Two Important New Initiatives from IAB’s Ad Ops Council Will Drive Operational Efficiency for the Industry
New York, New York October 16, 2007-The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) today announced the release of the On-Time Delivery Toolkit for interactive media and Billing Methods Best Practices, two important industry initiatives designed to improve operational efficiencies in interactive advertising.
“Interactive advertising brings advertisers extraordinary opportunities for accountability and engagement with their customers, yet also creates a more complicated landscape for delivering creative and for billing,” said Randall Rothenberg, president and CEO of the IAB. “Both these initiatives deliver on one of the IAB’s fundamental objectivesincreasing operational efficiency for both web publishers and agencies.”
ON-TIME DELIVERY TOOLKIT FOR INTERACTIVE MEDIA:
The On-Time Delivery Toolkit for interactive media consists of the Creative Delivery Best Practices document and the web-based Creative Specs Database, two tools developed by the IAB’s Industry Services team working closely with IAB publishers and representatives of key advertising agencies.
The Creative Delivery Best Practices document is designed for use by marketers, agencies, and publishers as the basis for internal process improvement. A project-plan template for rich and non-rich creative development, it extends from marketer briefing to publisher launch of an advertising campaign. The Creative Specs database was developed to ensure that agencies have access to publishers’ most current advertising specifications (specs), and serves as the single source for accurate specs data throughout the industry. The information is provided by publishers and can be accessed freely by all advertising agencies.
To date, over 300 agencies have registered to use the database, which currently houses the specs of over 170 leading web publishing companies representing hundreds of sites.
“The response in the market from publishers and agencies for the Creative Specs Database has been gratifying and the addition of the Creative Delivery Best Practices document now offers all parties a complete resource for simplifying the interactive creative development process for both buyers and sellers.” said Adrian D’Souza, vice president of Advertising Operations of CNET Networks and co-chair of the IAB Ad Operations Committee.
“The Toolkit reflects a methodology and approach that has dramatically improved our ability to deliver our clients’ advertising campaigns on time and to spec,” said Jeff Thaler Senior Vice President, National Director of Program Management of Carat. “It is a resource that enables the kind of collaboration and communication necessary to manage the ever-increasing demands of the multi-stakeholder multifaceted process of online campaign creation.”
To view the complete On-Time Delivery Toolkit please go here.
BILLING METHODS BEST PRACTICES:
The Billing Methods Best Practices document is aimed at significantly decreasing the operational inefficiencies surrounding billing and discrepancy resolution processes, which are a time consuming element of the interactive advertising process. The document provides recommendations for agencies and publishers to proactively work together to resolve discrepancies. It details how to improve billing processes through the early detection of discrepancies, decreased input errors through improved communications and better tracking of terms and revision documentation.
“If both publishers and agencies adopt these best practices, it will enable both sides to improve their operational effectiveness by decreasing payment cycles and allowing ad operations teams to focus on their core competencies like customer service and campaign analytics,” says Dan Murphy, Vice President, Online Research & Ad Traffic, Univision Online. “It will also allow the companies to build more scalable, profitable organizations and help drive more advertising dollars online.”
To view the complete Billing Methods Best Practices document, please go here.
About the IAB:
Founded in 1996, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (www.iab.net) represents over 300 leading interactive companies that actively engage in and support the sale of interactive advertising. IAB members are responsible for selling over 86% of online advertising in the United States. On behalf of its members, the IAB is dedicated to the continuing growth of the interactive advertising marketplace, of interactive’s share of total marketing spend, and of its members’ share of total marketing spend. The IAB evaluates and recommends standards and practices, fields interactive effectiveness research, and educates the advertising industry about interactive advertising.
IAB Media Contact:
Marla Nitke
