See also:
Feature Guide -
Media (27.6 mb PDF)
Resources:
Media FAQs
Media Link FAQs
A Media Buyer’s Guide to Clients & Profits
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The Clients & Profits X Media Link is a stand-alone
application that imports broadcast orders, print insertion orders,
and vendor invoices from popular media buying systems into your
C&P database. It imports media orders and invoices from SmartPlus,
Strata, Tapscan, and other media buying systems that support
the Standard Media Interface.
The “standard media interface” is a technical
specification that defines the interface between media buying
systems and accounting systems like Clients & Profits
X. It is a generic interface designed especially for ad
agencies to simplify tranferring data between media buying
systems and accounting programs. The SMI specification is
used by developers to program export files from media to
accounting. You don’t need to know anything about the
SMI in order to use the C&P Media Link.
Media buying systems that support SMI, such as SmartPlus, Tapscan, and
Strata export station and publication orders from media plans into specially-formatted
text files. A separate text file is created for each broadcast order,
insertion order, or vendor invoice. Each text file includes the details
of the order (e.g., station ID, run dates, number of spots, rating, cost,
etc.) or invoice needed by Clients & Profits X for job costing, billing,
and media accounting.
Here’s how it works: A media buyer enters broadcast orders, insertion
orders, and vendor invoices into SmartPlus, Tapscan, or Strata. The media
buying system then exports a copy of the order or invoice as a text file
on your file server. A broadcast order export file will have a .TBY extension,
an insertion order a .PBY extension, and a vendor invoice a .VAP extension.
The C&P Media Link looks for these export files (either one at a
time or automatically at different intervals), importing the data into
your Clients & Profits X database as broadcast orders, insertion
orders, or vendor invoices. The imported orders appear in the Insertion/Broadcast/Interactive/Outdoor Orders window as broadcast or insertion
orders—just as if you’d typed them in yourself. These orders
can be billed to clients just like any other order. The imported invoices
appear in Accounts Payable—just as if you’d typed them in yourself.
The C&P Media Link application lets you import media buys as they
happen, one at a time. Or, automatic importing can be scheduled at various
intervals (e.g., every hour, every day, etc.). This option lets you run
the C&P Media Link unattended on a spare computer somewhere in the
office, importing new buys automatically throughout the day.
The C&P Media Link really pays off when you’re buying large
amounts of broadcast or print media. Rekeying dozens of buys each week
into Clients & Profits X would be tedious and probably error-prone.
Since the Media Link imports the actual media buy, there’s no double-entry
and no missing data.
Contents:
 Key
Features
How
the Media Link works
Starting
the Media Link
Media
Link Preferences
Importing
Media Data
Media
Link Log
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