Dive Brief:
- A new measurement tool from Nielsen Catalina Solutions and Time, Inc. gives marketers running print ad campaigns in magazines the ability to attribute those ads to in-store offline sales.
- To make the connection for the marketer, the shopper must be able to be matched to a household through loyalty programs or retailer data, and then cross-referenced to household magazine subscription data.
- The measurement will also take into account secondary users, also described as “pass along” users in a statement, although that capability is still being tested before becoming more formalized, according to Leslie Wood, NCS chief research officer.
Dive Insight:
There has been a push in recent years to help print publications with attribution and tracking, both to help publishers better reach consumers and also to help advertisers track the results of ads. Ad Exchanger noted last year the Association of Magazine Media debuted a solution for buying ads with guaranteed sales lifts.
Wood told Ad Exchanger that by looking at regional offline sales, household magazine subscriptions and secondary audience data, "we’re able to very well identify the incremental dollars spent on a product based on seeing a (magazine) ad."
The overall goal is to improve measurement of print metrics, which will then help shed light on sales impact. Along with the print element, a statement described the new measurement tool as a method of cross-platform advertising measurement, which allows for quantifying the sales impact of campaigns across multiple channels.
The Chrystal Light brand served as a cross-platform test for the new tool.
Kazim Gunay, head of consumer insights and strategy, beverages and snack nuts for The Kraft Heinz Company, said in the statement that print continues to serve an important part of their media strategy, but their "ultimate goal for cross-platform is to understand where the synergies lie so we can optimize across business units, aligning print with other channels to effectively drive incremental sales."
