LONDON – UK broadcaster ITV is embracing outcomes-based measurement, not just to prove the power of TV advertising but also to compete on a level playing field with digital platforms.
“Outcomes have won in the marketplace,” said Sameer Modha, Measurement Innovation Lead, Commercial at ITV, in this video interview with Beet.TV.
“More than half the money has been spent on outcomes. So outcomes have won.”
Measuring TV’s full impact
Traditionally, TV has been sold on its ability to deliver mass reach. But in today’s market, ITV feels it owes it to the medium to provide enhanced measurement of the kind digital buyers are already used to.
Indeed, Modha is a former Head of Applied Data Science at Google.
ITV is now able to measure a range of outcomes, from brand lift to site visits, footfall, sales, price elasticity, and margin. Unusually, rather than focusing on a single KPI, ITV looks at the full range of effects because TV impacts all of those things.
ITV also examines the impact of TV on other channels. In a study with OMG, ITV analyzed the historical Google Ads data of about 30 advertisers and found that being on air can lead to better positions in the Google auction, and cheaper clicks.
Overcoming skepticism
While ITV doesn’t sell on outcomes, it is nevertheless measuring outcomes for more and more of its campaigns, to provide evidence to advertisers of TV’s effectiveness compared to digital spend.
Modha acknowledged that there may be initial skepticism about ITV measuring its own effectiveness. However, he argued that ITV is best placed to do this for several reasons, including its detailed data on regional footprints and its ability to buy pricing data for entire categories, not just individual brands.
Where ITV can’t do it alone, it has teamed up with other broadcasters. Project Lantern is a collaboration between all UK broadcasters to measure individual-level online outcomes by connecting ad exposure data from smart TVs to online behaviors.
“Five years from now, we’ll have got to a point where it’s a fair contest. Let the most influential medium win.”
You’re watching Beet.TV’s coverage of CIMM London 2024, presented by Index Exchange. For more videos from CIMM London, please visit this page.
