Every year, viewers become more screen-agnostic, seeking out video wherever it may live across linear and streaming TV. That leaves ad executives to reimagine what TV means — and how best to measure its impact.
Beet.TV's leadership series "Measurement for a Streaming-First World," presented by EDO, captures this pivotal moment through conversations with top executives at Home Depot, Mindshare, MediaHub, IPG Mediabrands, and more who are developing frameworks to assess ad performance across fragmented environments.
This portrait reveals an industry in transition: shifting from old to new metrics, developing more holistic video feedback loops, and embracing AI-powered solutions.
Ditch lagging KPIs for immediate outcomes data
A clear theme throughout the series is the shift from traditional TV metrics like gross ratings points (GRPs) toward business outcomes measurement that reflects real ad impact. For Home Depot's Zachary Darkow, Senior Director of Marketing Activation and Measurement, the evolution in TV measurement is exciting.
“Ten years ago, it was all about reach and GRPs,” Darkow reflects. “Now, with household and individual data, we can work backwards from our marketing objectives to drive the right outcomes, regardless of what they are.”
Echoing this sentiment is Dominick Pace, Executive Director of Investment at Mindshare, who works closely with Unilever on managing U.S. media spend. "All media should be measured through a singular lens," Pace asserts. "We must orient ourselves to business outcomes — whether that's sales, brand love, or other key metrics — not just lagging media KPIs."
If TV has always driven sales, now brands and media owners face increased pressure to prove it with quantitative metrics that make a compelling case for continued investment.
Connecting data in a fragmented landscape
As media fragmentation grows, advertisers also have access to more data than ever before. The key is to bring it all together for a unified view of performance and activation.
For Michael Piner, Executive Vice President of Advanced Advertising at Mediahub Worldwide, this involves a more holistic approach to video, and the promise of an impression-based world that unifies linear and digital video measurement.
“We’ve had to prioritize new and alternative measurement solutions that tie exposures to outcomes,” he stresses. “Our analytics team uses multiple models, data sources, and tools to piece together a full picture — much like a pilot uses multiple gauges to fly a plane to safety.”
Maureen Bosetti, Chief Investment Officer at IPG Mediabrands, highlights recent innovations in TV data sources that reflect video’s multifaceted reality. She notes: “If you look at cross-screen measurement partners, such as EDO or Nielsen ONE, we’re seeing that big data helps us truly measure all of these video properties in a much more cohesive way.”
As a result, data-driven teams can compare how linear is performing versus CTV, or YouTube versus social. But effective measurement is only half the battle. Bosetti explains, “Success starts with that upstream planning work — knowing how to do more integrated planning against those measurable audiences and hinging it all together.”
Horizon’s Nav Singh, VP and Managing Director of Programmatic shares Bosetti’s enthusiasm. “For the first time, you can measure TV. That’s really the headline,” he says. “There are advances in programmatic every month, and being able to measure for the first time helps make our clients much stronger and not carry over blind spots from the past.”
Singh mentions, as an example, Horizon Media’s Blu.ID identity graph, which matches client first-party data and makes it translatable to the programmatic ecosystem. Interpublic Group’s Piner also noted identity resolution as a top industry challenge, with proprietary “spines” from EDO and others enabling more precise cross-platform targeting and analysis.
Ad measurement reimagined for the streaming era
For brands and agencies navigating this complex landscape, the message is clear: embrace data-driven strategies, develop holistic video metrics, and focus on business outcomes over legacy metrics. Those who master these elements will thrive in the streaming-first future that has already arrived.
WATCH NOW: Ready to transform your TV measurement? Explore all nine executive interviews from Beet.TV's "Measurement for a Streaming-First World" leadership series.