Media planning tool allows for advanced ROI analysis on behalf of automotive accounts

New York, NY, March 13, 2012 -- Kantar Media announced that Publicis Groupe companies Saatchi & Saatchi LA and Team One will be among the first agencies to utilize the company’s Return Path Data (RPD) which has been overlaid with auto purchase data from J.D. Power & Associates to gain unique insights into the tuning behavior of auto buyers.

The data set to be used by the agencies integrates auto purchasing information from the J.D. Power and Associates Power Information Network® (PIN) with granular TV audience viewing data from Kantar Media’s DIRECTView service on an anonymous, aggregated basis. This integrated data enables insights into television viewing habits segmented by consumers of specific automotive brands.

Kantar Media’s DIRECTView service is one of the largest national audience measurement services available in the United States, providing anonymous audience viewing behavior data from 100,000 satellite television subscribers. The service enables measurement of the entire spectrum of live and time-shifted (DVR) audience viewing behaviors across more than 350 channels.

The J.D. Power and Associates Power Information Network gathers real-time automotive retail transaction data from more than 8,900 franchisees throughout the United States.

“The robust sample that this dataset offers provides not only an ability to run highly detailed audience viewing reports on the segment, brand and model level, but can also be customized to meet the diverse needs ranging from creative agencies to media agencies to planning agencies,” says Bud Breheney, Chief Commercial Officer, Kantar Media Audiences North America. “This data is unique for its ability to create custom audiences and to report auto purchaser tuning habits at a household, not zip code, level. It enables a media planning tool and ROI insights that were not previously possible.”

“Return Path Data allows us to tap into some great consumer insights,” said Gwen Conley, senior media director, Saatchi LA. “From a planning tool standpoint, we’ll use RPD to evaluate engagement at both the network and program levels, as well as to develop TV ratings against car buyers across all segments.”

"Given our client Lexus' focus on growth in the next several years, we're able to use RPD and its linkage to auto purchase data to better understand the competitive landscape and the viewing patterns of both loyal and conquest audiences,” said Paul Silverman, executive director, Team One. “This will provide valuable market insight that will exponentially enhance our strategic capabilities."

About Kantar Media

Kantar Media provides strategic advice and competitive intelligence to the world’s leading brands, publishers, agencies and industry bodies, helping them navigate and succeed in a rapidly evolving media industry. This includes analysis of paid media opportunities; counsel on brand reputation, corporate management and consumer engagement through owned media; and, evaluating consumers’ reactions in earned media. Kantar Media provides clients with a broad range of insights, from audience research, competitive intelligence, vital consumer behavior and digital insights to marketing effectiveness and online influence. Our experts currently work with 22,000 companies tracking 3 million brands in 50 countries. www.KantarMediaNA.com

About J.D. Power and Associates

Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services company providing forecasting, performance improvement, social media and customer satisfaction insights and solutions. The company’s quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. For more information on car reviews and ratings, car insurance, health insurance, cell phone ratings, and more, please visit JDPower.com. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

About Saatchi & Saatchi LA

Saatchi & Saatchi LA is a full-service agency with both traditional and digital capabilities, including media, creative, strategic planning, 3-D asset creation, design and event marketing. Known for its outstanding social media work, the agency has been recognized as a Facebook Innovator and honored as the 2010 Social Media Agency of the Year by The Bees Awards. Saatchi LA is agency of record for Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., and also serves Toyota Dealer Associations and Toyota Financial Services. The L.A. office is the third largest in the global network of ideas company Saatchi & Saatchi, part of Publicis Groupe. For more information, visit www.saatchila.com.

About Team One

With its very first campaign, Team One became the agency responsible for one of the most successful brand launches in history. The company’s storied introduction of the Lexus brand — from unlikely challenger to the top-selling luxury nameplate in the U.S. — turned out to be just the beginning. Since then, expertly launching remarkable ideas, brands, products and careers has become the agency’s hallmark.

Headquartered in El Segundo (Los Angeles), California, and a division of Saatchi & Saatchi, Team One is a full-service boutique marketing communications agency, providing comprehensive brand consultancy,

strategic planning, media planning and buying, social media, brand advocacy, relationship (direct) marketing, event marketing/promotions, digital and mobile development, point-of-sale merchandising, public relations, package design and full creative and production services in all channels.

The agency has regional offices in New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Washington, D.C. Current clients include: Lexus, the Lexus Dealer Association, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, JW Marriott, Häagen-Dazs, Bombardier Flexjet, American Express, Autograph Collection Hotels, Icelandic Glacial Water Holdings, CBS Watch! Magazine, Belkin International and EDITION Hotels. Team One also works with a handful of nonprofit organizations. Current and past pro bono clients include Partnership for a Drug-Free America, The Natural Resources Defense Council, Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution and Heal the Bay