2018 China Digital Ad Viewability Benchmark Report

Transcription

1 2018 China Digital Ad Viewability Benchmark Report

2 I. Background: Sizmek is a global independent advertising technology company, with headquarters in New York, USA. In China, we offer digital campaign management, ad serving, and verification solutions. We also provide dynamic creative optimization, viewability measurement and brand safety solutions. Sizmek is accredited by the Media Ratings Council (MRC) for multiple ad formats, including display, rich-media, and video, as well as cross-platform viewability solutions. All data included in this report is in compliance with the MRC accreditation standards. We have adopted the IAB standard to determine whether a measured impression is considered viewable, which states that 50% of the ad must appear on a user s screen for one second or more. Sizmek has been monitoring data on digital ad viewability since 2015, and this is the fourth consecutive year that we have released the China Digital Ad Viewability Benchmark Report. From the analysis and findings in this report, we reveal interesting trends in viewability rates throughout the year. These insights can be used as guidelines for future campaign planning, particularly how viewability rates differ between verticals and across different buying methods. This year s annual report placed considerable emphasis on (viewable cost-per-thousand impressions), which is very helpful for media planners and buyers evaluating advertising effectiveness Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

3 II. Methodology: The report was compiled using 2017 data from the Sizmek Advertising Suite, specifically, data collected from all advertising activities that took place on the platform in China between January 1, 2017 to December 31, There were over 12 billion recordable impressions, representing an increase of more than 20% when compared to the previous year. The media types monitored were portals and mainstream vertical media. Glossary of terms used in this report: Serving volume: Number of advertising impressions served Recordable Impressions: The percentage of impressions successfully recorded for viewability evaluation purposes, out of served impressions. (Due to the complexity of certain page environments where an ad is located, some iframes for example, not all impressions can be measured for viewability rate.) Recordable rate (%): Recordable Impressions Rate = Recordable Impressions / Served Impressions. (The detected viewability rate is only meaningful when a high recordable rate was ensured. The recordable rate in this report reflects the capacity of our platform s technology.) Viewable Impressions: The number of viewable impressions measured based on the IAB viewability thresholds. Viewability rate (%): Viewable Impressions/Recordable Impressions; Viewable cost-per-thousand impressions (): = Total cost/((recordable Impression*Viewability rate)/1000); (MRC accreditation) Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

4 Example: Viewability rate vs. 100% Recordable impressions: 900 Recordable rate: 90% 80% 60% Viewable impressions: 450 Viewability rate: 50% 40% 20% CPM 80 Yuan 178 Yuan 0% Serving Volume Recordable Rate Viewable Rate In this 2018 annual report, we have analysed recordable rate and viewability rate performance on different platforms and via different buying methods, for example: Differences between ads on mobile devices versus on PCs, and between direct and programmatic buying. Total impressions CPM (Yuan) Recordable rate Viewability rate Viewable impression volume (Yuan) 1, % 50% (*Viewability rate monitoring result already excludes volume that comes from ad fraud) Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

5 III. Key findings: 1. Overall: The average viewability rate for China in 2017 was 31.17%, only a small climb when compared to the previous years. The overall mobile viewability rate was 84.38% and the overall PC viewability rate was 28.42%. With mobile being significantly higher, this may be a valuable consideration for future campaigns where viewability is the main KPI. 2. Recordable rate: The recordable rate for PC and mobile devices both exceeded 80%. In the case of mobile devices, the recordable rate was as high as over 90%. 3. Viewability rate: In 2017, the viewability on both PC and mobile devices was higher than in 2016, in both direct and programmatic buying channels. 4. Analysis of the changes in viewability rate: In this annual report, we see several variances in viewability rate: as page content length changes, different types of media show different characteristics in ad viewability rates. For example, fashion media content pages show a higher viewability rate whilst the price for advertising is relatively lower, and financial media content pages and financial channel pages both have a higher viewability rate than the homepage itself. This discovery shows the effectiveness and efficiency of content pages which should be considered for future planning. 5. New metric in this report: Viewable cost-per-thousand impressions () was used as a metric, which reflects the actual value of ad placements Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

6 IV. Annual trends: 1. Viewability rate trend from total viewability rate homepage average viewability rate channel homepage average viewability rate As media buyers become increasingly more aware of the importance of viewability rates, media owners have reacted by continuously optimising their pages and content to boost the viewability rates. This ultimately improves the value of advertising. Looking at the trend over the years, the ad viewability rate has continued to increase at a steady pace, which means ad effectiveness has been increasing. V. Digital display: 1. Comparison of recordable rate and viewability rate on mobile devices and on PCs shows the following: Mobile PC Recordable Rate Recordable rate and viewability rate both performed very well on mobile devices. Viewable Rate Viewability metrics on mobile devices have been better (than desktop devices) because the screen itself is smaller, there is often less content to ingest and fewer ad placements Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

7 2. Looking at recordable rate and viewability rate in regards to the different buying methods: Direct Buying Programmatic Buying Mobile Recordable Data Mobile Viewability Data Viewability rates for programmatic campaigns were better on PCs, and we believe this to be the case because the layout for direct buys is consistent with more ads on a single page; whereas there is constant filtering and optimizing for programmatic buys thereby boosting the viewability rate. PC Recordable Data PC Viewability Data Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

8 3. Viewability rate performance across different verticals and varying page depth: News Portal Finance Fashion Luxury Products average viewability rate homepage viewability rate channel homepage viewability rate content page viewability rate News portals performed better in terms of the viewability rate when compared to other categories. However, as page depth increased, the vertical media viewability rate began to stand out significantly and their content pages had a better viewability rate. Take fashion and luxury products for example, whose content pages have excellent readability, and as a result, their advertisement viewability rate performed better when compared to other types of content pages. These results show the importance of content greater user engagement, greater viewability ultimately it means more effectiveness and greater efficiencies. Welcome Banner Top Banner Skyscraper Middle Banner Bottom Banner Others Rich Media viewability rate by ad type Now, if we look at the ad format viewability rates, different ad formats and placements demonstrated changes in various degrees compared to last year; we saw an increase in viewability for top banners but a decrease in skyscrapers Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

9 4. Viewability rate in media content and page depth. Homepage Channel homepage Content page 4.1 News media channel homepages have better a viewability rate. News portal media There are certain patterns in the change in ad viewability rates, and those patterns differ amongst the different media verticals and different page depths. The viewability rate performed very well in all content pages we observed. The existing data demonstrates certain patterns of change, from which we can see that a content page with more readable value has a higher viewability rate. This is also influenced by the users reading behaviours and habits. 4.2 Financial media and financial channel homepages and content pages have better viewability rates.viewability rate. Finance media Financial media and financial channel homepages often present highly readable information such as current trends and real-time market performances, and their content pages usually have high viewability rates Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

10 4.3 Viewability rate performance in different page levels of fashion media: Fashion media In fashion media, content pages have better viewability rates versus their homepages and channel pages. 4.4 Viewability rate performance in different page levels of luxury product media: Luxury products media In luxury product media, the viewability rate changes as page depth changes, and such changes are very noticeable. The homepages are not necessarily favored Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

11 VI. Case study Example 1: Consider the recordable rate factor, aka, the MRC accredited method of measure; 40% 20% Viewable Rate CPM vs 60% Yuan 75 Yuan 185 Yuan 0% 0 Homepage Channel Homepage Content Page CPM standard CPM standard CPM standard pricing 60 Yuan pricing 45 Yuan pricing 35 Yuan (Yuan) In this fine-grained case study, we used a certain website s actual advertising price and actual recordable rate and viewability rate to create this set of comparative data. We analyzed the CPM and for the same ad spot on the same website at different page depths. Ads placed on the homepage come with a higher price tag yet a lower viewability rate, which means the of such ads are relatively more expensive; whereas the fluctuations of ads placed on channel homepages and content pages appeared to be less drastic, thus those ads are more effective. CPM standard pricing (Yuan) Homepage Channel Homepage Content Page Recordable rate 77% 81% 93% Viewability rate 10% 30% 50% (Yuan) Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

12 Example 2: This is calculated using the viewability rate directly, assuming that the recordable rate is 100%; The formula is: = Total cost/((total impressions*viewability rate)/1000); the only distinction is that in this formula, the total impressions are used; 60% Viewable Rate 600 Yuan CPM vs 70 Yuan (Yuan) 700 If we consider Recordable Impressions as a sample, when we use the viewability rate detected in the sampled lot to represent the viewability rate of the whole ad serving, we may 40% 150 Yuan 350 proceed with the calculation using this viewability rate, A, as the viewability rate that represents the entire 20% serving s impressions, and the resulting from this calculation will be different 0% Homepage CPM standard pricing 60 Yuan Channel Homepage CPM standard pricing 45 Yuan Content Page CPM standard pricing 35 Yuan 0 from the resulting from the calculation in Example 1. Here s one more case study for your consideration. Homepage Channel Homepage Content Page CPM standard pricing (Yuan) Recordable rate 100% 100% 100% Viewability rate 10% 30% 50% (Yuan) In this report, we re thrilled to see an overall improvement in the viewability rate across the industry, and a better viewability rate for mobile devices. We are also seeing a better and more resources for content pages and some of the channel homepages of vertical media in different categories. Even when homepages traditionally suffer from a lack of resources, high prices, and low viewability, target group-oriented content is delivered more precisely, which means ad serving is more effective. For ad buyers and media buyers, this is a good time to discover undervalued opportunities. Not all media support viewability rate monitoring, but the situation is gradually improving. More and more media owners are opening up for viewability rate monitoring, and the technical capacity, reporting capacity, coverage and industry standards are all on the rise. Thus, we believe that in 2018, the viewability rate metric will be used more and advertisement serving will become more transparent Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

13 VII. Sizmek s independent ad viewability and brand safety verification solution (Viewability & Verification) Sizmek is dedicated to providing comprehensive ad serving solutions to its customers, which includes campaign management, creative production, dynamic optimisation and the provision of data analystics and optimization services. Our core data solutions such as viewability rate monitoring and brand safety are built around real time data collection and analysis. In order to better adapt to the Chinese market and to satisfy our customers growing demand for data monitoring, starting last year, Sizmek began to research and develop independent viewability and brand safety validation and verification services covering several different platforms (PC and mobile devices) and different ad formats (display, rich-media, and video). We effectively resolved the issues stemming from not using Sizmek ad serving services or media that does not accept third party ad serving, and significantly improved the diversity of our solutions. Technology innovations continue to roll out, and obtaining data is also becoming easier than ever. These factors made customers and agencies increasingly aware of this data and how to better use data to support actual media negotiations, buying and optimization. At the same time, they have also become more open and are paying more attention to refining their operations. Using viewability information can also help them to prove their value and the effectiveness of their ad campaigns to their customers. This is the first time we have attempted using the calculation in our annual report, and by comparing the differences between this calculation and the CPM, it became apparent that we are looking at a new way of thinking about media value and the effectiveness of ad serving costs. Although it takes longer to process procurement since many parties are involved in this process, customers are increasingly intolerant towards waste and fraud, and this attitude will help to speed up these developments. As a leading technology provider in the industry, Sizmek is looking forward to working with customers, agencies, and the media alike, to continuously perfect and explore new possibilities while encouraging continued development and innovation in the advertisement industry Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.

14 About Sizmek Sizmek is the largest independent buy-side advertising platform that creates impressions that inspire. In the digital world, creating impressions that inspire is vital to building meaningful, long-lasting relationships with your customers. Sizmek provides powerful, integrated solutions that enable data, creative, and media to work together for optimal campaign performance across the entire customer journey. Our AI-driven decisioning engine can identify robust insights within data across the five key dimensions of predictive marketing campaigns, consumers, context, creative, and cost. We bring all the elements of our clients media plans together in one place to gain better understanding for more meaningful relationships, make every moment of interaction matter, and drive more value across the entire plan. Sizmek operates its platform in more than 70 countries, with local offices in many countries providing award-winning service throughout the Americas, EMEA, and APAC, and connecting more than 20,000 advertisers and 3,600 agencies to audiences around the world Sizmek Inc. All rights reserved.