Last week, over 600 people eagerly filed into the ballroom at the Millenium Biltmore for thinkLA’s IAB Programmatic Summit. Over 30 experts in the programmatic space presented, debated and pondered topics like fraud, attribution, native, TV, header bidding and training an ever-evolving workforce. Despite the topic or channel being discussed, two of the most fundamental marketing themes remain the important common threads: KPIs and creatives.
Let’s get straight to the point…
Programmatic campaigns REQUIRE a clearly defined goal. We all “know” this yet it seems few practice it routinely. The type of creative you use, the media channels chosen, the data layered on, the optimizations made are all in an effort to meet THE goal. We don’t go to a baseball game and wonder why no one is scoring a touchdown. That’s because the rules clearly state that points are earned by making a run and the winning team is the one with the most runs. It seems pretty obvious that without a specific KPI, it’s impossible to measure “success” let alone compare partners’ performances, optimize creative messages and derive audience insights.
A clearly defined KPI should be the very first part of the planning process. The next step, according to Bob Arnold, North American Digital Strategy and Media Lead at Google, is to “keep media & creative tied from the start so opportunities don’t get missed and execution stays practical.” The creative should then be developed with that KPI in mind. If the goal is clicks, a general branding video is probably not your best choice, but a static mobile ad with a clear call to action like “click here” would certainly do the trick. If the KPI is engagement, a Bannerlink ad unit ensures that the user has a reason to interact with the ad. Gayle Smilanich, Associate Director Kellogg North American Media, summed it up clear as day saying “I can put all the money in the world behind a bad creative and it won’t help.”
Identifying your KPI is the foundation for a successful campaign. The right creative, delivered through the right channel, to the right person will deliver on the KPI every single time. Know your goal and then assemble the plan using the puzzle pieces that will actually get you there. Throwing more data, higher viewability and additional blocking at an ill-defined campaign is not the solution. In the words of Aaron Fetters, SVP of marketing solutions at comScore, “Make sure you know what a win looks like!”