In 2017’s summer issue, Communicate published an in-depth cover story on the topic of brand safety. The below is a contribution from Andy Powell, sales director, Middle East, Africa & Turkey, InMobi.

Powell suggests two directions for tackling brand safety: systematic checks and human check.

SYSTEMATIC CHECKS: Making sure to identify bots, malware and other fraudulent patterns systematically. Here, we see all the third-party integrations with IAS, MOAT, Forensiq, Whiteops and other players that allow the supplier to prescreen the ad inventory and conduct site analysis and scoring. Each one of these partners is trying to come up with a valid in-app solution and being able to have tight partnerships with them definitely helps reassure brands about the quality of the inventory.

HUMAN CHECKS: There is also a human component in this chain. Although I strongly believe in automation, I also recognize the need of having a whole team in place to ensure all the expectations are met. For instance, when it comes to content and UGC, systematic algorithms might fail to determine right feedbacks. Thus, manual checks are as important as any systematic program.