Alan James Edwards

Articles by Alan James All articles by Alan James

• On Viewability -- Understanding the Chatter Better in Real-Time Daily on 04/30/2015
  

  Since the first company was accredited by the MRC for the viewable impression in 2010, the industry has witnessed a tumultuous ride with twists, turns and confusing chatter. To help readers understand the viewable impression speak better, here are a few clarifications on common statements I have heard misused or misunderstood.

Comments by Alan James All comments by Alan James

• On Viewability -- Understanding the Chatter Better by Alan James Edwards (Real-Time Daily on 04/30/2015)
  

  Hi Ed, I agree that the sellers function is to deliver what is being bought. That is why viewablity is so important. One or two seconds is just a minimum. This threshold is meant to be used as a currency to standardize “reach” and get us to a common GRP with other media.  More involved metrics are currently important when measuring engagement and may become improved impression measurements down the line, but with around half of online ads bought today not even meeting this threshold, at the least we need all ads purchased to display on a valid user screen ASAP.

• Should Ad Nets Push For Publisher Transparency? by Tyler Loechner (RTBlog on 11/07/2013)
  

  I agree, however the real root of the transparency issue is the blind, or cross domain iFrame. Ad nets and publishers need to use friendly iFrames, period. Until there is a clear path from the buyer to the parent document where the ad is ultimately rendered, online advertising will be woefully deficient; unable to provide the transparency, quality and reliability that discerning advertisers need.

• The Darker Side Of Viewability by James Green (Programmatic Insider on 03/21/2013)
  

  This article touches on something very important; how viewablity is the path to cleaning up online advertising f--- (suspicious activity). The invention of viewablity is, at its core, the movement of the point of measurement from the ad server (where the demand of an ad tag hits the server) to the page (where the view event or exposure actually happens.) All of this suspicious activity James describes is possible because when an impression is measured at the ad server, the buyer is blind to where the ad is ultimately delivered. Cross domain iFrames on exchanges lock that down. This is an environment that allows bad players to take advantage. As long as you hit the server somehow you get the loot. No one can see where the ads end up anyway! Advertisers must demand viewablity not only so they know that their ad impressions actually appear but so they can see exactly where there ads are ultimately delivered. A clear path from the buy to the delivery of the product. Now that will clean things up.

• Viewability May Save Display From Itself by Christopher Hansen (Programmatic Insider on 10/04/2012)
  

  When it comes to viewable impressions the idea that "ads below the fold should be considered worthless.." is one of the most glaring misconceptions! We are finding that on premium publisher sites with good content a significant number of viewers scroll below the initial fold and are exposed to lower areas of the page. Then view time and response rates increase because the viewer is lingering on the content. Ads at the top of the page, if exposed, tend to be scrolled out of view or abandoned quickly (or before the ad even renders) as the viewer gets to what interests them. EVERY VIEWABLE IMPRESSION IS ABOVE THE FOLD; because it is not measured until the viewer scrolls it above their fold. When a publisher says to me "We have all of our ads above the fold! I got this covered!" I say.. Why would you waste such much of your valuable ad space? This is one of the most compelling benefits of the viewable impression; it allows publishers to sell their below the fold ad space at a premium. Right now I am looking at a banner ad at the bottom of this mediapost page. It looks pretty interesting and I am going to click on it right after I submit this comment! More on viewable impressions and the web page fold at: http://webadvertising20.com/2011/08/15/unfolding-the-fold/

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