{"id":620266,"date":"2023-03-21T09:49:24","date_gmt":"2023-03-21T14:49:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.sellorbuyhomefast.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/21\/media-buying-briefing-decarbonization-efforts-struggle-to-find-pre-competitive-footing\/"},"modified":"2023-03-21T09:49:24","modified_gmt":"2023-03-21T14:49:24","slug":"media-buying-briefing-decarbonization-efforts-struggle-to-find-pre-competitive-footing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/21\/media-buying-briefing-decarbonization-efforts-struggle-to-find-pre-competitive-footing\/","title":{"rendered":"Media Buying Briefing: Decarbonization efforts struggle to find \u2018pre-competitive\u2019 footing"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\t\t\t\t\t
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n

March 20, 2023\u00a0\u00a0\u2022\u00a0\u00a07 min read<\/span> \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 By Michael B\u00fcrgi<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tIvy Liu\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

Ever heard the term \u201cpre-competitive\u201d? It\u2019s a new one to me, but I heard it a lot while reporting on the latest efforts to reduce carbon emissions in the buying and selling of media \u2014 an area every agency holding company says it is committed to. It basically means putting competitive instincts aside for the greater good \u2014 akin to asking a lion to treat a zebra as his best friend and not dinner. (More on this analogy later.)<\/p>\n

But the key to industry-wide progress in decarbonization of media is industry-wide agreed-upon standards of measurement, and that is still a ways off, agreed three agencies who spoke to Digiday. And privately, industry executives worry the holding companies won\u2019t be able to put competitive instincts aside.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cThere\u2019s been a lot of discussion around this needing to be pre-competitive for a reason, and you see that with the formation of these groups kind of trying to push in and do the right thing,\u201d said Anne Coghlan, COO and co-founder of Scope3, one of the main firms working with agencies, brands and media companies to evaluate and reduce carbon in advertising.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Part of the problem is that the holding companies have all set different dates to reach carbon neutrality. For example, while GroupM is aiming for 2030, IPG believes 2040 is more realistic.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Furthermore, some media agencies and media companies are leaning heavily on carbon offsets rather than reduction. And apparently not all offsets actually accomplish much at all in the way of reduction.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The best way to explain it is to think of a bathtub filling up with water (water being carbon emissions). An offset is like trying to prevent overflow by bailing out the tub with a bucket. The real aim should be figuring out how to reduce the water flow or to turn off the spigot.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is definitely a need for some good carbon credits that are of good quality, but that shouldn\u2019t be the focus of the discussion. The focus should really be on how you actually reduce emissions,\u201d added Coghlan.<\/p>\n

Some holding companies argue progress is being made, not only by themselves but by broader efforts underway, such as a recent partnership between Ad Net Zero, an industry coalition, and IAB Tech Lab, which are working together to establish those measurement standards.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis, singular, centralized discussion will expedite an agreement,\u201d said a GroupM representative over email. Notably this follows the model of how the brand safety and suitability floor was agreed to and standardized through GARM, so there is precedent and we are optimistic.\u201d <\/p>\n

GroupM isn\u2019t alone in believing the industry will establish standards as it has done to some degree with brand safety. \u201cWe\u2019re at the beginning stages to understand benchmarks, to understand what is and isn\u2019t possible,\u201d said Yale Cohen, evp of global digital standards with Publicis Media. \u201cThat isn\u2019t to say that some clients aren\u2019t ahead of others in their journey. We\u2019re in a very long term race here.\u201d<\/p>\n

And yet Cohen is as concerned as his fellow agency folk about moving in the same direction, even if from different starting points. \u201cIf I said that everyone\u2019s optimizing today, that\u2019s not true,\u201d he added. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot in terms of industry momentum to understand the right methodologies\u2026 And I think part of the solution is we need to as an industry move in the right direction instead of moving in disparate directions. It\u2019s critical that we get industry standardization in a good place, and\u00a0a framework at some point this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coghlan brought up the question of governance \u2014 what industry body is going to have final word on good or bad behavior? \u201cThere is a still an open question on who governs that, and who the experts should be to align on that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

One element in all this that might help push the industry forward, despite different calculators and formulas, is the fact that optimizing campaigns with an eye toward carbon reduction most often results in cost savings as well, for both the client and the agency.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we look at cutting our energy costs and traveling less, which is how we look at decarbonizing as a business, it often saves money too, so it\u2019s a win-win,\u201d said Jemma Gould, vp and chief sustainability officer with IPG. \u201cIt\u2019s good for the environment, and it\u2019s good for business. So why wouldn\u2019t we want to do that?\u201d<\/p>\n

Gould noted another motivator for agencies and marketers to move forward on this issue is the Securities and Exchange Commission following the European Union\u2019s move by seriously considering mandating that companies disclose how their operations affect the climate in their financial filings. Such enforcement could help bring about some standardization in how the topic gets addressed financially. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Money does have a way of making things happen that goodwill can\u2019t do alone. Back to the lion\/zebra analogy, though: If you\u2019ve ever seen the animated film Madagascar, lions getting along with zebras is possible \u2014 but only in animated fictions. Here\u2019s hoping those pre-competitive instincts kick in for decarbonization to actually happen.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Color by numbers<\/h2>\n

Magna<\/strong>\u2019s Media Trials unit and ad tech company eyeo<\/strong>\u2019s study found that ad-filtering users are more likely to influence purchase decisions across tech, grocery, financial services and auto. Millions of people are using ad-blocking not because they want to reject ads entirely \u2014 but because they want less clutter and intrusive formats. \u2014\u00a0Antoinette Siu<\/em><\/p>\n