• by Naomi , Chris Young , May 9, 2006

Over the past month or so, much (virtual) ink has been spilled (figuratively) on the topic of late creative--specifically, whether it is time for online publishers to become more aggressive in demanding pecuniary compensation from agencies who cannot meet their deadlines.

The Interactive Ad Bureau is urging us to do so, and the overriding consensus among industry writers seems to be one of fierce agreement--We've been kicked around for far too long! The time has come to rise up against the oppression we've endured at the hands of our clients and agencies! Viva la résistance! Sic semper tyrannis!

Now, I love a good bloody revolution as much as the next guy. But aren't we maybe overreacting just a little? Sure, late creative is annoying and obstructive to ad execution. But that's part of the reality of the business we're in, and it's up to all of us to find ways to adjust.

Many of the pieces I've been reading on the subject focus on the idea that in any other venue, such irresponsible behavior would never be tolerated. Agencies, according to these writers, are taking advantage of our flexibility and failing to take Internet publishers seriously, heaping added pressure on the shoulders of Web publishers and leading to shoddy, rushed jobs and flawed execution.

Just ask iMedia Connection's Jim Meskauskas, who writes, "If an agency planned a schedule for network TV, the schedule was locked, and then the client said, 'Oh, materials are going to be a few weeks late, but not sure which day,' do you really think the network would hold that inventory open for them without either charging them for that inventory or selling it to another advertiser?"

And as Tom Hespos pointed out in MediaPost's "Online Spin" column, "Try booking the back cover of Sports Illustrated and waiting until the material closing date has passed to see what I mean. If you don't get your materials in on time without clearing it with the magazine's production folks first, your ad won't run, but you'll be charged for it."

True enough, guys, but you're overlooking a key point: The Internet is different from TV and print. And that's precisely what makes us so valuable.

In a print ad, one printing carries the responsibility of delivering countless impressions, and to miss a deadline can take an innumerable toll on a campaign's success. Likewise, to hold up a TV campaign can be disastrous, missing valuable audience opportunities as well as proving hugely expensive.

But online, we go impression by impression. If an ad goes live late, impressions can often be made up at the end of a campaign. And even after the ad is live, changes can continue to be made as many times as they need to. Late creative might add pressure and frustration, but it's certainly not the kiss of death.

Earlier in the same column, Tom Hespos grumbles, "It's obvious that deadlines slip in online media only because they can."

Well, yeah.

So shouldn't we be proud of that fact, and work to deliver the best performance we can from a medium unlike any other? We're not a traditional format, and we shouldn't be playing by traditional rules.

Rather than charge a client full price for materials that never ran, why not place the ball in their court by just saying, the pay period starts whenever you get the materials to us? Or how about putting some initiative toward technological solutions to allow us to serve ads even faster? After all, let's not forget why so many clients are bringing their ads online in the first place.

The point is, even as we plan ahead for a three- to four-day turnaround time, adaptability has always been the name of the game for us. And if we've been able to be flexible and adaptive to missed deadlines so often thus far, then they couldn't have been such critical deadlines to begin with, right?

So let's put the revolution on hold for a while and get back to doing what we've always done best. After all, it's harder to hold a mouse if you have your fist raised above your head.