I started my career in the performance-driven television industry back in 1989.  Back then, we called it “Direct Response Television”.  Heck, 33 years later, I still call it that.  In fact, the “DR” in DRMetrix stands for “Direct Response” although some affectionately refer to us as “Doctor Metrix“.

As many of you know, I sold “the Doctor” to iSpot.tv back in October of last year.  This month, I’m celebrating my one year anniversary with this incredible company.

One of the most exciting projects I’ve worked on this past year, has been enhancing iSpot’s ability to detect and measure impressions on national cover-up (DPI) units.

Where do these impressions come from?  Historically, iSpot has partnered with Vizio to detect ads running on over 20 million opted-in smart TVs.  Add another 20 million plus, thanks to iSpot’s recent deal with LG, and another 12 million set-top boxes under license, brings the total size of the iSpot panel to over 52 million!

On these smart devices, iSpot can detect ads delivered via linear, CTV, and OTT.  iSpot can also measure business outcomes when consumers are exposed to TV ads and take action by visiting a website whether that be direct, via QR code, or via a mobile text exchange.  No more “last touch”, as iSpot’s deterministic measurement allows advertisers to measure true reach and frequency, and the performance of TV schedules with greater precision than ever before.  Both Fortune 50 and the largest D2C brands are using iSPot’s Real-Time Measurement Platform to better inform and optimize their media placements with amazing proven results.

As iSpot becomes DPI compliant sometime in 2023, our best of class solutions will help the DRTV industry to address measurement and attribution for previously unsupported DPI ad units.

If you haven’t scheduled a time with us already, we’d love to meet with you at PDMI West on October 24, 25th, or 26th.

Representatives from both iSpot.tv and DRMetrix will be available to meet.  Our booth will be located in the main “Legends” meeting hall at the Hard Rock Hotel.

If you’re interested in learning more about iSpot.tv, please book a time with Robert Hoffman by clicking here.

Or, to learn about some of the new and exciting advancements coming to DRMetrix, including our detection and support for QR codes, please book a time to meet with Joseph Gray by clicking here.

If you’re not attending the PDMI event, please send an email to [email protected] and we’ll setup a Zoom call!

Thanks to Covid-19, the use of QR codes was popularized by the restaurant industry for accessing menus. This has helped to create mass consumer awareness of QR codes and how they work. Both iPhone and Android devices have integrated QR code readers into their native camera apps further popularizing the use of QR codes.

The rich data that can be included within the QR code can serve many purposes including tracking which TV network and specific creatives consumers are responding to. QR codes are great for tracking digital activity and also provide advertisers with a novel way to engage consumers. Over the years, there have been far less elegant solutions used such as visible codes appended at the beginning or the end of a URL. Examples include: www.brand.com/TV1, www.brand.com/TV2, 1brand.com, 2brand.com, etc. Advertisers using this approach have struggled with various problems. For example, consumers would often ignore the appended codes. Also, many advertisers feel that messing with the visible URL dilutes brand awareness. In comparison with such approaches, the QR code is arguably a more elegant and versatile solution.

The team at DRMetrix has been working to be able to detect when QR codes are used in television ads and to be able to extract and report the data contained within the QR code at the airing level. This supports the use of differing QR codes running on the same network / creative where additional segmentation is required.

We are excited to announce that this capability has already been integrated into DRMetrix’s Airing Verification Service (AVS) system. A new “QR Code” field can be enabled in any AVS output or pulled via API.

Later this month, DRMetrix plans to add a new response type filter for “QR Code” in AdSphere which will allow subscribers to better understand the use cases and growth of QR codes. At the time of this writing, 374 creatives using QR codes have been identified across the 140+ networks monitored by DRMetrix. To provide some context, that is roughly 2% of traditional direct response airings including long form 28.5m infomercials.

6^th Annual AdSphere™ Awards

 Recognize Top Direct-to-Consumer Advertisers in 2021

AbbVie, Geico, CarShield, E. Mishan & Sons, SharkNinja, Beachbody, Luminess Direct, Ideavillage, among those taking top honors.

SAN DIEGO- (February 28, 2022) – Direct-to-consumer advertisers spent over 20.2 billion on national cable and broadcast networks in 2021 according to DRMetrix, an iSpot company.  To celebrate the industry’s accomplishments, the AdSphere™ Awards will honor the direct-to-consumer industry’s top advertisers and brands.

The awards presentation will take place at PDMI EAST 2022, where the leaders in Performance-Driven Marketing will come together in Miami Beach, Florida from March 13-15^th, 2022.  The AdSphere™ Awards is the first awards program to be inclusive of the entire direct-to-consumer industry with advertisers such as Amazon, Samsung, Southern New Hampshire University, Consumer Cellular, Zip Recruiter, NortonLifeLock, Wayfair.com, Chewy.com, Quicken Loans, PetSmart, and many others being honored.

“The AdSphere awards recognize best-of-class advertisers and brands across four industry classifications including brand/direct, lead generation, short-form products, and 28.5-minute infomercials,” said Joseph Gray, founder of the AdSphere Awards and DRMetrix.  “Direct-to-consumer campaigns achieving this level of scale demonstrate consumer popularity and best-in-class creative and media execution.  The AdSphere Awards are the most inclusive award program for the entire direct-to-consumer industry recognizing nearly 70 honorees including all of our best-of-category award recipients.”

AdSphere monitors a universe of 130+ national networks on a 24/7/365 basis.  In just over eight years, AdSphere has identified over 14,000 direct-to-consumer brands.  In addition to detecting over 700,000 infomercial (28.5 minute) airings, AdSphere has detected over 90 million spots of varying creative lengths up to five minutes in duration.  The awards recognize top brands across a wide range of industry categories representing all facets of the industry.  AdSphere segments campaigns across over 190 major categories and sub-categories. The complete list of AdSphere Award winners is online at www.drmetrix.com/adsphere-awards.html.

About DRMetrix

DRMetrix, an iSpot.tv company, monitors over 130 national TV networks 24/7/365, tracking direct-to-consumer ads using all creative lengths including spot, 5-min, and long-form which include web addresses, mobile app response, SMS, or toll free numbers.  For more information, please visit www.drmetrix.com and be sure and download our latest direct-to-consumer industry study!