Ad Ops Isn't News, But News is Changing Ad Ops: Staffing Shifts and the Media Landscape
The media landscape is in constant flux, and seemingly unrelated news events can impact ad inventory, brand safety protocols, and overall campaign performance. Here's how to navigate it.
Ever feel like your meticulously crafted media plan is about to be blindsided by an unpredictable news cycle? You're not wrong. The media landscape is in constant flux, and even seemingly unrelated news events – like anchor departures or union negotiations – have a ripple effect that can impact ad inventory, brand safety protocols, and overall campaign performance. It's no longer enough to simply track audience demographics; ad ops and media planning teams need a pulse on the ever-evolving media ecosystem.
Navigating Talent Shifts and Media Conglomerate Moves
The recent news around ABC News not renewing Janai Norman's contract is a prime example. While seemingly just an internal staffing decision, the anchor's departure from Good Morning America could cause fluctuations in viewership, especially in the short term. For media planners, this means re-evaluating the program's reach and potential impact on campaigns running during those weekend slots. Are there opportunities to renegotiate rates? Should you shift budget to other, more stable programs or platforms? What happens when a known and trusted personality leaves a broadcast that a specific demographic audience tunes into?
Similarly, changes in investigative journalism teams, as CBS News is currently undergoing, impact not just the news itself, but the very fabric of trust. This should be of keen interest to brands, because there can be an effect to how brand safety filters work in media buys when content is brand new, and trust needs to be built. If this is of particular concern, then using AdSoda's campaign operations tools, you can isolate any campaigns running across CBS News and re-validate the keywords and brand safety profiles, to ensure that brand-friendly environments are being promoted.
Union Agreements and the Future of Content Production
The agreement between CBS News 24/7 employees and CBS/Paramount management after a brief strike highlights another layer of complexity. These types of negotiations can affect content production, potentially leading to programming gaps or altered editorial stances. This, in turn, can impact ad inventory and the overall tone of the platforms your campaigns are running on. Understanding the behind-the-scenes dynamics of media organizations is now part of the ad ops professional's job description. A disruption of this nature can lead to a temporary drop in content production and can be planned for to avoid inventory gaps or lack of performance when a team is back to full operational capacity.
Brand Safety in a Time of Conflict and Misinformation
Jeremy Diamond, CNN's Jerusalem correspondent, and his team being detained and assaulted while covering a West Bank incursion underscores the very real risks journalists face. This incident also serves as a stark reminder of the brand safety challenges inherent in the news landscape. As conflict and misinformation proliferate, ad ops teams must be vigilant in monitoring the content surrounding their ads and proactively adjusting targeting and blocking strategies to avoid association with harmful or controversial content. Proactive monitoring of keywords related to sensitive topics is a must.
Ad Ops: Beyond the Numbers, Into the News
The takeaway? The media landscape is a dynamic, interconnected ecosystem. Changes in staffing, union negotiations, and geopolitical events can all have a significant impact on ad operations. To succeed, ad ops and media planning teams need to move beyond spreadsheets and embrace a more holistic understanding of the news and media landscape. Cultivate relationships with media partners, stay informed about industry trends, and leverage technology to proactively monitor and mitigate risks. Being prepared to make adjustments in the moment will ensure campaign effectiveness in an unpredictable world.
Keep a critical eye on publications like AdWeek and industry newsletters to stay informed on this constantly evolving environment. These resources often offer nuanced insights into the media world that can inform your planning and strategy.
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