The gap between an ad space's official price (rate card) and the price actually paid after negotiation.
The gross rate is the price displayed on networks' rate cards. The net rate is what's actually paid after volume, seasonality, newcomer or agency discounts. In TV and press, the gap commonly reaches 40 to 70%.
Any budget reasoning based on gross rates is wrong. It's also the central trap of media for equity deals: a media contribution valued in gross is worth 2 to 3 times less in real buying value.
"We buy at negotiated net and disclose our real conditions to clients. In an audit, comparing your paid prices with market nets is often the fastest saving available."
Let's conduct an audit of your metrics together to identify your true growth levers.
