The Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) is an independent, non-profit trade organization for publishers, advertisers, advertising agencies, and commercial websites, which primarily target consumer goods advertisers. ABC exists solely to audit and certify circulation and site-traffic claims of its members, and the organization is supported by its members. Its annual audit report for a member shows, among other data, the average net-paid-circulation of the print media (daily and weekly editions of newspapers, and magazines) and is used by advertisers in planning their marketing campaigns. Established in 1914 in the US, it has affiliates in most other countries. ABC can be found at www.accessabc.com.(Please see BPA for business publication and website traffic audits.)

A term traditionally used to describe a promotional message for which air time or print space is purchased by the advertiser or agency. The advertiser pays to control the message and the timing of the advertisement. See also Marketing and Public Relations.

As might be guessed, this combination of the words advertisement and editorial describes an advertising message designed to look like an editorial. This type of advertising is used most often to communicate opinion about social, economic, political, or legislative issues. By law, an advertorial must be labeled as a paid advertisement so as not to be confused with actual editorial content.

Sworn statement from a television or radio station that is sent to the advertiser or advertising agency as proof that an ad was run as ordered. Generally, an affidavit is sent with the invoices for the advertisement, as many advertisers will not pay their bill without evidence that the ad ran as ordered.

A commission given to advertising agencies by some media outlets (broadcast and print) for purchases of time or space made on behalf of clients. The media allows the agency a 15% discount off the Gross Rate shown on a rate card. (Marketing Partners passes all commissions directly back to clients.)

Term used to describe a Target Market consisting of business customers versus individuals or consumers. One example is manufacturers who sell only to other manufacturers, wholesalers or dealers.

Term used to describe a Target Market consisting of individual consumers versus businesses. Examples are local retail stores or hair salons.

One-time rate charged by an advertising medium before any discounts are offered; also called open rate.

Behavior change communication (BCC) is the evidence-based, consultative effort to address individual knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and social norms in a strategic manner. BCC operates though various intervention types, namely mass media, interpersonal and community based.

Percentage of a brand’s sales in an area in relation to the population in that area as compared to the sales throughout the entire U.S. in relation to the total U.S. population.

Bounce Rate is the percentage of single-page visits (i.e., visits in which the person left your site from the entrance page). Bounce Rate is a measure of visit quality and a high Bounce Rate generally indicates that site entrance (landing) pages aren't relevant to your visitors.

The Business Publications Audit of Circulations (BPA) is an independent, non-profit trade organization for publishers, advertisers, advertising agencies, and commercial websites, which primarily target business audiences. BPA exists solely to audit and certify circulation and site-traffic claims of its members, and the organization is supported by its members. Its annual audit report, (which requires membership to access) for a member shows, among other data, the average circulation of the print media and websites, and the job title/role of readers and is used by advertisers in planning their marketing campaigns. Established in 1931 in the US, it has affiliates in most other countries. Whereas the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) concentrates primarily on auditing consumer publications, BPA audits 85% of all business-to-business publications. BPA can be found at www.bpaww.com.

Instructions to a radio or television station detailing the scheduling of spots for broadcast advertising. The broadcast order is issued by the advertiser or advertising agency and will specify the length of the advertisement, the daypart or time of day it is to be run, the quoted price, and the date (or dates) on which the ad is to run. See also Insertion Order.

The standard newspaper size (in contrast to Tabloid). Approximate page dimensions are 22" deep by 12" to 14" wide, with six or seven columns each 2-1/4" wide. A standard-size newspaper is sold folded in half.

Cause marketing or cause-related marketing refers to a type of marketing involving the cooperative efforts of a for-profit business and a non-profit organization for mutual benefit. The non-profit receives donations and visibility, while the for-profit business improves its image with the hope of increasing sales.

Percentage of sales for a specific category of products or services (e.g., lip balm or goat cheese) in an area in relation to the population in that area as compared to the sales throughout the entire U.S. in relation to the total U.S. population. The U.S. average sales per person becomes the base index of 100 for the category.

Number of copies of a newspaper or magazine that are sold or distributed to the general public.

Advertising appearing in newspapers and some magazines that is arranged according to specific categories or classifications. The text of the advertisements is set in the same size and style of type and the ads are usually without illustration.

is a way of measuring the success of an online advertising campaign. A CTR is obtained by dividing the number of users who clicked on an ad on a web page by the number of times the ad was delivered (impressions). For example, if a banner ad was delivered 100 times (impressions delivered) and one person clicked on it (clicks recorded), then the resulting CTR would be 1 percent.

Term used to describe pieces used for marketing/sales support of a product or service. Such materials were traditionally printed, but in addition to brochures and hangtags, collateral materials now commonly include video, CD-ROM, and other multi-media formats.

A brief description, generally at the end of a book, of relevant production notes, including designers involved and typefaces used.

Unit of measure in a publication by which advertising space is sold. Magazines and newspapers are divided into so many columns wide and so many inches deep (depth = height). If the advertiser's message fits into space that measures 4 columns wide by 5 inches deep, the advertiser needs 20 column inches (4 x 5 = 20).

Advertising time or space that is purchased by an advertising agency on behalf of a client and for which the agency receives a commission from the media. (Marketing Partners passes all commissions directly back to clients.)

Individual advertisement sponsored by two or more manufacturers or retailers where the sponsors cooperate in the copy as well as the budget.

Cost per click (CPC) is the amount of money an advertiser pays search engines and other Internet publishers for a single click on its advertisement that brings one visitor to its website.

Cost of reaching an audience on a per thousand basis. The CPM is computed by multiplying the advertising cost times 1000 and dividing by the total audience.

Audience accumulation for a medium over a specified period of time. Individuals or households count only once in this measurement, no matter how many times they may have been exposed to the medium. Cumulative audience represents the unduplicated audience (the number of people who will be reached at least once) for a schedule over a specific time period.

Population statistics with regard to socioeconomic factors such as age, income, sex, occupation, education, family size, and the like. Advertisers often define their Target Market in terms of demographics; thus, demographics are a very important aspect of media planning in matching the media with the market.

Print advertising that is located throughout a publication and that uses size, color, illustrations, photographs, and various decorations and typography to attract the reader's attention. Display advertising is found among the editorial sections of a publication and is not grouped according to classification (as classified advertisements are). It further differs from Classified Advertising in that it uses illustrations and varying type sizes and bases its rate structure on Column Inches, or fractions of a page.

Formative research with a target audience is the basis for developing effective strategies, including communication channels, for influencing behavior change. It helps researchers identify and understand the characteristics - interests, behaviors and needs - that influence the decisions and actions of target populations. Formative research is integral in developing programs as well as improving existing and ongoing programs, and it is an essential step when using a formal social marketing approach.

A frame, or 'frame of reference' is a complex mental model, worldview, or schema of unquestioned beliefs, values and emotions that we use to infer meaning. Frames are triggered by language and context, so the principle of framing is that if you wish to control the meaning you need to control the language and the context.

Average number of times a commercial or advertisement has been viewed per person (or per household) during a specific time period. Frequency, along with Reach, is an important concept in the planning of an advertising media schedule. Frequency is calculated by dividing the total possible audience by the audience that has been exposed at lease once (Reach or Cumulative Audience) to the particular time segment (in broadcast) or publication in which the advertising message appears.

A media outlet's published rate before any agency commisions or discounts. See also Net Rate.

GRP represents the percentage of the target audience reached by an advertisement. If the ad appears more than once, the GRP figure represents the sum of each individual GRP. Total GRPs, or the sum of all rating points for an advertising schedule, are usually stated on a weekly basis. For example, in the case of a TV advertisement aired 5 times a week reaching 50% of the target audience, it would have 250 GRPs = 5 x 50% -- i.e., GRPs = frequency x % reach. In principle, 100 GRPs could mean either that 100 percent of targeted households are reached once per week, or 1 percent of them are reached 100 times in the week, or any combination thereof.

This is a public relations term used to describe a "media hit", i.e., the appearance of a client's name and message in a newspaper, on television, the radio, or any other media outlet.

A. C. Nielsen Company term representing the percentage of households in a specific area and in a particular time period that have their television sets turned on as compared to the total number of television households in that area. If, for example, there are 1000 television households in a particular survey area and 500 of those televisions are turned on in a given time period, the HUT level for that area in that time period is 50.

Number of homes or individuals exposed to an advertisement or group of advertisements. In Internet, the total number of times an online advertising banner has been served to the websites visitors. To be counted as an impression, the banner has to successfully load on the user's browser.

Instructions to a publisher detailing the placement of material for print advertising. The insertion order is issued by the advertiser or advertising agency and will specify the size of the advertisement, the position, the quoted price, and the date (or dates) on which the ad is to appear.

A typographic term denoting the spacing between pairs of glyphs (i.e., characters or letters). Font developers can manually specify the measure of each kerning pair, but often just specify the kerning for troublesome pairs such as "AV".

Individual pattern of living as reflected by interests, opinions, spending habits, and activities.

A typographic term denoting a glyph that is comprised of two (or more) connected glyphs. A famous example is the "fi" ligature, wherein (in many fonts) the dot of the "i" is dropped, and the crossbar of the "f" joins with the top of the "i".

Sample text used for layouts created from "de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum" (The Extremes of Good and Evil) written by Cicero in 45 BC. It has become the standard text used for layouts where copy is not finalized or has not been given to the designer, but comps for a layout need sample text.

There are many definitions out there, but the term marketing is generally used to describe any and all communication activities designed to motivate a specific purchase or behavior. Marketing is the umbrella term that includes the 5 Ps of the marketing mix (positioning, product, price, place, promotion) as well as the sub-disciplines of advertising, public relations, sales, promotions, packaging, etc.

Size of audience exposed (See Exposure) to an advertisement through a particular Medium.

A message triangle is a tool designed to help you speak to your audience successfully by getting across your key messages in a compelling, concise and credible manner. It is based on the principle that it is easier to visualize an image than it is to memorize a lot of words. The visual image is of an equilateral triangle with one key message on each side.

A media outlet's published rate after any agency commissions or discounts. For example, with a commissionable gross rate of $100 for a particular ad, the standard net rate after a 15% agency commission is $85.

See Base Rate

A PESTLE analysis is a framework for scanning and analyzing the market environment before developing strategy. PESTLE factors are Political, Economic, Sociological, Technological, Legal and Environmental.

A term used for in-store promotional materials, such as display racks, header cards, shelf-hangers, and signage.

Positioning is presenting an issue, service or product in such as way that it stands out from others. It is appealing and persuasive. It is the identity the program or product will have and hold over time. A Positioning Statement describes how the company, issue, service or product will be seen in the minds of the audience. It is not a catchy slogan, but rather provides direction for message development and design.