COI to bring digital into 22m ad roster

The COI is planning to shake up its 22m ad roster, as it looks to include digitaladvertising in the framework when it comes up for renewal next July.

The COI is planning to shake up its £22m ad roster, as it looks to include digitaladvertising in the framework when it comes up for renewal next July.

The move follows the Douglas McArthur review, an independent examination of COI’s media buying systems, concluded earlier this year, which recognised that media buying does not exist in isolation of a “wider system for effective communications.”

Following the review, the COI has already started integrating digital display and mainstream media, but insiders say that COI is now looking at moving its digital strategy into the “traditional advertising roster”.

The current digital media roster is split into four categories, including: digital strategy; digital solutions design, development and delivery; specialist digital media solutions and services; and user experience evaluation and analytics services. It excludes digital planning and buying. This framework replaced the previous digital media design and development and interactive/online media creative roster.

It is understood that the digital ad agencies will, in the future, form part of the advertising and marketing services roster, which will come up for renewal in July 2009.

A COI insider says: “We are looking to synchronise digital with the traditional advertising roster as an ongoing process, to be more efficient and effective and provide the taxpayer with value for money.”

COI has already announced a Channel Integration Management team, which has started implementing a new, phased strategy to develop approaches to encourage multi-channel ideas and opportunities.

The opposition, the Conservative party, has stepped up its calls to drive greater efficiencies across all Government advertising spend after the shadow chancellor George Osborne announced last week that he wouldcut advertising budgets by almost 60%.