• by October 26, 2000

Well, the Digitrends summit has come to an end. But speaking of conferences and before I tell you about one of the most useful discussions of the event, I have an offer to present. As a MediaPost subscriber, you qualify to receive a special 20% discount to @d:Tech New York, which is coming up on November 8. As you know, in the past we've been able to arrange discounts for you to attend conferences we think are worthy of your attention, so scroll down to the end of this email for instructions on obtaining the discount.

As for Digitrends, the second panel Tuesday was originally titled "Reducing the Costs of Buying Online Advertising," but moderator Scott Hays, editor of Digitrends magazine, explained that online advertising costs will go down if the inefficiencies in the media buying process are improved.

To kick things off, Kent Valandra, co-founder and executive VP of AdExchange.com, presented the findings of a Lieberman Research Institute study we reported on a while back, which found that the "process" takes over half the available time of sales people, planners and buyers, and as a result, important tasks, such as developing client relationships, get less attention.

The panel unanimously lamented the lack of standardized forms, RFPs and insertion orders, difficulties in aggregating data and billing.

Of the above, the panel focused most of their attention on inefficiencies in the RFP process on both the buyer and the seller side. According to the panelists, buyers want more detailed RFPs, yet sellers feel they're oftentimes wasting their time preparing them. As one speaker said, "Media teams need to do more preplanning and look to standardize criteria. On the sales side you have to realize when you're in and when you're not, and pass on the opportunities you're not appropriate for."