Four As, ABM Get Down To Business, Set Standards For RFPs

In a move that may have major implications for the broader media market, American Business Media (ABM), an association of business-to-business media companies, has introduced a standard advertising RFP form that aims to clarify advertising goals, measurement methods, and key factors in the competitive environment for executives on both sides of media sales.

The new RFP covers "target market industries," "how the client and agency will measure the success of the campaign," and "recommended overall media strategy" as well as its "rationale," close and open dates, editorial calendar, audit information, rate information, ad format and CPM targets, media research, and competing publications.

Although ABM conceived of the standard RFP form and directed its creation, early on ABM partnered with the Association of American Advertising Agencies (AAAA), which was invited to serve an advisory role early on in the process, according to Ennen--and both ABM and AAAA are encouraging widespread use of the RFP, including mass media markets, in an effort to bring greater transparency to media sales generally.

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"This is not some top secret, closely guarded document--because we want everyone to use this," says ABM spokesman Steve Ennen. "The idea was to disseminate this as widely as possible--so yes, we definitely think mass market media could profit from this."

According to Ennen, the RFP is usable for all types of media, not just magazines: "It's for all media. It's cross-platform, so it's perfect for integrated media campaigns, both from the perspective of someone trying to create a multi-platform campaign, and also for assessing the competitive environment."

In the end, ABM and AAAA hope the new standard RFP form will prevent the "train wrecks" that result from conflicting client and agency expectations. "Ironing out expectations, and agreeing on methods, lets you finally have accountability," according to Ennen. "And it's accountability for all parties."

The standard RFP form is downloadable from ABM's Web site at this address: http://www.americanbusinessmedia.com/images/RFP_Form.xls.

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