Is Online View-Through a New Metric You Can Count?

Nov 19, 2008 by Mark Maier

MediaPost's Online Metrics Insider gives us a new measurement metric for Interactive advertising by the way of Comscore Research on view-throughs. The new research and accounting method makes way for the view-through to become a vital Key Performance Indicator...

"Some background here: view-through (DoubleClick calls it post-impression) is a method that is complementary to click-through in measuring the effect of a Web campaign. It works by dropping a cookie to a user's computer when they are exposed to a banner. Then, when that user goes to the associated Web site, the beacon looks up cookies, sees the appropriate cookie and can identify that the user was exposed to x ad on y site. From there on, the metrics are just like a click-through. For a number of years, there has been evidence that more than half of the people who come to a site after being exposed to that site's advertising are view-through, not click-through, visitors. Of course, view-throughs represent an even higher percentage if the brand is well known or if there are offline efforts going on at the same time. This has caused many clients to dismiss view-throughs as not a pure metric. Some have even said to me that they "don't believe in it. My response, out of frustration has been that it is data, not a religion."

The article from Mediasmith Inc. CEO David L. Smith goes on to say that Comscore's release gives us valid research into what was previously noted as important but now can be quantified... "The comScore Brand Metrix norms database contains the results of studies that have been conducted across ten vertical industries and includes the following metrics: top-of mind unaided awareness, total unaided awareness, aided awareness, total advertising awareness, online ad recall, favorability, likelihood to recommend, and likelihood to purchase. For a subset of the studies, the norms database also includes the important behavioral metrics of advertiser trademark searches, site visitation and purchasing - both online and at retail stores."

So what does it mean to advertising ROI on your website?  Now there is a way to track what all the "branding" exposures are actually worth, how many times they were shown, and if the online or retail target has a good tracking mechanism it also provides offline value of an online buy.  This is definately something for consideration as you look at reporting measures you would like to give back to your clients.
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