Reconciliation > Avoid Reconciliation Problems

COMPASS's reconciliation process required linking every ad broadcast by media to both the original ad schedule and the applicable traffic instructions as they were originally issued. This task can be complex with ad schedules varying from week to week (or day to day). Additionally, traffic instructions are only casually related to the ad schedule; traffic can change in the middle of a schedule, even in the middle of a week. Yet COMPASS exhibits a high level of accuracy in matching up all the loose ends.

In some cases, a problem can inadvertently occur when a client chooses to skip one or more weeks in the campaign. If those weeks are "empty" (no ads appear during that week), COMPASS has no information to create a link. This is not a problem unless the media chooses to air one or more "make good" ads during a "skipped" week. Ideally, the media would hold making good missed ads until the client's schedule resumes. Unfortunately, some media tends to broadcast "make goods" at their convenience.

When such a case occurs, it becomes impossible to assign the "make good" to the day it actually is broadcast. It can be assigned to a prior or later week during the period (if such is available), but this results in an inaccurate reconciliation.

To avoid this issue completely, it is strongly recommended to avoid using the program's Omit Weeks feature and all "off the air" weeks in a schedule be filled with a copy of an adjacent "on the air" week, only with all ad quantities set to zero. If the Print schedule lines with zero ads is unchecked, such "off the air" weeks are not included in the broadcast order sent to media. However, should the media choose to broadcast "make goods" during this week, COMPASS will be able to correctly link to them and a potentially serious problem will be avoided.