local stewardship to a new level." Buyers receive morning e-mails indicating any ratings shortfalls from the previous night. Within minutes, a buyer can shoot off a separate e-mail to a station, citing the problem, supporting data and a demand for compensation.The quicker identification of ratings shortfalls allows for the faster receipt of make-good spots from stations, and that's vital for a lot of retailers that often take short flights of just two or three weeks, says Johenning. "They might only be on the air for a couple of weeks, so it doesn't do them any good to find out at the end of the second week that the first week" had an audience under-delivery problem, she says.The systems are particularly helpful in larger markets such as Boston, where the LPM was launched in 2002, and New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago, where it was launched last year. New LPMs will be introduced in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., in June and in Detroit and Dallas in November. Atlanta will be added in May of 2006. Nielsen says the top 10 markets, the only markets currently targeted for LPMs, accounted for almost 50 percent of all spot TV spending, or $10.3 billion, in 2004.Kathy Crawford, president of local broadcast, Mindshare, says the agency's own make-good analysis software is similar to the Initiative system. She would know: Crawford headed Initiative's local buying operation and was involved in early development plans for the system before jumping to Mindshare in mid-2003. There is at least one difference between the two systems, however. Crawford says the Mindshare system also analyzes all local cable buys, while Initiative says it uses its system, for now, just for local broadcast."It's an invaluable tool that allows us to post on the fly," Crawford says. "We have to recognize that our business is more and more data driven, and clients expect us to be data driven." That's why she says she is "disappointed" that Donovan "heretofore has not stepped up to the plate" with its LPM interface.Responding last week, Harvey Kent, Donovan's director of e-commerce, says the company is working diligently to bring LPM-compatible software to market. Though he wouldn't put a delivery date on its arrival, he suggested it would be before year's end. "Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to have dinner with Kathy Crawford again," he quips, acknowledging conversations the two have had on the subject.Sources say Donovan had earlier told its client agencies that its LPM system would be ready by the end of March but was forced to delay. Kent didn't confirm the postponement but said the reason it's taking longer than some might like is due to the scope and complexity of the LPM system, coupled with the fact that whatever Donovan comes out with has to satisfy close to 20 agencies, not just one or two.Both IPG's Initiative and WPP's Mindshare say they are not necessarily wedded to their own systems long term and would take a look at what Donovan comes up with. "We're always looking for a better way to go," says Johenning.But many agencies have opted not to create their own systems and don't feel that they are at a huge disadvantage. Maribeth Papuga, senior vp, director of local broadcast at Publicis Groupe's MediaVest, says her agency considered developing a system, but for now has decided to wait to see what Donovan and other third-party vendors come up with. "I think we'll get it; it's just a matter of working with the software providers," she says, adding she believes that having the software embedded in the buying system would make for a seamless, less buggy process overall. In the meantime, Papuga says not having the updated software doesn't put agencies or clients at a disadvantage. "Our buyers are very familiar with the marketplace," she says. "It's pretty easy to see if something is in decline right away and take action." Andrea Levin, vp, associate director of local broadcast for Omnicom's PHD, says the agency, in addition to analyzing data in-house, relies to some extent on sales reps for data from their own systems. "They back up what they sell us" with data showing that ratings goals were achieved, she says.Relying on the sell side of the business for such data is not unusual, although in an era of increasing focus on return on investment, there may be less of that in the future. In fact, one of the key reasons Mindshare developed its own system, says Crawford, was so "we don't have to rely on the sellers."

Brand Marketing

LPM Tools Offer Faster Make-Good Resolutions

Steve Mcclellan

About

Subscriptions

Events

Publications

WORK SMARTER - LEARN, GROW AND BE INSPIRED.

Subscribe today!

Steve Mcclellan