Lack of Transparency Wreaking Havoc on Social Media Networks

$194 billion. That's what the global digital ad market is estimated to be worth. So it's no surprise those spending the money are looking for trustworthy data, especially in light of revelations last week that Facebook overestimated a key video metric, inaccurately reporting the average time people spent watching video ads on its platform by as much as 80 percent. The question is still out there whether Facebook intentionally shaped the numbers in order to influence media buyers to spend more of their video budgets on Facebook over other platforms.

With time, Facebook's recent gaffe will likely be forgiven, but it's driving attention to a growing and very real concern that social networks are walled gardens, only providing the data sets they want to share in the ways they want to share them. They have a monopoly on their data and it's calling many to question the validity.

Unilever marketing chief Keith Weed put it best, "If we don't get broad third party verification in the digital media industry, it will impact how marketers invest their money."

At Snips, we believe it's time to break down these walls, and that only with transparency, will brands continue to grow their investments in digital ad campaigns. And we call on other industry leaders to join us in pushing all social networks to open their doors and loosen their monopoly on their data.

This is why we're 100% performance-driven. It's a commitment we make to you as advertisers and influencers. We believe that both parties must work towards the same goals and value the results in the same way. It's about real, quantifiable engagements—not the number of followers or "impressions."

Every Snips campaign—regardless whether it happens on Facebook, Twitter, emial or web—is tracked in real-time, all the way through a conversion, sale or signup. And those results are reported in real time, so advertisers can adjust their strategies accodringly. With significantly better ROIs and greater transparency, it's a win-win for everyone.

We all know advertisers aren't about to give up on Facebook, but we shouldn't give up on transparency either.