Why principal media deals work against clients, not for them
The Media Store’s CEO Stephen Leeds and financial controller Phillip Brook on why principal media deals aren’t the answer – for anyone involved.
The concept of “principal media” has had many forms and names across the years – proprietary media, space farming, value banks – the list goes on.
A recent piece in Mumbrella from Trinity P3’s Stephen Wright rightly points out that marketers should rightly be concerned about transparency from their media agency partner.
And Mutinex’s Mat Baxter recently shared his view that large upfront media deals need to be dumped without mentioning principal media – although the two seem intrinsically linked.
We concur that whether defined as deals or principal media, agencies engaging in principal media arrangements make commitments to inventory that may not suit their clients’ briefs. In addition, at a time when all clients are asking for flexibility and nimbleness, principal media deals are rigid. Optimising in real time allows agencies to shift from underperforming media to those channels delivering success. In a fragmented media world with audience behaviour changing, agencies need a fluid approach to their investment.
