As UKOM announce they are conducting a contract review and Nielsen launch their new hybrid methodology, surely its time for UKOM and its users to start addressing the question: are we increasing revenues?
After all, this is what an industry currency is intended to do - make planning easier and add commercial value. But then again, many traditionalists don't see UKOM at the same table as BARB and the NRS. When I was at the Media Research Group conference in Malta last year, online was the only medium that didn't get their media currency update slot. Why? Because they are not deemed to be a currency.
And in my view it isn't. I was involved in UKOM at the early stages when I was at Orange, and didn't hide the fact that I thought this process was unnecessary for a dramatically fast moving medium, not to mention the eyewatering chunk of budget my MD forced me to hand over to fund it. Other currencies are used to trade the media, UKOM is a planning currency and therefore far more difficult to prove its ROI.
Nielsen's new methodology is a good move (Comscore have been doing it for some time). It uses both panel based data and data from sites that are tagged to be recorded more accurately, and will surely help reassure UKOM and its users. After all a new supplier will add the headache of inconsistent data.
I'm not totally unsupportive. I know UKOM and its management get a tough time and they have been handed a poisoned chalice as its never going to satisfy the industry completely. As ISBA acknowledged - its here and we need to support it. That I do agree with. But lets starts reviewing its impact on the industry not just the methodology and maybe there will be a positive story to tell.
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