It has become commonplace for many digital media sales folks to go straight to the argument that what they sell is a better alternative than traditional media. This is not, and should not be, a dead argument, however, it sidesteps the real question they should be answering which is “Of the digital budget I have to spend, what makes you the best option among my endless choices?”

Not knowing the answer allows vendors carte blanche to provide ambiguous success metrics and very little accountability to deliver on the real value digital has to offer, which dare I say it (even as a personal huge advocate of digital) can make traditional media in some cases a better option. Let’s discuss.

The truth is, there are many variables, which makes one digital vendor a better option than the next, but in my opinion frequency waste is by far the biggest pitfall marketers fall into. I believe until marketers force greater accountability it will continue to persist in the industry for a very simple reason.

Vendors have revenue and profitability goals just like every other organization. The result is an internal struggle, which exists between driving revenue to meet often times audacious goals vs. providing the most value to their customers. When too much trust is put in the hands of a vendor, the environment exists to swing the pendulum towards making revenue-based decisions. How does this contribute to the issue of frequency waste?

It can mean severely over-serving ads to an audience to the detriment of the marketer. On the surface it makes sense. If an automotive research site provides access to in-market car shoppers and you are an automotive retailer it would seem to be a logical place to allocate ad dollars. But let’s peel back the onion a little bit.

There are obviously a number of sites who bring the same value proposition to the table. The key then is to determine which are the best to invest in and how much. The question to ask is “How will you manage my ad distribution to minimize frequency waste?”

First off, I want to clarify for the more advertising savvy folks ad distribution does not mean average frequency. Frequency is an average, which can be highly misleading and actually contribute to vendor ambiguity. Ad distribution, on the other hand, addresses the true allocation of ads at all levels.

So back to the illustration. Imagine 1,000 ads are delivered reaching 100 people. If you were to look at average frequency it demonstrates each unique car shopper is getting shown on average 10 ads. Seems to be in check, however, here is why you should rip that report up and ask your vendor for an ad distribution breakdown.

Again assume 1,000 ads are delivered to the same 100 people. If left uncontrolled by the vendor, it is likely the rule of 80-20 may apply. Which means 20% of the audience will consume 80% of the ads by natural web consumption patterns. In this example that translates to 20 people consuming a total of 800 ads and the other 80 people consuming the remaining 200. As you can see this is highly inefficient and a huge waste of money.

How to fix this:

1.    Develop a clear definition of success.
2.    Ensure you have access to the right reporting metrics (i.e. ad distribution reporting among others).
3.    Diversify your digital ad spend to instill competition and to effectively create performance benchmarks reducing the likelihood of over-serving ads to an audience (i.e. frequency waste).
4.    Ideally, own the relationship with the ad platform in house; this will give you:
a.    Real time no sugar coated results.
b.    Broader visibility across your diversified buy.
5.    Don’t be afraid to seek out subject matter experts; they can be highly cost effective and if they are good at what they do they will only profit if they are successful in moving your business

Hopefully I did not strike the fear of digital in you. The intent here is to say the true promise of digital does exist, but if accountability is not in place tremendous waste of ad dollars can occur. Take the time to peel back the onion…You’ll be glad you did.

Jim Irving is the chief advertising consultant and founder for H. T. Water Consulting, a firm committed to raising the bar of digital advertising performance in the industry. You can find out more about H.T. Water Consulting at www.HTWaterConsulting.com. Jim Irving can also be reached directly at 310-463-7979 or by email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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