• by Cory Treffiletti , Featured Contributor, October 5, 2005

Did you know that all media is going digital?

Duh... of course you did. That's a stupid question, especially for me to ask in this column. I really just wanted to see if you're paying attention, and spark you to think about the implications of this statement.

The promise of all media going digital in the next 15 years, or of at least incorporating some digital elements into its execution, is enormous. We already see some changes in the outdoor category, it's becoming more obvious in television and radio, and it's inevitable that it will happen in print and any other form of media you can think of. But what does this really mean for you and me?

There are many positive implications of going digital. Tracking will be dramatically improved. Much as we can do already with interactive and online, we'll be able to measure the engagement of the consumer and determine effectiveness during an actual campaign rather than waiting for the post-campaign analysis. Production costs will also be significantly reduced, as outdoor ads will no longer need to be printed, but will be streamed digitally to placements on buses, billboards and shelters. It'll be much easier to make changes to campaigns based on customer feedback, and we'll be in a better position to understand cross-media usage and effectiveness.

As all media attempts to become digital, we see companies like Doubleclick, Atlas and Mediaplex becoming even stronger players as they position themselves to serve media across multiple formats. Imagine when your ad server will be able to provide unified reporting on all of your efforts, from online to TV to outdoor, in one location. Also, imagine the strength that will come from a single point of contact in your digital dashboard being able to manipulate your campaigns based on performance. This is probably 15 years down the line, but it certainly will happen. I'd be surprised if some companies aren't already working on it.

Of course with the good, there also comes the bad. The primary negative implication of this impending situation is the issue surrounding consumer privacy, and what we are seeing happen right now with the topic of cookie deletion. As this issue continues to evolve, I see that we are going to set a precedent for other digital conversions, and if we don't resolve this issue quickly, it's going to undermine everything for years to come. If our industry does not get moving on resolving the issue around cookie deletion, then federal legislation could come down that imposes prohibitive restrictions on advertisers, making the dream of cross-media accountability an impossibility.

I know you know about Safecount and the IAB and the NAI and a number of other groups who are working on these issues right now, but you need to think about this as well. The publishers, the agencies and the advertisers need to be discussing this topic internally. It's true that right now the issue isn't as bad as some in the media will have you believe, but it's definitely not going away. I'm not asking you to take a public stand on the topic, but I do ask that you devote some time internally to understanding the issue and educating those in your company who might be in a position of authority to help address it.

There is a very, very strong promise to the development of digital media, but the issue of consumer privacy could be our undoing. Consumers are becoming more and more in control, and we need to acknowledge this and work with them. After all, at the end of the day you're a consumer too -- and I'm sure you don't want the world to know everything about you, either.