Taking action
Engage with the media partner by focusing on the 3 P’s: Partnership, Proof and Punitive Response:
- Partnership: Begin with a dispassionate conversation with the partner that is based upon the facts you collected while using your organization’s ethical framework. This should be a conversation between your brand or agency’s leadership and the partner’s most senior leaders; this is not a conversation for the day-to-day sales team. Top-to-top meetings that are commonplace at industry events like CES, SXSW and Cannes are great places to kick these off.
- Proof: Transparency and third-party verification are non-negotiable terms of the agreement. During the ongoing partnership discussions, establish clear milestones and the partner needs to commit to a certain remedy schedule that is verified by external partners such as Media Matters, ANA or IAB.
- Punitive Response: the partner is either unwilling to engage in meaningful action or provide proof that they are making positive strides; it is of critical importance that a punitive response be applied. Develop your viable alternative media plan as part of working through the framework. As the advertiser, you need to have a clear and actionable plan to implement.
The harm to the people we care about is too great and the advertising industry is virtually unmatched in terms of financial influence. We can no longer hang out on the sidelines and avoid applying ethical standards to our media buying.
Source link
