Mandel talks to RBR/TVBR re: ROI shortfalls on creative
Speaking at the International Radio & Television Society Foundation "Newsmaker Breakfast" yesterday, Jon Mandel, Chairman/MediaCom US and Chief Global Buying Officer at MediaCom Worldwide, said at a panel he's tired of media-side blame for lackluster ROI, and that if marketers are not getting the ROI they expect from their TV advertising, they should take a closer look at the creative.
Mandel also blamed Wall Street analysts for advertisers' shift in thinking from brand building to immediate ROI: "Wall Street has screwed up the media business."
Mandel tells RBR/TVBR: "In some cases for my clients like the Warner DVD, it's beautiful what we can do. We can project within a very narrow band how many DVDs are going to sell before they even make the movie. If you have the good data, and a good base of data, you can do ROI. But, you have to identify what you're measuring before you go in to measure it. I think all too often it becomes this catch-basin of 'Prove to me it's working.' But what are the metrics? What are we judging it on? Sales to date? Brand equity? What are we judging it on and how do you take into account the creative? It's not just a media issue."
Jon also addressed the foolishness of producing one ad without different versions, both in our May RBR Print interview: "I think a number of us have been pushing for [more versions of one spot]. The problem is they focus on how much money they have in a production budget, and by the same token I'll see people go out and spend so much on making a commercial that they haven't enough money left over to buy four spots. So you know what, don't bother. You know it works the other way too. Maybe you should be buying print for that money instead of making a $700K commercial, you schmucks!"
Call April Olson for a copy of that here at 703-492-8191.
Jon continued yesterday: "On the panel I said, 'Explain this to me-if you think of radio (Peggy Green [Zenith Media's President/National Broadcast] had started with 'People don't use radio enough.'), it has a higher rating than most of the cable networks do. But I said this will probably cost me a job at WPP which just bought us, but if you think of Shell Oil, why are they advertising gas? I never think of filling my car when I'm in my living room! Why aren't they advertising in radio when I'm driving my damn car?!"
Are you reading this from a forwarded email?
