17th April 2019

POV: Facebook Brand Safety: Inventory Filters

Background:

Facebook has introduced a new brand safety update and a new set of ‘inventory filter’ controls for advertising that appears within placements outside the social newsfeed across Instant Articles, Audience Network and Facebook in-stream video.

Details and Implications:

Following the increased scrutiny over brand safety within the platform Facebook will be transitioning from its current category exclusion controls and introducing a new set of inventory filter controls for Instant Articles, Audience Network and Facebook in-stream video starting on April 17th.

The new inventory filters are based on a three-tier system enabling the setting up of a brand safety profile depending on the level of desired advertiser control – full, standard or limited inventory.

Full inventory: Opt-in to delivery to all eligible content. This setting offers maximum reach.

Standard inventory: Opt-out of delivery to the most sensitive content across all categories at once. This setting offers moderate reach and moderate brand safety protection. It is also the default setting.

Limited inventory: Opt-out of delivery to content that is considered moderately sensitive and above, across all categories. This setting offers minimum reach and maximum brand safety protection.

Since 2016 Facebook has used a program called “remove, reduce, inform” to tackle ‘problematic content’ on the platform. Whilst this has also been updated recently (see link below), it has not proven to go far enough to fully mitigate potential UGC risks for advertisers outside of the new stream across Instant Articles, Audience Network and Facebook in-stream video.

When applying the new inventory filter controls it is imperative to firstly consider the potential continued risk associated with Instant Articles, Audience Network and Facebook in-stream video. This should be based on an advertiser’s tolerance between reach and contextual risk.

If the paid social activity of the advertiser is only run through newsfeed, stories or messenger, we expect no change in the available reach or CPM. However, if an advertiser’s tolerance enables the activation of paid social activity across Instant Articles, Audience Network and Facebook in-stream video, we expect Standard or Limitedinventory settings to reduce campaign reach by 10-25% due to CPMs and Cost Per Reach increasing between 5-20% respectively. *

It’s important to note that the total available audience size will not reduce. Tighter brand safety controls are likely to influence CPMs which in turn reduces the total reach achieved during a campaign with the same budget.

Summary:

It’s proposed that if advertisers are live with campaigns using Instant Articles, Audience Network and Facebook in-stream video during the switchover, reach and performance will be monitored pre- and post the amend to ascertain future impact for that advertiser.

Mindshare Global
    Mindshare Global