What the metric means – Reach
This is the first in a series of blog posts on online advertising metrics.
Agreement on what different metrics mean is key to put them to productive use. We are currently in the middle of writing up a dictionary for Rich, so that our users can better understand what they are looking at and make easier for them learn how to improve. But getting a proper definition of metrics is not easy, and looking at how other companies use their metrics is not much help.
Take Reach for example, perhaps the most central concept in any media plan. The basic concept for reach is very simple – as the name implies, how many unique individuals did our campaign reach? It does not include any qualitative aspects, such as how many times did we reach each person on average (so called average frequency) or how much impact we got on average for each individual reached. It’s just a raw number – How. Many. Individuals?
Historically, reach has been calculated in different ways depending on media, for instance combining consumer behavior studies and raw distribution in print and a black box combination of set top boxes, phone surveys etc. in TV.
When digital advertising came of age, the industry rejoiced since we could now shoot out a reach metric based on direct observation (usually some cookie counting scheme) rather than some shady statistical model. So in our reports, we get exact numbers. Very impressive. Makes it seem like we really know our stuff, right? However, this is all bullshit. With consumers deleting cookies like crazy and government regulation making it increasingly hard to record user behavior, this model is getting increasingly unsustainable.
I know, I know, there are ways of improving your data integrity thru Flash cookies, device fingerprinting (browser, OS, resolution etc.). At Burt we naturally do things like this, but since people increasingly access online media thru multiple browsers on multiple devices in multiple places, we’re fighting a battle that can’t be won.
Clearly, we have to give up on to the notion that cookies = reach. Stop pretending like we got the exact numbers nailed. Start talking about individuals when describing reach in digital advertising – not cookies, fingerprints etc. Until the singularity hits, advertising is meant to influence human beings, not machines.
At least for now, people buy stuff, computers don’t.
[...] Gustav Von Sydow of analytics company Burt publishes the first of a series of posts about what metrics mean. In the inaugural post, he tackles what "reach" means today. Von Sydow writes, "Clearly, we have to give up on to the notion that cookies = reach. Stop pretending like we got the exact numbers nailed. Start talking about individuals when describing reach in digital advertising – not cookies, fingerprints etc." Read more. [...]
Amen!
## In replies all text above this line is added to the ticket ##
[Burt] Re: [burtcorp] Re: What the metric means – Reach (ticket #4)
Your request (#4) has been updated.
To review the status of the request and add additional comments, follow the link below:
http://burt.zendesk.com/tickets/4
You can also add a comment by replying to this email.
———————————————-
John Sjölander, May 20 10:10 (CEST):
Är support-listan uppsatt att skicka allt till Zendesk?
———————————————-
Disqus, May 20 00:41 (CEST):
======
[...] blog post from Burt last week on what Reach really means. As I read the post, I was reminded of Albert Einstein’s [...]
Brand.net has a very interesting reply to this blog post here: http://www.brand.net/blog/2010/05/measuring-reach/
definitely the dangers of overusing credit cards – I was in debt for over 20 yrs – keep current with payments, but paying tons in interest, couldn’t reduce balances – it finally helped push me into bankruptcy, along with some other issues like divorce, car repo and losing my job – I’m cured now and building wealth and savings for retirement
I once pretended to be cookie monster and demolished an Oreo without even tasting it. You’ll do anything just to keep them eating. Nice thread here, too.
Incredible! This blog looks just like my old one! It’s on a completely different topic but it has pretty much the same layout and design. Great choice of colors!
I am curious to find out what blog system you have been working with? I’m experiencing some small security problems with my latest blog and I would like to find something more safeguarded. Do you have any solutions?
It’s hard to search out knowledgeable people on this subject, however you sound like you know what you’re speaking about! Thanks