Nearly 2 in 5 (38%) of marketers admit to having delivered an advert on a harmful or unsafe web page, according to new research.
The research, from Sizmek, has revealed the extent of brand safety concerns among marketers. The study, which surveyed over 500 decision-making brand marketers across Europe and the US, also showed that only 61% of marketers currently have a third-party brand safety solution/partner in place on their digital campaign.
Key findings:
• 61% currently have a third-party brand safety solution/partner in place
• 63% agree that the ‘walled gardens’ (such as Facebook and Google) don’t offer enough inventory transparency
• 62% say that the digital media landscape has become too complex
Many marketers are struggling to cope with the pressure to adhere to brand safety measures, with 64% finding it challenging to implement an effective brand safety solution and 57% stating their current solution is too expensive. 64% of respondents also say that achieving brand safety on campaigns negatively impacts the performance of that content.
The GDPR is also complicating matters, as 77% of marketers predict that the new data regulations will make targeting audiences using third-party data increasingly difficult. This means that advanced contextual targeting will become essential to build out new audiences.
Yet transparency remains a key concern for many marketers too; over three quarters (76%) are prioritising getting more transparency for their for their digital display inventory, while 63% say that the ‘walled gardens’ (Facebook, Google) don’t offer enough inventory transparency. Many are also in agreement that the digital media landscape has become too complex (62%).
When exploring who is responsible for brand safety, 38% of marketers say that pressure sits with the brand itself, whereas only 24% of marketers believe primary responsibility should lie with demand-side platforms and other ad tech vendors.
“The digital media ecosystem is complex and fragmented, so it is no surprise that marketers are prioritising efficiency and transparency from their partners,” said Hardeep Bindra, VP Product Management, Real-time Decisioning Services at Sizmek. “These survey results confirm what we’ve been hearing from our clients about simplifying supply chain and the challenges they face with brand safety and a complicated vendor landscape. The results also validate our full-transparency and full-controls strategy; we give marketers clear insight into the media buying process and the tools to take action.”
To view Sizmek’s new report on what marketers need from media, brand safety and partnerships, click here.