How To Keep Your Brand Safe: A Four-Point Checklist
In this guest post, Ad Colony’s country manager of Australia & New Zealand, James Livermore (pictured below), offers some cool tips to keep your brand safe in these increasingly risky times…
Brand safety is a tentpole issue in today’s advertising industry and one that is far from being solved. It seems like the past year has been marked by major trust-breaking events, from YouTube running ads on extremist sites to Facebook’s problems with hate speech, violence and fake news. Nearly four in 10 impressions served on unsafe web pages appeared alongside violent content, the IAS reported this year.
While advertiser demand for more brand-safe environments has pushed platforms to comply, the changes the “big name” platforms are making are small. I wouldn’t even call them reforms. The tech giants are simply moving the goalposts just enough to address the current issue, but soon enough another one comes up. Why? Because they are complying with the letter, not the spirit, of digital trust.
Advertisers know this. Nearly half (45 per cent) of those surveyed by Oath stated outright that they feel social media platforms are doing a “poor” job of addressing brand safety concerns, and 42 per cent feel the same way about sites that rely on user-generated content. So who is doing a good job? Seven out of 10 advertisers said that it’s the tech platforms, the DSPs and exchanges, that are taking action to appease them.
So it’s your media partner that’s going to protect you – not the end platform. Here’s what they are doing, and what you can do to help it along.
Pick inherently brand-safe environments
Although Google/YouTube, Facebook and others have formally and very publicly committed to doing a better job at “weeding out” the unsafe material by improving their algorithm and beefing up manual review and third-party fact-checking, they cannot deny their own DNA, which is user-generated content. Work with your ad partner to de-prioritize UCG environments in your media buy and direct funds to professional content and high-quality experiences, such as premium news sites and mobile games.
Third-party certifications
This one is a no-brainer. The Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) is by far the best cross-industry accountability program, and last year the IAB required all members to register with them. Additionally, TAG has begun the ads.txt anti-fraud initiative, which will prevent you from getting unauthorized inventory in your programmatic buy on desktop and mobile web. Sounds good, right? So make sure whoever you work with is TAG-certified.
SDK integration
If possible, work with a partner that has SDK penetration in mobile apps, because that direct connection into those environments has multiple benefits. First, you are provided more data points on each ad served, which gives you the transparency and certainty about the value of the buy. And, with an SDK, you get the assurance that your video is playing and that it will be on the top layer of the view, not hidden underneath.
Keep your eye out for automated brand safety tools
The sheer scale of the market makes a human review of every ad placement impossible; we cannot screen, rank, rate and suppress ads from particular pages or types of content. But as artificial intelligence and machine-learning become more sophisticated, there will be opportunities to identify fraud faster and more efficiently, as well as create and update whitelists and blacklists.
The AANA has also put out a full checklist (p15-18) of brand safety best practices, which I strongly recommend reviewing with your team.
As advertisers scramble to find their own solutions to the brand safety issue, I am confident that even more technology and systems will be developed to achieve that outcome. For instance, an ad platform might create a “brand scorecard” system, where each of their publishers get performance and safety ratings, with criteria based on what is important to advertisers. Their palatability would then be easily quantified, and advertisers would be able to consider an app’s “brand safety rating” when making decisions. The opportunities for these types of solutions are almost infinite, and the demand for them even more so.
Latest News
The Mars Agency Announces Latest Findings Of Retail Media Report Card
The Mars Agency has developed a scorecard that assesses the capabilities of leading platforms across key criteria required to optimally plan, execute, and measure effective retail media programs. The scorecard aims To help brands efficiently evaluate their spending options across retail media networks in Australia (and New Zealand). With spending on retail media advertising in […]
‘It’s The Lesser Of Two Evils’ – NRL Eyes US Betting Market As Aussie Regulators Circle
US betting firms will be delighted by the circa 50,000 Americans who could soon watch the NRL on their favourite app.
A-League In Deep Discussions With New Partner To Keep Games On TV After Production Company Enters Administration
The A-League's insatiable appetite for scoring own goals continues.
TV Ratings (27/03/2024): Jungle Members At War Over Concealed Lipstick
A heated argument between two jungle members did the numbers for Ten last night, with I’m A Celeb obtaining a total national reach of 1,282,000. Fans were delighted as Candice Warner and influencer Skye Wheatley got into it over a stick of lipstick, leading Warner to dub the Instagram star “selfish.” Wheatley, best known for […]
Is The Australian Music Industry In Trouble? Inquiry Launched Following Splendour Cancellation
Earlier this week, an inquiry was launched into the challenges and opportunities currently facing the Australian live music industry in the wake of multiple festival cancellations. On 25 March 2024, the Minister for the Arts, the Hon. Tony Burke MP, asked the Committee on Communications and the Arts to inquire into and report on the […]
Liana Dubois, Leandro Perez, Aimee Buchanan & More Gather For Inaugural Compadres Leadership Event
Didn't get the invite? Perhaps you're not as important as you thought.
Cathay Captures The Unforgettable Thrill Of Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Rugby Sevens, Via Publicis
Nobody does rugby like Hong Kong, apparently. Certainly nobody does it as badly as Australia.
Cocogun Nabs Christine Watts, Kirsty Reynolds & Shev Tan Bolstering Management & Creative Teams
Cocogun bolsters its team with new hires. Committed to purchasing a bigger sofa, too.
The Media Store’s Jacquie Alley & Sam Cousins Take The Plunge With Pro-Bono Work For Cure Cancer
B&T chats with The Media Store bosses about their great pro-bono work and sponsored swim.
Hawke’s Brewing Co. Taps Rocket Comms For PR Agency Following Competitive Pitch
We're expecting Rocket Comms productivity to crash in spectacular fashion following this win.
Spotlight On Sponsors: Patties Serves Up A Taste Of Home For Olympians & South Sydney Rabbitohs Recommit To Gambling Reform
While the Rabbitohs commits to gambling reform, B&T reckons the team should commit to a decent auto sponsor.
Google: “Inevitable” That Bad Actors Will Abuse Ads Platform As Advertiser Account Suspensions Double
Google maintains it's simply impossible for it to entirely stop bad people placing & paying for ads using its service.
Quantcast Expands APAC Sales Team With Appointment Of News Corp Account Manager
No pressure at all when you are appointed as a client success manager.
Publicis Sapient Tests Microsoft-Powered Gen AI Search Tool With Homes & Villas By Marriott Bonvoy
Given Gen AI's record for mangling stuff, B&T cannot see the problem with letting it decide your next holiday digs.
Volkswagen & DDB Group’s “Roo Badge” To Reduce Kangaroo Related Road Collisions
Watch out for RooBadge as Cannes Lions' most debated campaign this year.
Twilio Launches Unified Profiles & Agent Copilot Features To Boost Productivity & Engagement
Agent Copilot sounds like James Bond's less interesting cousin.
Reebok & Honda Among New Clients For onetwo agency
OneTwo finally lives up to its name with this double billing.
Ogilvy Report: Throw Out The Social Strategy Rule Book, The Rules Of The Past No Longer Apply
B&T was puzzled that all 'influencers' aren't, effectively, 'virtual', but here we are.
WhiteGREY & AKQA Merge In Australia, Lee Simpson Departs
Fortunately, the combined agencies aren't opting for a trite portmanteau for the new name.
Splendour In The Grass 2024 Music Festival Cancelled!
Music fans all over the country reportedly relieved they can pack away their rain coats and gumboots for another year.
TV Ratings (26/03/2024): “Fairy Bread, F***ing Disgusting”: Gordon Ramsay Slams Aussie Food In Food Stars Launch
Ramsay not one for mincing his words, even when it comes to minced meat pies.
Paramount+ International Boss Doubles Down On Aussie Content, Says Ad-Tier will Grow Audiences And Revenue
Good news as Paramount will not be binning I’m A Celebrity for re-runs of Frasier.
Brent Smart: Telstra Pushing For 50-50 Brand-Performance Split But Warns Numbers ‘Won’t Look Great’ Initially
The old brand vs performance debate continues. But here, Brent is firmly sitting on the fence.
Crowded House, Tones And I & Dom Dolla Win Big At The Shure Rolling Stone Music Awards
B&T staffer reports back with humdinger of a hangover & feeling seriously uncool after mixing with music types.
Opinion: Dyslexia “A Hidden Gem” For Brands & Agencies
Dyslexics offer underappreciated benefits in the corporate field, according to this op-ed.
David Jones Taps Criteo To Power Online Retail Media Arm
Want to see ads for things you probably can't afford? David Jones has got you covered with new retail media play.
oOh!media Sets Up Team To Target Business Audiences Across Airports & Offices
oOh! wants brands to harass you every minute of your next business trip.
QMS Launches Australian First DOOH & TV Partnership With Samba TV
Samba TV, of course, is not a channel dedicated to dancing. Much to our dismany.
Slew Of New Hires At Amplify
Four new faces join the Amplify offices. Team say desk scarcity becoming "acute".
Adobe Announces Content Authenticity Initiative Expansions To Counter Deep Fakes
Try as they might to enlighten them, we suspect Trump supporters will continue to watch and believe Fox News.
The PR Group Appoints TechCrunch Senior Reporter Catherine Shu As Director Of Content & Media
Catherine Shu makes the bold leap from journalism to PR. Says inevitable pay bump was "unrelated".
HERO Nabs Ebony Santin From AMPR
Rumours Santin cleared out the stationery cupboard before departing are as yet unconfirmed.
Karena Noble Checks Out Of EVT Hotels & Resorts To Launch Comms Consultancy
Noble still managed to squeezed in a continental breakfast before departing.
Canva Acquires Design Platform Affinity To Bring Professional Design Tools To Every Organisation
Canva & Adobe face off continues. We're not picking sides but keenly aware that Canva's office is next door to ours.
“Lean On Our Team To Help You Find An Audience”: Why Understanding Audience Engagement Is Essential In Journalism
Engaging the audience is critical to journos, apparently. We'd thought self-loathing & alcoholism were key.
Adobe Summit: Major Gen AI Developments, Data Concessions & Partnerships
What happens in Vegas stays there. Unless it's the Adobe Summit and then you get to read about in B&T.