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Media Glossary

Make sense of common media terms

Welcome to our glossary! We've compiled a list of commonly used terms in media reporting to help you navigate the jargon. Whether you're new to the industry or just need a refresher, this resource will provide you with a clear understanding of the terminology used in media planning, buying, and analysis.

COMMON TERMS:

Metric Definition
Media Cost Ad spend
Nielsen Media Cost Ad spend on nielsen rated stations / dayparts
MER Media Efficiency Rate
Formula: Revenue / Media Cost
ROAS Return on Ad Spend
Revenue / Media Cost
Ecom Order reported orders placed online
.com + amazon.com
CPO Cost per order
Media Cost / Orders
CPA Cost per acquisition
Media Cost / New Customers
RPO Revenue per order
Revenue / Orders
Conversion A positive result toward marketing goal
Conversion Rate The effectiveness of turning an opportunity into a conversion
Formula: Calls+Visits / Orders
IMP (000) The estimated number of viewers
Formula: Impressions / 1000
CPM Cost per thousand (impressions)
Formula: Media Cost / IMP (000)
GRP Gross rating point
Formula: audience size / total exposures
TPP Target rating point
CPP Cost per point
Formula: Media Cost / GRP
Digital 3P Cost Third party digital spend
View Ads watched for a defined time period (seconds). The default number of secs varies by platform
Completed View When an ad is watched start to finish
View Rate Views to impressions
Formula: Views / Impressions
Completion Rate Completions to impressions
Formula: Completions / Impressions
TrueView In-Stream A skippable video ad that auto-plays before a YouTube video starts.
Engagement Any interaction with your ad – view, click, like, share, comment.
Click User interacts with a digital ad
CPC Cost per click
QR Scan When a user scans a QR code and clicks the link
CTR Click through rate
Visit When a user arrives to a website
Source Phone Number / URL address
KPI Key Performance Indicator
Brand Lift The increase in effectiveness measurements (e.g., message recall) between respondents who did not view the ad and those who did.
Prospecting An advertising strategy that finds and targets new prospective customers based on behavior, interest, demo, geo and many other attributes.
Retargeting An advertising strategy that utilizes lists or pixels to serve ads to audiences who have previously engaged with your website or brand.
Daypart Block of time that divides the day into segments for purposes of selling advertising time on TV and radio.

MEDIA CHANNELS:

Channel Description
Linear TV Traditional television delivered at a certain time via cable or satellite.
VOD Video On Demand: Shown on a cable or satellite provider’s app when a consumer chooses to watch a show that previously aired.
VMVPD Virtual Multichannel Video Programming Distributor: Aggregate live and on-demand TV and deliver over the internet in a linear fashion (Sling TV, Hulu Live TV, YouTube TV, fuboTV, Playstation Vue, PlutoTV)
FAST Free Ad-supported Streaming TV. Available without a paid subscription. (Pluto TV, Xumo, Tubi, The Roku Channel)
Digital Online ads via search engines, social media, display and more
CTV Connected TV: Digital content accessed by apps and streamed over Smart TVs, OTT Devices (Amazon Fire Stick, Apple TV, Roku) or Gaming Consoles (Xbox, PlayStation).
OTT Over the Top: Streaming content that is delivered via an internet connection rather than through a traditional cable/satellite company, on any device.
OLV Online Video: Video clips, TV shows and movies streamed from the Internet.
FEP Full Episode Player: Professionally produced, TV-like content 30-60 mins in length on apps or websites (Bravotv.com or the Bravo app).
Programatic Display Automated method of buying display inventory executed using data and typically algorithmically driven systems with direct access to publisher ad servers, ad exchanges and networks.
DSP Demand Side Platform: Software used to buy mobile, search, video and CTV/OTT ads programmatically.​

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