Elevating Ad Management: 5 Strategies for Success

A successful advertising campaign is more than the sum of its parts. That’s the goal, right? Campaigns need to justify themselves by delivering measurable results. That said, there are a lot of moving parts to a modern campaign, and they don’t all move at the same speed. Even here in the 2020s, there are still manual processes in some workflows that have not been kissed by innovation (yes, spreadsheets still exist). Coordination and control across a complex ad ecosystem can be achieved, but the speed and accuracy needed from today’s advertising operations require a centralized, unified, fully automated approach. Imagine your advertising operations as a terminal, from where you move your content to destinations all over the globe, often in real time. Is there an easier way to achieve a better, faster, smarter ad creative process at scale? 

Let’s take a look at some of the key elements that will enable advertisers to uplevel ad management in the second half of this decade (and beyond).  

#1: The unified ad platform “really ties the room together” 

Advertising is a dynamic exercise where time is almost always of the essence. Efficiency in workflow management makes or breaks the success of a campaign. One of the key strategies for streamlining workflows at scale is the adoption of a unified platform that can act as a centralized hub.  

With a centralized architecture, advertisers can oversee the entire campaign lifecycle without switching between different interfaces. From final media buys to traffic instruction creation and asset delivery, previously disjointed tasks become a single cohesive process. Every step benefits from the integration of tools and data within a single ecosystem. 

A unified platform also brings teams into harmony. Collaboration among team members is more organic, drawing teams, departments, and stakeholders into greater alignment. When everyone can access the same resources and insights, real-time sharing minimizes miscommunication and reduces errors. Think of it as having your whole team playing on the same field — response to change is more agile, assets can be optimized on the fly, and more resources can be focused on campaign effectiveness instead of just “completion.” 

#2: Safeguarding content: Automated usage rights integration

Images, music, and other creative assets bring the magic — but each asset requires careful consideration of usage rights and permissions. Violating these rights is a red flag that can lead to legal complications and reputational damage, not to mention costly fines. A better, faster, and smarter ad creative process at scale must incorporate automated and integrated usage rights data. 

Incorporating usage rights information into the ad creative workflow helps to ensure that every piece of content used is compliant with legal and contractual obligations. Automated systems can cross-reference assets against a database of usage rights, preventing the inadvertent use of content that hasn't been properly licensed. This not only mitigates legal risks but also saves time by eliminating manual rights checks. Ultimately, usage rights management is essential; it helps to ensure efficiency and process/policy adherence, elevating the consistency — and results — of the creative process. 

#3: Ensuring consistency across destinations at scale 

With centralized command-and-control, advertisers can more effectively manage creative distribution across a staggering number of media destinations. One of the biggest benefits to this approach is that more focus can be applied to optimizing results and the refinement of campaign components to maximize impact  at the screen level. Advertisers can improve outcomes and adjust objectives while still adhering to brand guidelines across destinations.

Speaking of brand guidelines, enter the automation of industry standard identification. Automating the use of these unique identifiers streamlines tracking and distribution of creative assets. Standardized identifiers act as “digital passports” for creative elements, facilitating their seamless movement across platforms, regions, and languages. Advertisers can leverage this additional layer of automation to further reenforce data consistency and accuracy throughout the global delivery process. This consistency not only bolsters brand integrity but also expedites the localization of content, as each asset's specifications and requirements are readily accessible.

#4: Drawing a straighter, shorter line between ad creative and ROI

The goal “make the most of every ad dollar across every media experience” is a common one, whether you’re on the advertising side or you’re a media destination looking to attract more viewers and more ad revenue.  

A platform that combines real-time creative conditioning and asset management, along with APIs to major ad decisioning engines, offers content owners and distributors a path to addressability and targeting across TV, digital, and social channels, and again, reduces the amount of time required to place campaigns from days to minutes, so quality can be reestablished as job one. 

For instance, when the in-house advertising team at Lowe’s, the home improvement chain, wanted to expand audience reach and reap the benefits of top-quality content across platforms and ad ecosystems, they knew they would have to find innovative ways to execute campaigns with increased efficiency across both spot creation and distribution. 

#5: AdFusion: Solving advertising’s biggest challenges at scale

Achieving a better, faster, and smarter ad creative process at scale demands a paradigm shift. From streamlined workflows and automated usage rights management to the automation of standardized creative data through industry IDs, advertisers need a platform that does it all, empowering them to overcome the logistical and geographical complexities of global mobile media consumption. 

This is the challenge that Comcast Technology Solutions' AdFusion™ was built to answer. AdFusion is a unified platform that centralizes data and automates processes upstream and downstream. The platform is the result of Comcast’s dedicated research and investment and ensures consistency and accuracy across the entire ad process, making it easier to find and place the right creative, ensure that usage rights are in compliance, and track campaigns across broadcast, digital, and radio. 

Justin Morgan, the head of product for AdFusion, expressed his excitement about the platform's potential: "In an industry that's constantly accelerating, AdFusion provides a technology approach that evolves and scales to meet companies' needs. It saves time and resources while enhancing data accuracy, ultimately helping our clients achieve better results in their campaigns." 

Discover how AdFusion can support you in your quest to make the ad lifecycle better, faster, smarter at scale here.