MEDIA INSIGHTS SPEND & TRENDS REPORT 2023
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY SPEND AND TRENDS REPORT
The All Things Insights Media Insights community completed an extensive survey covering what folks are thinking, how they’re spending and the issues they face. Our Media Insights community is extremely senior-level with nearly every respondent being Director-level or above. So the fact that over two thirds of folks having over 15 years of experience is no surprise. Over half of the group is from organizations with over 1,000 employees. The group looks to be mostly based in the US with a Global remit. More than half of our Media Insights community self-professes that Audience Insights, Consumer Insights, Content Research, Media Insights, Research Strategy and Audience Measurement is part of their job function. It’s clear that research itself and the insights function are supported by management. The fact that the sentiment is growing, is all the more comforting- there’s an not insignificant 7% increase from pre-pandemic times. In terms of the way research execution is changing on the ground- there are mixed results. To see “no more ‘nice to have’ research, only ‘must have’” is a bit concerning. That said, “going from reactive research based on requests to proactive research based on business need” or “even greater focus trying to find and leverage new data sets/new tools” is exactly the direction we should be heading. Survey respondents shared that at this moment in time, Platform is driving campaign planning decisions. We now evolve from the SVOD launchpad to a new S/A VOD / FAST reality. And so, when discussing future campaign planning, Content comes a close and interesting second place. The spectrum of focus for the community seems to bracket between linear and streaming and not extend to Web 3/Metaverse. Overhyped/ Wait and see/Takes time/Interested/Optimistic are all on the spectrum of “I’m not focused on that right now.”
The community unanimously feels that independent measurement is important. The issue is making that feeling an actuality. This is not a new feeling. The need perhaps is more acute. The infrastructure, perhaps not as functional as it has been in the past. There are good suggestions being made in this report, which have been made many times before. The industry has consensus as well as the knowledge of what actions need to be taken. The next step is activating that construct. There was near universal agreement that “only” 56% having a pessimistic economic outlook was actually a positive! Roughly the same percentage of folks were able to ‘remain the same’ with budget now and plan to ‘remain the same’ moving forward- also a positive. The delta between decreasing in budget and decrease in headcount- also a positive. These are difficult and uncertain times, but these particular results seem to showcase a light at the end of the tunnel. There was a fair amount of debate on the direction of spend going from primary towards syndicated data. The fact that the community knows that privacy regulations and policies substantially impact the use and extent of data-driven advertising is not surprising. The fact that over 90% of respondents are focused on adapting is also not surprising. There is absolute consensus on the changes that need to be made. There is absolute consensus that the changes that need to be made cannot be made at present given the current infrastructure of the industry.
Seth Adler All Things Insights
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The Media Insights Community
State Of The Affairs
Owning the Narrative Radha Subramanyam, CBS Corporation
Marketing/Campaigns
Silver Linings & Green Shoots James Petretti, Sony Pictures
Legacy Players, Start-up Infrastructure, Dynamic Economy Liz Huszarik, WarnerMedia
Measurement
Perfectly Cromulent Michael Capretta, WarnerMedia
Budget/Spend
Stability In Disruptive Times Scott McDonald, Advertising Research Foundation
Contractors/Outside Vendors
Facing Facts by Theresa Pepe
Data
Monetization & Collaboration Marija Masalskis, Omdia
Tools
The Past is Prologue by Marc Berman
Talent
Thank You’s
MEDIA INSIGHTS The Community
What best describes your job function?
How many employees are in your organization?
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What title do you hold at your organization?
How many years of experience do you have in an insights function?
Which region does your organization operate in?
Our Media Insights community is extremely senior-level with nearly every respondent being Director-level or above. So the fact that over two thirds of folks having over 15 years of experience is no surprise. Over half of the group is from organizations with over 1,000 employees. The group looks to be mostly based in the US with a Global remit. More than half of our Media Insights community self-professes that Audience Insights, Consumer Insights, Content Research, Media Insights, Research Strategy and Audience Measurement is part of their job function.
STATE OF THE AFFAIRS
How supportive do you feel your organization’s highest level of management is towards research findings?
Thinking back to 2019, how supportive do you feel the highest level of management was towards research at that time?
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In what ways have you changed how you approach research work in the past year?
It’s clear that research itself and the insights function are supported by management. The fact that the sentiment is growing, is all the more comforting- there’s an not insignificant 7% increase from pre-pandemic times. In terms of the way research execution is changing on the ground- there are mixed results. To see “no more ‘nice to have’ research, only ‘must have’” is a bit concerning. That said, “going from reactive research based on requests to proactive research based on business need” or “even greater focus trying to find and leverage new data sets/ new tools” is exactly the direction we should be heading.
OWNING THE NARRATIVE
Radha Subramanyam showcases that as the industry’s infrastructure evolves within a dynamic and uncertain economic environment, it is more necessary than ever to assert control over what can be influenced while keeping an eye open for further disruption.
These results generally ring true. People are leaning more on data- driven decisions and insight-driven decisions than before because there are too many unknowns. So the results showcasing that organizations are more and more supportive of research jives with my experience. Content taking a huge leap in importance in campaign planning as organizations evolve is how it should be. Ads, without our platforms, without content context, make no sense. We know that high quality content equates to high quality ad experience, so I’m glad that that’s front and center. Incidentally, I would also expect duration to go up because length matters. A ten-second ad as part of a one-minute experience is not the same as a 30-second ad in a 22-minute show.
“A ten-second ad as part of a one- minute experience is not the same as a 30-second ad in a 22-minute show.”
Diving in on where and how spend is being cut, it makes sense that organizations are cutting contractors before headcount because you want people with a long- term understanding and a long-term commitment to the business. You don’t want someone who’s coming in from the outside for three months to tell you because they won’t know your business. As far as the information around brand new partners, a couple of hypotheses. One is that it could be as you have to become more self-sufficient, you have to go to new vendors. So for example, if you switch from a full service vendor to your own direct solution, that could be accounting for it. So they’re different, not just that they’re new in the sense that one is a substitute for the other, but it’s more that you’re taking a more hands-on approach yourself. That’s how I see my world. We have a lot of new perspective, not because we’re replacing one full service company with another, but because we’re bringing more things in house.
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“We have a lot of new perspective, not because we’re replacing one full service company with another, but because we’re bringing more things in house.”
On the differences between primary and syndicated data, I think people always hope that there will be syndicated data that answers their business’s questions and also provides a comparative context. I think we’re always hopeful about that because that would be useful, but then in the real world, you end up doing a lot of work on your own because the way you look at your business is unique. So I think people are always hopeful that there’s a high degree of syndication, but whether it comes to fruition or not, we’ll have to see. The next media insights spend and trends report is going to look very different from this one, which is going to look very different from the next one. Because we’re in the middle of this consolidation. I think that, at least from a major media company perspective, you will have a much better sense of where things shake out six months from now.
Overall, we need to own our narrative. All of us make product for ourselves and to sell to each other. So rather than being ashamed and trying to fit ourselves retroactively into somebody else’s narrative, we should be writing our own narrative and telling our own story. I just don’t like approaching the world with fear. I like to approach the world thinking of opportunity. Tell your story, don’t fit into somebody else’s story.
Radha Subramanyam Chief Research and Analytics Officer, CBS Corporation and President, CBS Vision, CBS Corporation
MARKETING/CAMPAIGNS
Rank from most to least important how your current campaign planning takes into account differences in each of the following aspects at this time:
As the business evolves re-rank from most to least important how your future campaign planning takes into account differences in each of the following aspects:
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What are your thoughts on newer entrants such as Web3/Metaverse?
Survey respondents shared that at this moment in time, Platform is driving campaign planning decisions. We now evolve from the SVOD launchpad to a new S/A VOD / FAST reality. And so, when discussing future campaign planning, Content comes a close and interesting second place. The spectrum of focus for the community seems to bracket between linear and streaming and not extend to Web 3/ Metaverse. Overhyped/Wait and see/Takes time/Interested/Optimistic are all on the spectrum of “I’m not focused on that right now.”
SILVER LININGS & GREEN SHOOTS James Petretti hones in on the bright side of community responses and discusses overcoming current hurdles while remaining focused on a future, more optimistic, horizon.
It could have been worse. It seems the community is keeping things on an even keel as we’re going through this time. All Things Insights and the Media Insights Survey Committee came together to benchmark the community and this is the first time we’re doing this Report. We know what we’ll need to do in the future, but I think this is a very good first step. I think it’s some really comforting information for me personally. Regarding the job function numbers, it looks like people are becoming more holistic. The focus on how supportive organizations are to insights - it makes sense to me- there’s more and more data out there- research has a more important role. On Measurement and Attribution it will be interesting to see the adoption of initiatives from i-jic (the International Association of Joint
“I’m looking at the optimistic side of these responses considering what’s going on in the industry. These results perhaps point to a coming sunset of bad news.” Industry Committees for Media Research) and VAB (Video Advertising Bureau). This year should tell us if there is potential to balance those types of initiatives with more traditional independent players. Considering what we already know about the macroeconomy as well as what’s been happening in the media economy, I’m glad that ‘only half’ of respondents shared that their general economic outlook is pessimistic. My thinking is that number would be higher- but it might mean that this group is thinking that we’re either approaching or at peak negativity. To that end, with over half forecasting budgets to remain the same- I’m looking at this as good news- I’m looking at the optimistic side of these responses. Because think about what’s going on in the industry- the stock prices of some of these companies, the production cuts that they’ve been making, shows that have been canceled that have literally been filming and getting cut- these results perhaps point to a coming sunset of bad news.
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“Even though it’s a very uncertain time in our industry and there is a lot of change coming to the role, the importance of research is as important or more so than ever before.”
We’re seeing that the community is telling us that they’ll cut contractors before incumbent talent but that reliance on outside vendors has increased- There is a net increase of 12%. Overall, there’s a general trend of consistency that we’re seeing. Despite what we know and see every day in the moment- these results are saying that the community is going to hold firm and it looks like we’re gonna white knuckle our way through here. While working with brand new partners is something that happens every year, it comes with a ton of upfront effort. And these days, it feels like we’re doing more of the work. And so this is the problem with going with new partners. You do so much work to help them get things to a usable state, but you’re doing the work and you’re paying them. And with the industry in a changing state, the outcome often isn’t
as good as we would have wanted and that’s very frustrating to say the least.
These results make me optimistic. Even though it’s a very uncertain time in our industry and there is a lot of change coming to the role, the importance of research is as important or more so than ever before. This is a very experienced group and it seems they have a firm hold on the challenges ahead and how to overcome them.
James Petretti SVP North America Distribution Research Sony Pictures
LEGACY PLAYERS, START-UP INFRASTRUCTURE, DYNAMIC ECONOMY
Liz Huszarik dives in on respondent results and showcases the need for entrenched companies and legacy players to evolve the industry infrastructure in a contracting economy.
These results confirmed a lot of our initial thinking going into the work. The economic factors we are all facing are present in these results. Spend is either staying the same or decreasing. The big question, of course, is that continued dependency on Nielsen and how that owns such a big part of the budgets and how we untether that so that we can innovate- so that there are funds to innovate. There’s also yet another reminder in this Report that privacy settings and privacy regulations are going to impact marketing and the data that we access. That’s going to entail all kinds of new investment in measurement so we can continue to capture those insights. The campaign planning questions were particularly interesting. Obviously with FAST and now ad
“The infrastructure of the industry is in startup mode but tethered to this legacy anchor of measurement that is holding us back. One would imagine that the future would be some combination.” supported SVOD, there are new and interesting platforms. I love that we captured the premium versus user generated because that is such a key distinction. I mean obviously with the explosion of tick tock in the last 24 months along with the activation of community content generation from various players. The fact that independent measurement and attribution are seen to be so critical is not surprising. Platforms continue to spread and the measurement is not keeping up. These become ‘franken- metrics,’ where like we’re piercing together a reality and then we’re trying to make correlations and build relationships. But we don’t have that full impact because we’re pulling together such disparate sources. The infrastructure of the industry is in startup mode but tethered to this legacy anchor of measurement that is holding us back. One would imagine that the future would be some combination. But now in today’s
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Some of the big entrenched companies move like aircraft carriers- these huge slow moving vessels. And you want to be able to move like a speed boat. The market is changing so rapidly, you can’t go to the field for six months and come back.
economy, with firms pairing back on spending, are they really going to run full parallel services? Only if they see a benefit- a lift in ad sales, a lift in share- but that’s going to be hard to prove. So are you going to get the investment with soft numbers? This is a really difficult period. The results are showing us that budget while steady or down is more apt to go to head count than to contractors. That said, with the continued evolution of the space, there must be investment into services that analyze new spaces. The dedication of a substantial budget to brand new partners could mean a few different things. It could mean that the partners that we’ve been relying on have become more unreliable. It could be folks looking for new ways of thinking, new ways of addressing problems, new ways of looking at the
market. Also budget to brand new partners could be dedicated in an effort to be cost effective with partners who are more agile and and less expensive. Some of the big entrenched companies move like aircraft carriers- these huge slow moving vessels. And you want to be able to move like a speed boat. The market is changing so rapidly, you can’t go to the field for six months and come back. It has to be quick and agile moving forward and maybe that’s what we’re seeing in these results.
Liz Huzarik Former Chief Research Officer, EVP Global Insights, Data & Strategy, WarnerMedia
MEASUREMENT
To what degree do you consider independent measurement and attribution to be critical to understanding the value of advertising impressions?
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What actions should be taken in regards to independent measurement and attribution to ensure understanding of the value of advertising impressions?
And so, the community unanimously feels that independent measurement is important. The issue is making that feeling an actuality. This is not a new feeling. The need perhaps is more acute. The infrastructure, perhaps not as functional as it has been in the past. There are good suggestions being made in this report, which have been made many times before. The industry has consensus as well as the knowledge of what actions need to be taken. The next step is activating that construct.
PERFECTLY CROMULENT
Michael Capretta dives in on the fact that the survey responses show a present and alert community aware of the issues they face. The hope is that the positive sheen to the collective mindset forecasts a possible steadying ahead.
The fact that most respondents feel the organization is either very supportive or mostly supportive probably does surprise me a little bit. And the fact that there’s more support now than three years ago- considering the general disruption in our media industry- is surprising and hopefully, positive. Research is not a revenue generator. Which puts the discipline in the bucket of potential cuts along with other supportive functions within the company. I find it to be good news that research is still valued even when companies are trying to do more with less.
“Research is still valued even when we’re all trying to do more with less. It’s a very uncertain time. So the data is more important than ever and it’s changing so quickly.” It’s a very uncertain time. So the data is more important than ever and it’s changing so quickly. With 87% of respondents saying that independent measurement and attribution is critical to understanding the value of advertising- you could almost call that unanimous. And with the other 13% saying it’s at least somewhat important- it is unanimous. Everybody wants it to improve and it is on everyone’s list of things they need to solve. The responses around economic outlook seem to indicate that- as an industry- we might have hit the bottom already. Perhaps we have the potential for a bit of a bounce back in the second half of the year in media and the advertising economy. Regarding budget , hard decisions are being made on what you’re saying no to and what parts of the business you’re letting go.
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“There should always be a healthy amount of solution turnover every year. That’s why we travel to San Diego once a year for Media Insights & Engagement, so that we’re talking to new people and hearing about new things.”
I think it’s good to see that overall we’re an optimistic bunch. We’re not too pessimistic about the economy. People clearly feel that they are supported and valued by the leadership of their organizations. That’s a good sign that leadership understands the value of research.
And as always, everyone is finding ways to become more efficient in in the work they do. It’s good to see that there is an attempt to protect in-house talent . The last resort is cutting people. It’s what you don’t want to do. The information around new partners is positive. There should always be a healthy amount of solution turnover every year. That’s why we travel to San Diego once a year for Media Insights & Engagement, so that we’re talking to new people and hearing about new research. Part of our job is to find out what’s new and what’s next. It’s on us to be doing that no matter the economy. Regarding measurement , there likely won’t be a single solution, but more likely a of host metrics outside of Nielsen that advertisers will trust.
Michael Capretta VP Global Research, Insight and Analytics, WarnerMedia
BUDGET/SPEND
What is your total current budget (including Nielsen)?
What is your outlook on the economy this next year?
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Will the economy have any impact on your 2023 budget?
Do you forecast an increase, stable, or decrease in budget for the year?
Do you forecast an increase, stable, or decrease in budget for head count?
We shared these results with key industry folks while preparing the report. The budget numbers may need to be taken into account as there were a fair number of folks in the community who said that $100M goes to Nielsen alone. That said, there was near universal agreement that “only” 56% having a pessimistic economic outlook was actually a positive! Roughly the same percentage of folks were able to ‘remain the same’ with budget now and plan to ‘remain the same’ moving forward- also a positive. The delta between decreasing in budget and decrease in headcount- also a positive. These are difficult and uncertain times, but these particular results seem to showcase a light at the end of the tunnel.
STABILITY IN DISRUPTIVE TIMES Scott McDonald shares insights on how survey responses showcase the fact that the industry is moving in the right direction. But taking the right actions now is imperative for survival in the long run.
The survey responses featured in this report around management being supportive of insights are consistent with other information that I’ve seen from our members. In particular, because a lot of these companies relied more on research and organizations like the ARF for guidance in navigating the rapids of the pandemic and the economic gyrations around the closing down of the economy as well as the reopening of the economy. Consumer behavior has of course gone through massive shifts. There was a significant amount of scenario planning and a lot of strategy retooling on what organizations were providing, but it went much more directly to C-Suite. You saw that in a lot of a lot of companies. We had a great presentation by Unilever on just that at our forecasting event.
“Consumer behavior has of course gone through massive shifts. There was a significant amount of scenario planning and a lot of strategy retooling on what organizations were providing, but it went much more directly to C-Suite.” Do we need to be thinking about restructuring our organizations as the infrastructure of our industry evolves? Well, always. And that’s one of the interesting questions about data science because a lot of companies started out building data science teams that were centralized functions being lent to disciplines like finance, HR, product development, marketing, etc. What I think is happening is you’re starting to see domain specialist data scientists within each of these functions. That then reinforces the position of the integrator. It means this community is taking all of these signals that you’re getting from conventional surveys and mechanisms for tracking repeat purchase, brand loyalty, etc. All these signals that are coming in, someone’s got to integrate that information into something that management can make sense of.
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“All these signals that are coming in, someone’s got to integrate that information into something that management can make sense of.
This community is integrators of information- taking data and signals from lots of different places and converting them into insights for management, which can mean they’re also involved in strategy. Top corporate people are actively trying to figure out either allocations within campaign planning . The folks who are running these organizations are doing their best to understand the granularity of measurement and effects on the level of attention and how to provide some of that attention to advertisers in a way that allows for true communication without much disruption. One note on measurement and attribution . This, of course, is a huge issue. We are completely in favor of independent measurement. But the fact that it’s independent doesn’t mean that it’s easy. Attribution still remains
very, very complex and imprecise. So my own counsel usually is to not bet the farm on any single bit of information about that. And of course the risk of the misunderstanding of attribution is that you prioritize the most recent action. It comes with a bias toward last click, with a bias toward transactions, and that can be a real liability for some companies because it’s at odds with building brand equity.
Scott McDonald President & CEO Advertising Research Foundation
CONTRACTORS/ OUTSIDE VENDORS
Do you forecast an increase, stable, or decrease in budget for contractors?
How has your reliance on outside vendors versus in-house work changed in the past year?
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How much of your 2022 spend was with completely brand new partners?
What percentage were consultancy/ primary research, a new analytics vendor, or was it a SaaS product?
FACING FACTS
Theresa Pepe- as only she can do- points out the elephant in the room and shares thoughts on what the industry should be thinking to truly build towards tomorrow. She points out what key players might want to do. And she puts historical context around this moment in time.
These results point to the fact that people seem to be looking for the next big thing. Whether it’s because of the state of the economy or the state of the corporation, in general, people are going to be very mindful with how they spend that money. If you are a vendor you have to come out with the ‘shiny penny.’ You have to make sure that you have something that no one else has and that you’re able to provide insights that we haven’t seen before- original. Everybody needs to absorb the fact that Nielsen is not going to go away and that’s it. My personal opinion is that our community does need to accept that fact and move on. The bottom line is that the publisher should not be driving this conversation. It should be the agencies. The agencies need to say ‘this is what we want, this is what we need and this is what we’re
“The bottom line is that the publisher should not be driving this conversation. It should be the agencies They are the only ones that can solve this because they represent the money.” willing to do to change what we’re getting.’ The agencies are the only ones that can solve this because they represent the money. No matter what the future state of our industry turns out to be, the future state includes Nielsen. From a back office perspective, no agency or publisher is able to handle these third party data sets at this time on a mass scale. The third party data processors right now do not have full US reach. The third party data sets have limitations in what they make available. Nielsen, while it’s not ideal, has for the most part been very forthcoming in their methodology and the math behind how they gather that data. We’re not seeing the same thing with those third party data set providers. And again from a back office perspective, agencies are not coming to us saying, hey, let’s use television. Hey, let’s use a particular solution. Those aren’t the conversations.
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“On campaign planning; you have to establish where you’re going to be before you actually create for it. The platform is about library and content is about creating new content.
If we go to them and we offer it- yes, it’s a cool thing to do as a one off potentially or for one particular advertiser. But from a mass perspective, a lot has to take place in order for it to be an effective measure of currency. We’re still at the very beginning of this conversation. If we’re going to change it. And we have been at the beginning of this conversation for the past 15 years. In that span of time, the infrastructure has been disrupted on multiple occasions. The industry infrastructure has remained in a rapidly-paced evolutionary phase. But 15 years later, nobody’s been able to make leaps and bounds in our space. One thought on campaign planning; you have to establish where you’re going to be before you actually create for it. The platform is about library and content is about creating new content. As an industry, we’ve been worried about getting the platform up and
now we can finally start to talk about content through measurement. We’re only going to be as good as the data that we pull from the platforms. Data is going to direct where your content creation comes in.
Theresa Pepe Media Insights
DATA
What is the current split of spending for syndicated data vs custom/primary?
What is the future split of spending for syndicated data vs custom/primary?
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To what degree do you expect Privacy regulations and policies to impact the use and extent of data-driven advertising?
And how do you expect to adapt your advertising planning, targeting and measurement efforts?
There was a fair amount of debate on the direction of spend going from primary towards syndicated data. The fact that the community knows that privacy regulations and policies substantially impact the use and extent of data-driven advertising is not surprising. The fact that over 90% of respondents are focused on adapting is also not surprising. There is absolute consensus on the changes that need to be made. There is absolute consensus that the changes that need to be made cannot be made at present given the current infrastructure of the industry.
MONETIZATION & COLLABORATION Marija Masalskis outlines the how the monetization initiative can only be fully realized once the industry realizes the power of collaboration.
The majority of this survey respondents are part of organizations that are both media owners and advertisers. What I found most fascinating about the results is how developments and strategic concerns on one side of the house are mirrored on the other side too. In particular, the explosive growth of premium ad-supported online video segment is currently one of the most transformative trends for large media owners – at Omdia we track this development very closely and estimate that this segment will roughly double over the next five years. This survey shines a light on how the marketing organizations are participating and contributing to this trend. As premium ad-supported online video services gain scale, we finally have a fully digital product that is an alternative to traditional linear TV that offers not just reach, but the immersive brand-safe environment. Moreover, growing scale of premium ad-supported video services opens new opportunities for advertisers to have a choice of the exact content they want to advertise against without sacrificing reach. The fact that most of the major media owners are now active in both upfronts and new fronts is a testament to that. The expected growth in spend on premium online
“All of the big major media owners are now both in upfronts and the new fronts. This result is a validation that advertisers are also thinking in the same way that content owners are thinking about the space.” video that this survey has shown is a validation that advertisers are also fully onboard with this trend. Third party measurement plays a critical role in the growing premium online video ad marketplace, particularly as this segment competes with the walled gardens and big social media players. Premium online video space is diverse, competitive and offers an alternative to the duopoly we see in display advertising market. This means that advertisers will not work with anyone exclusively in this space and, in order to bring together the data from the multiple service and platform partners, advertisers will need independent third- party measurement and attribution. Equally, there is a broad industry understanding of the value of first party data. In this survey we see how advertisers are making investments in talent and tools in order to process and
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Advertisers will not be working with anyone exclusively. They will need a way to bring all of that data together and for that you need third and independent measurement and attribution.
utilize all the audience signals across all of their media partners and channels. Once again this is mirrored in the trends that Omdia sees on the media owner side, with many of the new premium video services investing in in-house platforms and integrating tools such as
identity solutions and data clean rooms. This will allow publishers to offer their advertiser partners new ways to deepen their partnership and drive efficient audience targeting while maintaining both high levels of user privacy and using rich first party datasets.
Marija Masalskis Senior Principal Analyst, TV, Video and Advertising Omdia
Which Data tools/Platforms do you use? TOOLS
Linear
Digital/Social
Consumer Insights
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Streaming Insights
Marketplace/Spend
TOOLS Custom/Primary Research Vendors
Strategic Custom Research:
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Brand Lift/Ad Effectiveness/Attribution
THE PAST IS PROLOGUE
Marc Berman brings us through a history of modern media showcasing the fact that for every member of the community- the space has always been in a state of constant and dynamic change. He shares how to view that past as prologue to this moment and the collective future ahead.
Seeing these responses, one could make the argument that research is on its way to the forefront of media organizations. Back in the 1980’s, research people didn’t have the tools they have now to evaluate and showcase results from the solutions they employed. Thus, people working in research felt that we weren’t being valued- that we weren’t getting the credit they deserved. That as the landscape has changed and so much. While there’s an overall measurement issue for the industry, measurement of solution impact is stronger. Thus, research is becoming more valuable- because organizations can better see the ROI effect of the discipline. In years past, whenever there were layoffs- research always got hit harder than other parts of the organization. With over 40% of the community
“With over 40% of the community identifying 11 job functions as part of their job, the discipline is doing a lot for the organization. It’s pretty impressive.”
identifying 11 job functions as part of their job, the discipline is doing a lot for the organization. It’s pretty impressive. As far as actual organizational support for research, we see the result go from half of respondents feeling supported in 2019 to nearly two thirds right now. That’s a great improvement, but my sense is that the discipline still doesn’t get the credit it deserves. If you work in research, you have to be smart. You have to be attentive. You have to know your stuff. And I don’t think people that work in research get enough credit that adds up to that skill set. We’re in a landscape, we work in a business that’s changing rapidly, particularly from a data standpoint, particularly regarding how you analyze certain things- everything is different. Now, streaming has become very prominent. It’s not the same as linear.
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“We’re in a business that nothing is static, nothing is stagnant. It is constantly changing and even when you think ‘I got it, I’m there. I’ve done it,’ No, you haven’t. Because there’s always the next thing.
We’re adapting, forging ahead and getting things accomplished differently. Once upon a time there were three broadcast networks and nothing else. A hit show on a broadcast network, got a 30 share of the audience. Today, how do you even determine what is a hit or a miss? There are so many different ways to look at things and crunch numbers. Folks in the space should be applauded for simply keeping up. I’ve got one thought on the Metaverse. Again, not that long ago, there were maybe a dozen meter markets. Then there were 15, then 20, then 30. Then there was live plus same day. Then there was live plus three day. Then there was live plus seven day. And it goes on and on and on and on and on. So you have to constantly look ahead. We’re in a business that nothing is static, nothing is stagnant. It is constantly changing and even when you think ‘I got it, I’m
there. I’ve done it,’ No, you haven’t. Because there’s always the next thing.
And one thought on measurement. The issue with the business right now is particularly with streaming. We don’t know who’s watching. We don’t have data to support anything outside of the linear platform and the linear platform is dropping dramatically. With more and more AVOD offerings, we’ll have ads and you know, they’re going to have to start showing who’s actually watching.
Marc Berman Founder, Editor-in-Chief, Programming Insider
TALENT
What is the size of your team?
What are the primary challenges to recruiting research talent to your organization?
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What is your annual turnover rate for Insights employees?
The fantastic turnover numbers do relate back to the fact that while budgets are being cut, seemingly the last cut being made, is to talent. Media insights is a specific discipline, top-level talent is newly available but that’s not necessarily the talent that is currently needed through open positions. This industry is a leading indicator of what other industries will face in due course. That in itself could be an advantage for folks in the space. But it will only be an advantage once the infrastructure is more stable, when measurement, attribution and currency are clear and when the consumer settles into habit following the industry gyrations from years past and present.
REPORT PRESENTED BY:
Since 1936, the Advertising Research Foundation has been the standard-bearer for unbiased quality in research on advertising, media and marketing. Its powerful knowledge, unifying standards and best practices have benefited its 400+ member companies many times over. Only the ARF brings together advertisers, agencies, media companies, research companies and ad tech into one conversation about how to be better at what we do. With a consistent cadence of content, All Things Innovation is a year-round resource for Insights leaders. With constant connection to new content and new perspectives, you get the tips and tricks you need to stay agile and opportunistic in your approach. The answers today look a lot different than the answers a year ago. All Things Insights is designed to ensure our global network becomes your global network. Connect with a diverse member community in real time to forge new relationships, spark conversations and create tomorrow’s best practices.
The must attend event for Media Insights executives. With the stakes higher than ever, this business-critical conference sets the course for 2023 and beyond with key discussions around upcoming trends, monetization, ROI, the evolution of viewership, a media insights economic outlook and more. Join hundreds of corporate leaders tasked with turning media disruption into audience growth and engagement to stay ahead of the curve, turn chaos into opportunity and architect the future of the industry together.
Programming Insider is your proven daily source for everything media. Ratings, trends, observations, breaking news, scheduling, trivia and much more! The site covers ratings, networks, streaming technology, cable, television and sports. Read more online here.
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THANKS TO:
Omdia is a global research leader that helps you connect the dots across the technology ecosystem. The technology world as we know it, is changing faster than ever. In a dynamic and complex landscape, the stakes are high, and the challenges and opportunities are real. Today, we help organizations make better technology choices for their business and enable technology innovators to better understand and reach the markets they hope to serve.
Lastly, A Special Thanks to Our Survey Committee This Report would not have been possible without the time, effort, insight and expertise provided by our Media Insights Survey Committee. A humble and honored thank you goes to Claudio Marcus, Edwin Wong, Evan Shapiro, James Petretti, Julya Fridman, Liz Huszarik, Michael Capretta, Radha Subramanyam and Theresa TBI is all about the business of television, all over the world; from the talent that creates the content, to those financing it, the companies selling it, and those who acquire and make it available to viewers. TBI is staffed by leading television industry journalists who provide the global TV community with easily accessible and reliable business information, informed insight to the latest programming trends and developments, as well as the day’s breaking news stories via the TBI Daily email alerts.
Digital TV Europe is firmly established as the trusted market leader for news and analysis on the digital video business internationally. Written from a European perspective, it provides authoritative, independent information and in-depth analysis of every aspect of the digital video delivery industry worldwide. For over 35 years, it has remained the top information choice for senior management and executives working across all parts of the video distribution value chain.
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