Ad Fraud Cut by 83 Percent in TAG Certified Distribution Channels
A new study from The 614 Group has analyzed the impact of the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG)’s efforts on addressing fraud in the digital advertising supply chain.
Moreover, the level of fraud was lower by more than 83 percent compared to the industry average. The study looked at more than 6.5 billion display and video impressions in campaigns run through TAG Certified channels by three major media agencies: GroupM, IPG/Mediabrands and Horizon Media. Analyses by verification technology providers have found the levels of Invalid Traffic (IVT) in digital advertising average 8.83 percent for display inventory in North America (and rise to 12.03 percent when video inventory is included).
The Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) is the leading global certification program fighting criminal activity and increasing trust in the digital advertising industry. Created by the industry’s top trade organizations, TAG’s mission is to eliminate fraudulent traffic, combat malware, prevent Internet piracy, and promote greater transparency in digital advertising. TAG advances those initiatives by bringing companies across the digital advertising supply chain together to set the highest standards. TAG is the first and only registered Information Sharing and Analysis Organization (ISAO) for the digital advertising industry.
Source: Campaign UK
The 614 Group examined comparable rates of fraud for campaigns run through TAG Certified Channels in which multiple entities involved in the transaction – such as the media agency, buy-side platform, sell-side platform and/or publisher – had achieved the TAG Certified Against Fraud Seal.
“This study validates TAG’s approach and sets a clear path for marketers that want to protect their brands and ad spend from fraud,” said Mike Zaneis, President and CEO of TAG.“Fraud thrives in the dark crevices of the supply chain, so we knew that we had to get the legitimate participants in the supply chain to adopt the same high standards for this effort to be successful. When the industry links its arms and stands together, there is no place left for the criminals to hide.”
“The 614 Group have been leaders in promoting brand safety best practices and supporting the creation of standards and guidelines. Fraud has proven to be one of the most intractable issues in this area over the years,” said Rob Rasko, Managing Partner of The 614 Group. “We are pleased to release this groundbreaking research on the impact of TAG’s efforts to address the IVT challenge, and we believe the quantitative data combined with the timely first-hand analysis from the agency leaders who deal with fraud on a daily basis offer compelling insights on the impact of the TAG program.”
“The results of this study are extraordinary and demonstrate that the ‘war on fraud’ is winnable,” said Bob Liodice, CEO of the Association of National Advertisers. “Marketers must recognize that fraud, piracy and malware rob brands of their business building power. By joining and working with TAG — and its demonstrated process for success — brands can energize their marketing investments and elevate their potential for growth. I encourage all marketers and the entire community to engage this effective fraud fighting institution.”
“Fighting digital ad fraud is a centerpiece of the IAB’s and IAB Tech Lab’s work, and we are delighted that those efforts are paying dividends,” said Randall Rothenberg, President and CEO, Interactive Advertising Bureau. “By making TAG Registration mandatory for all IAB members and collaborating with TAG on our technical standards, we are assuring that the highest anti-fraud standards are extended across the industry, so advertisers will know that their money is well spent.”
How to Improve Your LinkedIn Engagement
As LinkedIn becomes more and more important for your business, you must pay attention and discover what are the best tools and strategies to help you gain more followers and viewership. Not an easy nut to crack, LinkedIn may prove to be a challenge, but once you find out what is best for you, you have a winning path to follow. Here are some of the ideas we believed it will help you grow your LinkedIn engagement:
- Write Text-Only Posts
You’ve probably heard that people engage more when a social media post shows an image or video. Although that might be true on platforms like Twitter, this tactic doesn’t seem to work on LinkedIn.
As surprising as it may sound, as true it is. We are sure that each one of you saw a short text-only post in your stream that has a stack of likes and comments. How often do you see an update get that sort of engagement when it contains a link to a blog or some other third-party site? That’s rare. LinkedIn lets you include up to 1,300 characters in a post, which represents around 250 words. Although that’s barely the equivalent of a very short blog post, you still have enough space to include some detail. And if that is not enough for what you need, you can always publish an article on Publisher, LinkedIn’s built-in blogging platform.
Why does it happen this way? As Social Media Examiner explains, “it makes sense that LinkedIn doesn’t want to display too many posts containing links to third-party sites. Each time someone clicks one of those links, they leave the LinkedIn platform. That means they spend less time on LinkedIn. This gives LinkedIn a smaller window of opportunity to show ads or upsell services such as LinkedIn Premium. Therefore, LinkedIn doesn’t prefer anything that potentially will push users away from the platform. LinkedIn isn’t alone though; the same thing happens on every other social network too”.
2. Content is the king
Avoid posting the same kinds of content over and over on your Company Page. People will get bored if you’re only posting promotional material or solely industry news. Make sure you have an interesting mix, bringing important pieces of information on the table, new ways of approaching things. This is how you will differentiate and stand out on the market.
3. Use comments to engage
Pay attention to anyone who takes time out of their day to leave a comment on one of your posts or status updates. Always be close to the people that want to interact with you. Like user’s comments and post replies to continue the discussion. People who have commented will see a notification and that could drive further engagement, ideally leading them to share your post with their network.
4. Record and Share Native Video
LinkedIn for mobile offers you the possibility to increase your engagement and show more of your creativity and insights. With LinkedIn native video in the mobile app, you can record a video inside the app or upload a pre-made video from your camera roll. To find the video feature in the most current version of the app, look for the video camera icon in the top-right corner.
When you post an engaging video, as it happens on any social media platform, your followers will watch it. And LinkedIn will favor native video because it doesn’t tempt people to click a link that sends them to YouTube, Vimeo, or any other video platform. In the short-term, native video on LinkedIn is still a novelty and presents an opportunity for you to stand out. It makes sense for LinkedIn to promote this sort of content above other types of update.
5. Post at optimal times of day
According to Danielle Thibault, you can increase engagement with your content by posting your updates at a time of day when most of your followers are on LinkedIn. Data from HubSpot shows the best days of the week to post updates on LinkedIn are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The best times to post are between 7 – 8 a.m. and 5 – 6 p.m. (beginning and end of a typical work day). Posts get the most clicks and shares on Tuesdays between 10 – 11 a.m. LinkedIn consists primarily of a B2B audience, which is most likely the reason the highest engagement rates are during weekdays and business hours.
“However, you’ll also want to post updates throughout the day –even on the weekends – to increase post visibility and engagement with those logging in throughout the day. There are some professional who do engage all week long, so consider an always-on approach,” concluded Danielle Thibault.
6. Join relevant groups
LinkedIn has over one million active groups and as a user you can join up to 100 different groups. Joining an industry-related group is a sure way to raise your engagement levels as most members in groups are highly active on LinkedIn. Being a member of a group is an effective way to learn new marketing strategies, engage with others, gain new connections and create an actively engaged audience. Additionally, engaging with other group members’ posts will give you valuable insights into current industry news and trending topics.
7. Outsource and promote
You should always be self-promoting your accounts. Especially with LinkedIn, as it’s a professional social media network, promoting it along with your business is an easy way to gain more exposure. Add a link to your LinkedIn account on all of your other social media platforms, as well as on your website. However, perhaps the best technique, and one that isn’t used often, is to integrate your LinkedIn account into your email signature. This is a free way to self-promote the account and it will definitely open doors for more connections and higher engagement.
source: quicksprout.com
