The advent of Peoples Meter in Pakistan

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Although I have used both the systems it also depends on the sort of product you have. For brands that are absolutely urban centric and that are focusing on KLI – using peoples meter has a very good result instead of diary.

Diary data used to be quite predictable.

And the rating analysis for the same time period on both diary and people meters had extremely different conclusions.

But ratings is just one aspect of media planning, it is merely a guidance and the real power still lies in the judgement of the planner and client. Thus a good co-ordination between the two can often lead to very good results for the brand.

I somewhat disagree with you Zaira. Planners Judgement vs research?

Even after meter we are giving the same excuse .. see a planner’s judgment can be biased … For instance : I can judge a few things on the qualitative basis and that too for the circle i represent .. when we talk about media planning for a national branding – RESEARCH is the MOST important factor..

But +/- 5% difference still prevails Zohaib… And believe me for some brands and marketing teams research is not the only thing … it’s just ONE of the things that media planners talk about. By the time you end up making sense to them about one study, something new has come up and then the journey starts again. So in that time of persuasion judgement does play a major part.

Of course, with time what you are saying would be a reality.

I think PM will help the planners convince the client to take a certain direction quicker and make the process less painful for the buying agency, buyers and planners.

As far as the scope and the ethical usage of the technology is concerned, that remains to be seen.

@ Aftab Sahab: Pleasure, sir! U’re most welcome. Let me send u an invite.

@ Zaira & Zohaib: I’d agree that research doesn’t give u ready-made SOLUTIONS. It rather gives u DIRECTION to work, in order to reach a solution. However, u will have to segregate ‘research where there’s a strong need for it to be combined with active judgement’ e.g. Usage & Attitude studies etc VS. ‘research where u need to rely on the figures & apply only latent judgement’ e.g. TAM. Hence, what u both are saying is partially correct & partially not. TV Ratings definitely are not the sole criterion for developing a media plan, there are criteria like target audience affinity, tv channel reach, nature of the brand etc. However, I’d like to straighten a concept here: +/-5-10% is not stated in order to tell u that the data has this much LESSER credibility. It rather tells u that “If u conduct this same research AGAIN on the same parameters WITH the same audience, there’s a chance that the results may DIFFER by that much margin. So Zaira, don’t worry about ur current results being +/-5% flawed I’d say it already IS a reality working on REAL TIME meter based ratings. The only downside, as I’ve already mentioned, is the coverage area AND the no. of meters installed to represent a certain population. Lets hope this is just a start – and there will be good changes marked ahead.
But good to have media planners debating a matter like this!

@ Omar Khan: Very rightly said, we will have to eventually make sure that the scope of this rcurring research is set straight and that the technology is used properly by the respondents.

Thanks for the info Bushra Good to see you here!

Great post Bushra! A very good analysis indeed that helps to identify the differences between the two different types of research available to evaluate the media campaigns.

Zaira & Zohaib, I would say that both of you are right… and its always good to have a discussion between two professionals with opinions poles apart. Agreed that although research plays a very vital role in making campaigns, that the Peoples Meter is helping us do as planners. But the pure research is still not being followed especially in Pakistan. As we are so used to give our personal judgments as marketers, that it will take some time to get used to it and understand the importance of research. Bad habits are hard to let go off …

And yes Bushra! I do agree with Zaira…

@Zaira: Welcome & thanks

@Sarosh: Agree with Zaira on what, Sarosh? She said a lot of things, some of which sit well with me while others don’t. Which ones are u talking about?

@Bushra: I agree with Zaira that its GREAT to see you here … hehe

Sorry why all the fuss? PPM are here good but why is everyone switching over when Salman Danish himself said in an article/interview in Aurora that when they roll out in 10-12 cities then they will be currency.

@Bushra: Seems like you’re selling Group M not just informing people!

“FAQ # 2: Are there any other benefits of getting PM data other than getting PM ratings based TV plans?
In one word –Yes! PM data forms the input base of many additional and highly beneficial utilities that GroupM can offer its clients, e.g. Media Plan Optimizer. An optimizer is a system/software that feeds on historical PM data to produce the best possible TV plan options, working on different spend, GRP & reach levels.”

There is an optimizer in Gallup reporter not very effective but it’s there, abroad all good Media agencies- Initiative, OMD,Carat etc have optimizers plus a lot of other proprietary tools

@ All: Tv is only one medium and whether PPM or diary at most you can calcluate OTS not receptiveness or likeability. When will the ad industry and clients push for third part credible data for OOH, print, radio etc?

Tyrone

@Tyrone: I agree with you on the fact that the industry really needs to push into getting credible data for OOH, print, radio, etc. and TV is not the only medium and we as an industry should move on.

The writers on PakMEDIABlog represent different companies and industries, and the articles can be opinionated. Though all of us do try to be unbiased but human judgments and opinions also play a vital role. Bushra representing GroupM is absolutely fine since she will try to give her opinion on the basis of her experience and judgment.

Its great to see that people like you and me are getting in to healthy discussions. This will help to lead to the betterment of everyone, which a great sign

@Tyrone: So, in short u mean to say that if SDN has said something somewhere, we should stop discussing the matter? Ahh..and I thought its a free world Seems u have a bigger problem with me selling GroupM than People meters being discussed. But then, u may have a problem with that, I don’t! And its a free world, so far

U said,
“There is an optimizer in Gallup reporter not very effective but it’s there”

Optimizing on Diary data in Gallup software at an available minimum time slot of 15 minuites??? U gotta be kidding me! The most interesting part is where u say ‘…not very effective’. I don’t think I need to elaborate any further for anyone who understands the concept of optimization!

“…abroad all good Media agencies- Initiative, OMD,Carat etc have optimizers plus a lot of other proprietary tools.”

I’m sure the title I provided with this write-up, clearly says that the matter is discussed in respect with the particular country we live in i.e. Pakistan!!! And we, at GroupM proudly are the furst ones to start using a TV plan optimizer based on real time meters data in Pakistan. I rest my case

@Everyone: Finally one valid point raised by Tyrone; GRPs/Readership/Listenership/Click through etc vs. OTS. I might try to compile something on this topic as & when I get ample time for the task.

Untill then.

Regards,

Bushra

Wow this is by far the most interesting discussions we had in 2 weeks time

And no body is selling anything here I suppose…sharing of knowledge and opinions is the purpose of this blog. And everybody is entitled to express their opinions freely and like our genuine critic told us on the very first few days of the launch of this blog, that in order to make the mark this has to be a genuinely mature blog

So we respect everybody’s views and expect everyone to do the same as enlightened Pakistanis

Hi,

@Bushra Just one question does the Optimizer GroupM have advise spreading the Tv presence on non-descript channels such as Kook and Rang etc?

Is there really a long tail in TV? Can low ratings channels according to your data really add in terms of reach? GRPs may be yes but reach too?

BTW till about a year ago the Diary system was the norm so the idea of there being an optimizer in Gallup and it being used shouldn’t be so alien to you.

Agreed I’m no expert on optimizers..

Tyrone

Tyrone,

Yes, it may advise so, under certain conditions/scenarios that u have fed in it to build on. What’s so astonishing about it? Remember there’s this little measure of efficiency called CPRP?? Do u as a planner only consider GRPs & Reach & NO CPRP? If a certain TV channel offers mediocre ratings but may be doing good things to your CPRP, at the same timedoesn’t have any clashes with your overall communication plan…what do u do? I’ll leave you at that to ponder over it!

The idea of an optimizer being alien to me? LoL. I don’t think I am the one trying to advocate OPTIMIZATION on on data providing as SMALL time slots as 15 minutes!!! And it doesn’t take much to learn about TV plan optimization. For starters, you can google it.

Happy searching.

Hi,

GRPs, Reach, CPRP are three benchmarks, however which is more important? Granted Kook may have a low CPRP of say 1,500 but if it has reach of say 1% and GRPs of say 20 is it effective?
Low CPRP correct me if I’m wrong is tied to GRPS not reach. That’s my understanding. So a blind focus on GRPs and sacrificing reach would benfit from a channel having low CPRP and adequate ratings. Yes Kook etc would give you low CPRP and hence effective cost wise but not much reach building. However if you want to build reach then your super low CPRP is a waste! Agreed?

Its a tradeoff right that’s what media planning is just like economics- many wants, scarce resources so achieve the optimal level.

Before you the jump the gun and kindly email me links to optimzing etc. Please re-read my statement:
“BTW till about a year ago the Diary system was the norm so the idea of there being an optimizer in Gallup and it being used shouldn’t be so alien to you.”

You seem to be enthusiastic about the people meter. I too am in favour of it but is it representative of the total population (urban)

If you say yes do you mean to say that cities such as Karachi,Lahore and others like Thatta, Faisalabad are the same in terms of Tv viewing preferences?

Does the present sample and methodology used (K,L,I, Fsd) represent Peshawar, Vehari,Sukkur etc?

No you’ve answered that yourself,

“Therefore in order to make PM data industry currency, it will at least have to cover Urban Pakistan OR Top 10 cities in order to base media planning & buying on it.”

Yet its being used by planners already,

Your argument:
“Some would still argue & compare it with diary, which is present on a national basis. However, directional data available on relatively restricted base is always better than non-directional data available on a wider base.”

Is it ?

I’m not an expert but on what do you base your conclusion?

Cheers,

Tyrone

but bushra these are household meters not people meters, right?

Hello everyone,

Well we cannot just say that which factor out of the GRPs, Reach and CPRP is more important? Every factor would depend on the campaign objectives and would be based on a combined plan as a whole rather than splitting up each channel separately. Kook for example, may have a low CPRP but if that 1% reach that it is giving you caters to an untapped market, it maybe even enough to create that impact in that certain audience where the brand wants presence. Regional channels like Kook are catering to specific audiences and affinity plays a vital role in creating more impact in certain regions, which we cannot deny.

I agree with your statement Tyrone that the Diary method has been the norm and that the peoples meter represents only K/L/I and now Faisalabad and Multan as far as I know (please correct me if I am wrong), but tell me something, shouldn’t it be a mix and match of the Diary and the Meter specially when we are planning for different campaigns? I had been working on several clients, and the decision to use which of the two for me depends on the nature of the brand I am planning for as well as the markets it is catering too. For example if a brand drives +94% sales from K/L/I and Faisalabad only and there are not many chances of growth in terms of the CDI’s and BDI’s in other cities. Isn’t it wise to plan on the Meter ONLY for such a brand? Similarly take a mass brand like Pepsi, if we are going for a K/L/I focused football based copy I think the planning based on meter is more viable, but if the copy is a general one targeted to the masses then I would rather choose Gallup.

Although our workings and planning have been based on the Diary method since years, but we do know that the authenticity in terms of extracting that data is flawed and the results we get on Gallup are skewed towards the top-of-mind recall as well. People’s Meter on the other hand captures channel switching on real time which is a better way of recording data as we all know. At least we know that we are dealing with data of better quality that can help the campaigns of our brands comparitively in a better way then the Diary Method.

Before I end up, I would still say that the decision to plan on either the Meter or Gallup remains in the hands of the planner which would depend on the objectives of the brand, the nature of the copy and targets that need to be achieved. And this is of course not a specific set of guidelines that everyone needs to follow like a uniform, but can vary from planner to planner, which is the ideal scenario. The topic remains debatable I believe and everyone has the right to disagree or agree to whatever that anyone of us says.

Regards,

SW

@ Tyrone: As I said, I have rested my case. This is because I’m seriously short of time especially when it comes to repeating my stance again & again. I don’t think ur post needed any additional answers over what I’ve already said. However, Sarosh’s post is a must read if u want any more clarity on when meters & when diary etc.

@ Yasir: Plz elaborate. Do u mean to say it calculates HH ratings & not individual ratings? I don’t think u’re saying that as u already know the asnwer Kindly rephrase your question for my understanding.

@ Sarosh: They say in Urdu, “Mere moun ki baat cheen lee!” Another rather childish expression, but here I go: U rock!

@ bushra: the panel is controlled at household level and any data being looked at individual level is not going to be meaningful as it is not representative due to floating number of individuals in the panel. Hence you cant compare one month rating with another, since both months could have a different number of individuals on which the data is being reported.

@Yasir: I have been pondering over this issue since months. A very valid point that we really should look into I believe. For example, the teenager in a household switched the TV on at 7:00 pm and is watching his favorite music channel or cartoons maybe. At 8:00 pm the mother comes in shouting to hand her the TV remote as she needs to watch a famous Drama serial that she has been following since months. 9:00 pm is news time so the mother goes in the kitchen to get the dinner ready and the TV remote is in the hands of the male of the house who is even watching the news and Talk Shows while having dinner. 11:00 pm the parents go to sleep and the elder daughther switches to a movie channel.

All this being done on the first login when the teen first switched on the TV at 7:00 pm? All this adding to the profile of the teen who is just one representative of the household. Although I think it is rather said then done that everytime the TV remote is tossed to another family member, they would actually take the hassle of switching the user profile everytime. I doubt this is really being done.

Tricky isn’t it? Can Kashif help us solve this mystery?

sarosh your concern is a different one.
Compliance within the panel is a global issue and there are ways to check and follow it.
on other topic: if you keep on switching between diary and meters based on copy then how would you measure the brand media deliveries at the end of the day. Brands are measured in the category not at the copy level but at brand level. How would different copies add up if you are measuring and planning them on different base?

Hello once again,

Both the previous 2 comments by Yasir & Sarosh point towards genuine problems with meters in Pakistan, however, these are 2 separate issues and not one (..Sarosh!).

Before I go on giving my two cents on both, here’s a much needed disclaimer:

DISCLAIMER: I’m neither implying that everyone should switch to meters ratings (its a strategy thing, u may need it or u may not) nor do I hold any stakes with Medialogic I’m an enthusiast, yes, but NOT WITHOUT my fair share of doubts & inquisitions about meters data, panel & methodology (yasir, would know & agree for sure!) However, my quest hasen’t ended with meters arriving in Pak. I question it A LOT (this, kashif jafri & Salman Danish would know and I WANT it to be the perfect TAM system that we need in terms of soooo many things. And I look forward to the same!

Having said that, here’s what I think:

@ Yasir: Its true that its not a fixed panel, which in itself makes it prone to questioning. But according to ML’s methodology, they control individual dwindling (due to electricity failures or even no TV viewing on a particular day) through projecting another similar-demographics-individual’s data onto the one whose data is missing. How much accuracy does it take away? Thats a question we ask & yet do not have an answer. Its questionable, nonetheless, especially if u want to compare individual level data month by month. May be Kashif can shed some light on whether its a global practice or its a local evil that they intend to do something about?

@ Sarosh: The issue you’re pointing at is one I would attribute to low literacy & lack of self responsibility/accountability, which looms large in our market. Also partly, this could be attributed to a much bigger no. of HH members as compared to the West. Bottom line is, there is a big chance that this IS happening. I partially believe the solution lies in educating them further, increasing rewards in case of correct/better usage, increasing checks & balances/quality control procedures AND give it some time to gel in with them. (Tyrone may interpret as ‘despite so many short comings, why do I still insist upon using meters?’:-)

Plz understand, that I’m NOT ADVOCATING SOLE USE OF METERS whether u have to let go of your strategic planning benefits. I just want to debate it to a point where we fully understand the sytem & the methodologies AND HENCE are in a position to question the wrongs with authirity/knowledge. Believe me, we’re still in very early infancy when it comes to TAM thru people meters! Don’t believe me? Google ‘portable meters’ and u will!

Good day to everyone.

Addendum:

1-By previous 2 comments, I meant ‘previous 2 points of discussion’ by yasir & sarosh.

2- In my response to Sarosh, when I say ‘the solution lies in educating them’, it means ‘…about meters device/tv remote control & its usage.’

@ bushra: you are confusing it with something else. What ML is telling you that they extrapolate the data for the loss in a particular segment reporting due to power failure. This is standard practice globally but there are various ways to do it and ‘the market’ should agree to the best method which suits the local conditions.
what i am referring to is the fact that the panel is not being controlled at individual level. REpresentation of SEC, females, males, age groups is not controlled and changes every week, every month with change in the panel HHs. This leads to misrepresentation of the demographics in the universe as universe is tied to the sample in the panel. With sample not being controlled at individual level the universe is also changing.

@Bushra: Thanks for the explanation on my confusion Bushra. Definitely helped me clear the confusion that i had in my mind.

@Yasir: Apologies for the misunderstanding Yasir … and thanks for the helping me to sort out that issue.
I knew this question would come up when I was writing about the diary and the meter comment . Since my time as a planner, I have gotten a chance to work on several brands and as per my experience, taking a decision regarding using Diary & Meter for each brand has been different. And because of this difference in nature of the companies and their brands, I have witnessed that the transition for each brand from the Diary to the Meter has been different.

Definitely we cannot measure the media deliveries if we keep on switching from Diary to Meter and vice versa for different campaigns of a brand, but since this is more of a transition phase for a lot of brands from the Diary to Meters, it has been a little different for every client. For example, one of my clients was more than happy to switch to the meters for the year starting 2008, even whent he meters data was not very old and we didn’t have a base to measure past performances. But this was not done in isolation as we kept taking certain insights from the Diary data as well. At the end of the year, we ended up showing the over all brand analysis on both the meter and the diary for the whole year with each campaign separately analyzed.

Similarly if for another client we had to plan urban campaigns seperately and mass campaign seperately, I guess you can stick to Gallup for the overall brand efficiencies since it shows the mass picture but I still believe that the insights should be considered from the Meter when planning for K/L/I only. Another client was not able to take the transition because of some regional deliveries, so we were stuck with them on Gallup only for another year.

I do agree that these methods may sound flawed, but we have to take a gradual transition slowly one way or the other. But ofcourse the complete transition cannot come until the Meter Data is expanded into more cities and rural areas and has gained more credibility.

Very interesting information shared here everyone…

Hi,

Well well this has snowballed into a 4 way discussion!

@Sarosh:’Kook for example, may have a low CPRP but if that 1% reach that it is giving you caters to an untapped market, it maybe even enough to create that impact in that certain audience where the brand wants presence’

Interesting idea but can you actually isolate the reach that Kook gives? How can you say that channel A has reaches 1% of the audience no other channel touches?

Is that what you are saying? I may be misunderstanding and I may be wrong but I don’t think you can isolate reach for a channel in such a way. If you run your plan for one channel you’ll get a channel reach right? But if you run for all channels used you’ll get a combined reach so how will you know whether Kook reaches a unique %?

Another thing most agencies are using either Gallup or PPM not both, I think there’s a cost implication which means people are using one system. Ideally a parallel run was needed but I don’t think that’s been done.

@Bushra: Relax I know about your questions/concerns on the PM, (your question on Linkedin last year which Omer answered)

@all: BTW PM is not the norm the world over, many countries use both systems and in India there are 3 different PMs!

Globally there has been issues of bias in the PMs recently in America Hispanics (?) were complaining they were not properly represented. There are still issues with portable meters and even people meters.
You don’t need to even google it you know this.

Project Apollo was ditched last year. A major breakthrough project shelved in the year it was supposed to be launched!

@Bushra: There is no such thing as a perfect mesuremement tool just as there’s no perfect solution to decide soccer games that are tied after 90 or 120 min.

Tyrone

@ Tyrone
you need to work with a good media setup to learn how to see what additional reach Kook is giving. These are basics
On representation of hispanics – it’s a sampling issue not a people meter issue.
On project Apollo: It doesn’t fall into TV audience measurement – its scope was much bigger and the reason it was shelved was cost benefit issues.

@ Yasir: Heh I know I don’t know everything and I also don’t know what I know so willing to learn.

Hispanics is a sampling issue but isn’t the sample a very important part of the PP system? Wasn’t the question you put to Bushra related to representation and sampling.

Project Apollo I know it was a big project with more about media habits etc but my point was that issues exist.

what about my point:PM is not the norm the world over, many countries use both systems and in India there are 3 different PMs!

No comments on this?

Tyrone

in india there are 2 TAM systems that i am aware of. And both have different geographic areas (with some overlap) being covered under it. Probably india is the only example with 2 systems. But out of those only one is being treated as the currency (80% of the agencies and channels use TAM India )
Sampling is important for any sort of research so don’t blame TAM for it.

@yasir:
2 systems you mean TAM and aMAP. Well a year or two back Lowe Lintas published their own audience data figures.

I had read somewhere about 3 systems might have been mistaken

About the sampling agreed.

However people seem to be adopting PM without really analysing it first.

Can a sample size of 300-400 in 4 cities be the best measurement base?

A question you can answer better than me.

Tyrone

@tyrone: as per sampling basics and ideal sample sizewise its enough, infact more than enough

Ok your the guy with the experience and expertise so you would have a sound reason for saying so

Tyrone

Nice Research..

Good Research..

I found very nice comments on this blogs. Very useful for someone new in media planning / researh.

I found many people talking about CPRP/GRP/Rating/Reach…..what is the best currency of selling air time from a broadcasters point of view. I personaly feel that CPM is the ideal one.

Hello everybody,

Any one can please help me to provide some suitable vendor for this product.?Thanks