For
months, The Telegraph Group of London looked for a way to help advertisers
improve how they prepare and send ad copy to its papers.
Then,
last November, the publisher of The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph
found software from Vio and Markzware Software Inc. to do just that.
The
result: Telegraph Pre-flight & Delivery Facility, a service that blends
Markzware’s Markznet preflight app and Vio’s electronic file delivery
software.
The
software combo lets The Telegraph Group offer advertisers secure transmission
and preflighting options, according to Mark Fletcher, group ad production
manager.
The
service has already streamlined The Telegraph’s production, eliminating the
need to contact clients to request that problem files be corrected and
re-supplied, he said. The response has been positive, with 25 percent of The
Telegraph’s advertisers using the app.
“We
were at 15 percent at the end of 2003,” Fletcher said in an e-mail. “The
rate in take-up has been extremely encouraging.”
Fletcher
said the preflighting process is particularly appealing because it is the first
free service that gives the sender a report directly to their desktop before the
ad is delivered - actually preventing the delivery of bad files.
“The
advertisers can be sure their file is production-ready before it leaves them and
they have more flexibility in the file formats they can deliver to our group,”
Fletcher said.
Prior
to the Vio/Markzware app The Telegraph could only accept ADS or Quickcut files.
Advertisers using PDF, JPEG or TIFF files had to go to a third party to have
their files converted to meet the newspaper group’s criteria.
“We
are, therefore, saving them money, while still maintaining standards of file
integrity,” Fletcher said. “As a publisher we have greatly extended
advertiser choice while ensuring that all advertisements received are
correct.”
The
process
Advertisers
deliver and preflight their ads via a secure Web site,
www.advertising.telegraph.co.uk, where a “hot” icon takes them to a download
page they can use to access detailed instructions for both Macs and PCs.
“We
sought to make the service very user friendly as an increasing number of
businesses and individuals are handling their own display advertising,”
Fletcher said.
After
downloading the apps, an icon is placed on the advertiser’s desktop. The
advertiser creates its file - PDF, JPEG or TIFF - and drags it onto the icon. A
sample is taken from the file and delivered to The Telegraph’s servers in
London. The advertiser then chooses the publication for the ad and the ad is
checked against the spec on the server.
“A
report is sent back to the advertiser, pass or fail, detailing the reasons for a
caution or failure,” Fletcher said.
“We
are committed to educating the community in the production of good files so the
help notes are an important part of the service.”
When
a file passes the series of checks, the advertiser completes a job ticket.
Delivery is managed by Vio and the sender is given a unique reference number as
confirmation of file delivery to the publisher.
Fletcher
said a managed delivery network is very important for the Telegraph Group.
“It
gives transparency and accountability to the process,” he said.
Genuine
savings
Fletcher
said the major benefit to his newspaper group has been the ability to enable a
much wider group of advertisers to send preflighted files directly into The
Telegraph’s workflows at “zero cost.”
“This
is a vital factor in developing the next generation of ad delivery products that
integrate more closely with our ad booking systems,” he said. “Genuine
savings will come in the future from receipt of files that are correct not only
in production specification, but also in all booking aspects.”
