Forrester’s principal media report: It’s here to stay, so wise up on how to use it

There are some in the marketing and media industries who might not like what Forrester’s latest report into the use of principal media indicates — that it’s here to stay so you better get used to it. But the report, issued on Jan. 15, also suggests ways marketers, agencies and even publishers can use it in a way that doesn’t leave some parties completely in the dark. For the most part, that means transparency — a word that doesn’t often get used when talking about the practice.

Authored principally by Forrester’s vp and senior agency analyst Jay Pattisall as well as principal analyst Kelsey Chickering and senior analyst Evelyn Mitchell-Wolf, the report’s intro tells it like it is: “Tensions flare when it comes to principal media — the polarizing practice of reselling media inventory at an undisclosed margin. Critics claim conflicts of interest. Evangelists praise great rates. The reality? It’s a business necessity for advertisers and partners under budget and revenue pressure.”

Pattisall cited three major factors that lead marketers to accepting principal media despite its opacity: the constant and continued rising cost of media, the pressures internally on marketers to deliver results in a cost-effective manner since they’re largely seen in companies as a cost center, and finally the external pressures on the marketplace like tariffs and inflation that can lead to uncertainty.

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