Actionable Audit Insights

Media and Entertainment companies managing and delivering video are under massive pressure to operate with reduced budgets, improve cross-enterprise efficiency, enable new use cases to improve consumer engagement, and use metadata more effectively. We launched our metadata Audit last year with an understanding of the aforementioned challenges and the recognition that businesses are facing a data quality challenge related to their in-house, licensed, or purchased metadata. Without understanding the status of their metadata, they face issues regarding the effectiveness of sales, marketing, scheduling, and overall content management. 

Often, customers procure more data before they understand the strengths and weaknesses of their existing data. Our goal is to help them optimise their use of existing data and only procure the data they really need, unlocking the potential for significant improvement. 

How does the Audit work?

It is a collaborative, iterative process that we undertake with our clients.  

It starts with understanding a customer’s specific use cases and existing sources.  With that foundational knowledge and an initial discussion about priorities, data is ingested into Atlas, our active metadata platform, where automated processes map and analyse the data. Initial findings are shared to drive further discussion and refine rules driving the automation.

The Audit consolidates data from siloed repositories. Upon doing this, customers appreciate the immediate benefit of deduplication. Identifying duplicate records allows organisations to reduce data costs by eliminating the licensing of data from more than one source (or licensing data from the same source more than once).

The Audit results in actionable insights. An assessment of descriptions in a recent Audit revealed that less than 50% of the brand-level content records included a description of over 150 words, meaning that long descriptions are not detailed enough or differentiated from short or medium descriptions.  Regarding descriptions for series and episodes, the Audit found that while descriptions were available, they were often the same description as at the brand level. Descriptions at the brand level are usually broad and indicative of the general theme rather than a summary of the specific action that will take place in an episode. A lack of comprehensive and accurate descriptions can impact SEO, audience engagement, and subscriber retention. 

The Audit also identifies which metadata sources are best for specific types of metadata. Various commercial metadata providers have expertise in different data types, such as schedule data, enrichment data, suitability ratings, or images. Our experience, supported by Audit results, has given us insight into which sources excel in delivering specific types of metadata. The Audit helps our customers prioritise which of their sources is best for providing data, such as images in various formats, deep links to specific videos or parts of a video (e.g., a particular scene or episode), and comprehensive reviews – all reducing friction for the user.  

Another recent Audit highlighted gaps in cast and crew data and landscape images. Some metadata providers delivered records with less than two cast members, while others offered 10-15. In addition, the customer required 16:9 images, and only one metadata provider could fulfill that need. These results were provided to the customer, along with recommendations as to which data sources were best suited to fill in these gaps. 

It is not unusual for a customer to have multiple internal metadata repositories. Our audits have shown that data was procured from the same source by more than one business unit within the enterprise. We have also found that data needed by one group may exist in another database. By initiating an Audit of metadata from multiple internal sources, organisations can attain an overarching view of their metadata. Not only can this improve operational effectiveness, but it can also reduce costs by negating the need to procure more data. 

The Audit report provides comprehensive and tangible evidence that helps customers better understand the quality of their data. The report summarises the agreed-upon rules used to cleanse data and reflects the processes used to identify and manage exceptions. It provides an analysis of the data as aligned with agreed-upon priorities. Based on our findings, the report includes hard data,  valuable insights, and recommendations for leveraging data sources best aligned with existing priorities. 

The audit’s results are not just numbers and findings. They are a testament to the value of conducting the audit itself. They provide strategic insight to significantly improve audience engagement, operational efficiency, and cost-effectiveness. They identify gaps, optimise content descriptions, and streamline data procurement. The actionable recommendations from the audit not only help enhance content management strategies but also empower organizations to make informed decisions that unlock the full potential of their metadata.