The competition in video goes beyond the fight for consumer attention; every video provider is looking to land ad dollars with a one-two punch of broad but targeted reach matched with business outcomes via addressability or attribution. A+E Networks has dubbed their delivery of both as “Precision and Performance", or as SVP of ad sales Ethan Heftman calls it: "a fancy way of describing a group of people across ad sales, research, and client insights that specialize in moving the business away from Nielsen age and gender trading into more advanced audience targeting and audience trading.”

In a fast-paced podcast conversation with E.B. Moss, Heftman provided more definitions and diligently explained their differences and just how their first-to-market guarantees of select outcomes works. We started with "attribution." 

“For us, attribution is the exercise in tying a media exposure on A+E Networks to a specific business outcome. It’s going beyond simply the discussion of what type of media metric we delivered -- the delivery of an impression -- and moving on to what type of action or behavior that impression caused. Is it fueling a behavior at the top, or awareness area, of the funnel, the middle (consideration), ...or at the bottom of the funnel, a sales or specific outcome type of area?”

Historically, Heftman notes, “television hasn't been properly credited with outcomes in the consideration segment of the funnel or in the real action area -- driving a web visit, driving a store visit, driving a specific sale.” But A+E is out to show how Precision and Performance  impacts outcomes in each of those three areas, versus just the expected top of funnel. Guaranteed. To a degree. Listen to the complete episode to hear what they're willing to go to the mat for, and learn from Heftman  just how television can stay in the ring.