Audit ServicesCirculation
IVS Frequently Asked Questions
- What is an Insert Verification Service audit?
- When was the Insert Verification Service launched and why?
- Is IVS recommended for all newspapers?
- What is the cost of an IVS audit?
- If I’ve already completed an IVS audit, how do I renew or schedule subsequent audits?
- How do I enroll in the Insert Verification Service?
- What day will my IVS audit be conducted? Does IVS have to be conducted with my newspaper audit?
- Is an IVS audit conducted every year?
- What records are required for a quantitative IVS audit?
- Insert advertising schedules, including a listing of all insert advertisements scheduled for the test day.
- Identification of the specific advertising zones to which each insert is intended for delivery.
- Listing of inserts included in each home-delivery and single-copy route.
- Reconciliation, of each insert, for inserts ordered versus inserts delivered to the newspaper, versus draw of routes scheduled to carry the insert.
- Listing of all shortages to include identification of the routes, advertising zones, and/or geographic zones where shorted inserts were excluded from scheduled routes.
- Identification of all inserts that were out of specification and scheduled for delivery on the test date.
- Copy of the newspaper’s rate card with information regarding minimum specifications for FSIs.
- What is the audit process for the quantitative portion of the IVS program?
- ABC and newspaper personnel will discuss the newspaper's distribution processes in advance of the scheduled IVS audit.
- ABC auditors will identify specific home-delivery and single-copy routes to be included in the test.
- Each selected route will have at least one insert package reviewed by an auditor and the publisher’s personnel. Every effort will be made to include publisher’s personnel in the process of gaining access to insert packages.
- The auditor will determine if the sampled insert packages intended for the sampled routes are being delivered, by intercepting each package at the latest stage of the process prior to actual delivery to households and retail outlets.
- Each sampled package will then be compared to the schedule of inserts for that route for the test date. Errors (missing inserts, incorrect versions, or incorrect inclusions) will be identified and used in an error calculation for the final report.
- A 96 percent proficiency rate will earn the newspaper a "pass" rating on the IVS Audit Report.
- What records are required for the qualitative IVS audit?
- A completed publisher's statement of insert practices and procedures.
- Original advertiser orders from previous Sunday showing the advertiser’s geographical requests.
- Packaging reports showing all of the advertising compositions created for previous Sunday.
- Written procedures detailing quantity verification of inserts received (weighing procedures and/or counting procedures).
- Written documentation showing proof of advertiser notification, at time of receipt, when received in poor quality and/or incorrect quantity.
- Previous Sunday’s receiving documents (bill of ladings, shipping invoices, packing slips, manifests, etc.).
- A copy of disciplinary action policy for mishandling of inserts.
- A copy of an inventory tracking system report that shows an insert’s location within the facility.
- System generated quality control documents that identify quantity and location of any error conditions.
- Signed and dated documentation proof of spot-checking insert ad package composition accuracy after machine and/or manual insertion.
- Written documentation showing proof of advertiser notification at time of insertion when poor quality and/or incorrect quantity is discovered and production of packages needs to be halted until resolution occurs.
- A key that shows the naming conventions of ad zone names to the aligned ZIP codes (if applicable) to verify against route reports.
- An example of notification to advertisers of an upcoming material fluctuation in draw (bonus day, holiday, etc.).
- Written policies and procedures to insure the carriers are supplied the correct insert packages (bundle toppers, cage tags, ink jetting, supervisor checks to insert package content lists, etc.).
- Documentation of self-audits taking place at the point where the newspaper’s preprints are provided to carrier.
- Copies of contracts for all non-employee contractors that are exposed to the preprints, either prior to, or subsequent to insertion.
- What type of report will be issued?
- Average Paid Circulation
- Final Pass/Fail Rating
- Error Type (Missing Inserts, Incorrect Versions, Incorrect Inclusions)
- Definitions and Terms: Net Error Rate, Gross Error Rate, Insert Package
- Detailed information about the field test date, including a description of the geography tested, test date(s), and any occurrences beyond the normal operating procedures observed on the test date
- Detailed information about any additional testing and reconciliation necessary
- General information about a newspaper’s insert days, policies, specifications, and delivery requirements
- Explanatory paragraph for additional disclosures deemed necessary
- Insert Receiving Process
- Insert Zoning & Scheduling Procedures
- Security Policy and Practice Prior to Insertion
- Quality Control During Insertion
- Procedures for Leftovers and Shortages
- Route Structure Integrity
- Timely & Accurate Quantity Information for Advertisers
- Draw Variability Policy
- Package Integrity in the Field
- Assuring Quality Delivery with a Non-employee Work force
- Is a prototype report available online?
- Where will the final reports be made available to ABC members?
- How soon after the IVS audit will the reports be released?
- Is the Insert Verification Service (IVS) similar to the Coupon Distribution Verification Service (CDVS)?
The IVS audit is a quantitative verification of the accuracy of a newspaper’s insert distribution processes. IVS verifies FSI distribution by measuring the correct number of inserts and versions per package, and the accurate delivery to retail and home-delivery locations.
The shelf life of a quantitative audit can be extended to three years if the newspaper achieves a 98 percent proficiency rating or higher and participates in a qualitative audit that reviews its internal controls and processes in the third year.
Launched in January 2006, the Insert Verification Service was developed by U.S. publisher and advertiser members in conjunction with the Newspaper Association of America (NAA). FSIs are a significant part of an advertiser’s total marketing investment; IVS was designed to provide these advertisers with an independent verification that their preprints were delivered to the desired target.
IVS is designed for major metro newspapers.
The average cost of an IVS audit is nearly 20 percent less than when the program launched in 2006. Typical audits begin at just $9,000, plus the auditors’ travel expenses such as airfare and hotel. The reduction in price reflects ABC’s ongoing efforts to increase efficiencies and reduce costs for all of its audit programs.
ABC also offers a flexible payment plan that allows you to spread the cost of the IVS audit program over a three-year period so you can better plan and budget for upcoming audit expenses. For example, if the total cost Anytown News’ three-year IVS audit program was $15,000, it could choose to pay for the audit in three yearly installments of $5,000.
For a customized quote, please contact at (224) 366-6375.
IVS audit reports carry a three-year shelf life, provided the newspaper received a superior proficiency rating of 98 percent or above and participates in the less intrusive, less costly qualitative audit in the third year.
For newspapers that receive a proficiency rating of 96 percent or more, but less than 98 percent, the IVS audit report carries a two-year shelf life.
Renewing newspapers are encouraged to schedule their next IVS audit well in advance to ensure that their desired audit date is available and that their advertisers always have uninterrupted access to a valid report.
Audit dates can be scheduled up to 12 months in advance by contacting ABC’s at (224) 366-6375.The publisher and ABC agree to the date chosen for IVS in advance. IVS is conducted on any representative Sunday during the year. IVS does not need to be conducted in conjunction with a newspaper's circulation audit.
IVS audit reports carry a three-year shelf life, provided the newspaper received a superior proficiency rating of 98 percent or above and participates in the less intrusive, less costly qualitative audit in the third year.
For newspapers that receive a proficiency rating of 96 percent or more, but less than 98 percent, the IVS audit report carries a two-year shelf life.
As with all ABC audit services, publishers are able to request more frequent audits.
In addition to traditional circulation records, the auditor should have access to the following information:
The quantitative portion of the IVS report includes the following information:
The qualitative portion of the IVS report includes the following information:
Yes, a prototype report can be found online.
IVS reports are available online at no extra charge, alongside Audit Reports and Publisher’s Statements, to subscribers of ABC’s eStatements service.
ABC also offers access to IVS audit results through the IVS Analysis Tool. Available for free to all ABC members with e-Data licenses, this tool is a quick and efficient way for advertisers to compare and review top-line results from newspapers’ IVS audit results. Output reports can be downloaded to Excel for easy analysis, e-mailed to colleagues or saved for future reference. To learn more about the IVS analysis tool, contact ABC’s e-Data at (877) 222-0932.
Proof copies of the final audit reports are submitted to publishers within three weeks of the test date, with the intent to publicly release the reports within four weeks of the test date.
No, the CDVS focuses on the security of cents-off coupons, and the IVS focuses on the distribution of FSIs. For more information about these services, please visit: http://www.accessabc.com/services/cdvsvsivs.htm.
