How can we rapidly visualize the "deciding factor" for TV time advertising slot purchases?

TV ratings are a crucial metric for TV advertising slots. However, relying solely on this metric cannot deliver TV planning that truly "benefits the client's marketing." Furthermore, we increasingly sense a demand from clients for "visualization of the quantitative value of slots" – essentially, the "decisive factor" for TV advertising slot purchases – delivered through a responsive system.

This article focuses on the " People Driven Score " tool, developed as a solution for such scenarios, discussing the challenges that prompted its development and specific use cases.

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Delivering One-Stop TV Plans Rapidly

The development of "People Driven Score" stemmed from two major backgrounds.

First, traditional TV time planning often involved highly accurate extraction of marketing targets upstream in the planning process. However, at the crucial moment of slot purchase, it tended to revert to the outdated practice of evaluating cost performance based solely on basic demographic segments like gender and age.

This created a gap in the level of target analysis between the upstream planning phase and the final purchasing phase, leading to bottlenecks within the planning workflow. Developing a tool to help resolve this bottleneck was one key background factor.

Another background factor was the desire to enable each TV time planner to "accelerate" their analysis, evaluation, organization, and proposal workflow. Previously, when performing advanced target profiling, numerous intermediate processes existed: first assigning resources from different internal departments, conducting orientation from scratch, then having each planner organize the output analysis results and prepare proposals.

However, by leveraging the development tools, it is now possible to shortcut (part of) these intermediate processes. This allows more time to be spent on the intermediate discussions leading up to obtaining the client's decision.

Leveraging marketing data (awareness/purchase) to quickly provide the "deciding factor" for program buying

Let's look at a specific use case for the "People Driven Score".

"Based on the viewership ratings for men and women aged 20-34 (MF1), set the marketing target as light beer drinkers who frequently use video streaming services. Then, present the ranking of programs watched by this target audience in order of cost efficiency."

For example, as in the above request, we can instantly visualize program candidates based on the marketing target's viewership ratings.

See the figure above. By merging PM ratings (※1) with awareness data to calculate cost performance, the superiority of Program A is immediately apparent.

We believe that quantitatively visualizing program performance based on marketing targets in this manner provides a decisive factor for clients in program selection. Furthermore, since we utilize the "es XMP" (formerly CUBIC) data source (equipped with approximately 3,000 awareness data items), it becomes possible to reproduce any marketing target stratum.

Next, we introduce a pattern combining PM ratings with purchase data.

"We want a ranking of programs that considers cost-effectiveness, based on the cross-reference of beer purchase rates and ratings." Such needs are also common.

This approach mirrors the analysis flow using the aforementioned awareness data: merging PM ratings with purchase data to calculate cost performance. We can also handle planning cases centered around such purchase data. The data source links to purchase data from People Driven DMP®, Dentsu Group's proprietary data platform, visualizing each program's potential.

We have frequently heard clients ask, "Isn't there a 'deeper' quantitative evaluation metric for TV beyond ratings?" We believe the "People Driven Score" developed this time offers one solution. Quantitatively demonstrating program value centered on marketing targets will not only enable more accurate and rapid ad space purchasing but also aid internal explanations in scenarios requiring decision-making and effectiveness measurement.

*1 Viewership ratings data collected using the People Meter system operated by Video Research Ltd. (Kanto region / 32 regions nationwide).

An Era Demanding Greater Quantitative Value for Television

The approach to proving television's value is changing rapidly every day. Amidst this change, we believe that as television advertising professionals, we must never respond with "I don't know" or "That's difficult to visualize." However, we believe that television planning has historically (in part) avoided visualizing value rooted in "people."

"People Driven TV Planning" represents a step forward in overcoming this history, and the "People Driven Score" was developed based on this planning concept. We plan to continue updating these tools. They were partially introduced and utilized ahead of schedule during the April 2021 programming changes, and we have received positive feedback from a significant number of clients who evaluated them through actual planning.

We will continue to address the needs of the times and advertisers, striving for sophistication and speed to ensure television advertising remains a valuable medium for clients' marketing activities. We are committed to advancing the digital transformation (DX) of television advertising.