Lead times for the purchase of online advertising, while short, seem to be trending upward according to a survey of 87 media executives, reports MediaPost (via MediaBuyerPlanner). The survey, from MediaPost and Deutsche Bank, indicates that while online advertising remains a spot market the number of media executives who said they committed to an online purchase more than six months in advance grew from 5 percent in the second quarter to 8 percent in the third. Twenty-five percent of respondents said they secured online inventory between three and six months in advance, compared with 20 percent in the second quarter.
Almost half - 48 percent - commit two months or less in advance of a campaign, while 67 percent commit within three months.
It seems it's the publishers who are keeping the lead times relatively short, wrote Deutsche Bank analyst Jeetil Patel in the report: "Despite increased demand by some advertisers for longer lead times, we believe that publishers are becoming less willing to commit to longer lead times in order to maintain pricing flexibility in what has become a very strong pricing environment."
