Why Block?

Because your inventory in rarely defined distinctly and unique, it is necessary to block some inventory if others have been sold. This might be for

• physical reasons as the inventory items are overlapping or even 
• political that certain slots will not sell if others have been taken. 

Here a print example: You have the option to sell a page in your periodical either in two half pages or one whole page. Having sold one or the other to a customer would restrict your available offers. To do so use the ADvendio "blocking inventory" objects and related lists. 

Types of blocking

ADvendio can manage the following blocking types:

1. Placements,
2. AdTypes, or
3. AdSpecs.

Doing so is easy and it works the same for all three objects.

How to set up Blocking

Blocking Related List for Placements/AdType/AdSpecs

First, your administrator has to add the related list: i.e. add Blocked Placements to your Placement Layout. 

Then you can enter a Master and a dependently blocked placement if necessary also with a factor (please refer to the Print example above).

Blocked Placements/AdTypes/AdSpec Records

The same you can do for AdTypes and AdSpecs. Simply add the related list to your  Layout and define which record blocks which. You can do it only one way using Master and dependent record or create two records if they both block each other. 

Blocking Factor

Constant Quantity=Quantity

Rounding

Rounds always to an Integer using the following rules - 

If Constant Quantity=Frequency or Constant Quantity=Guaranteed AI: System does not round

Overbooking

Only the blocked Ad Spec/AdPrice (as one line in the booking calendar) will show them as over-booked and not negative value should be inherited to next level.

Real World Blocking Examples

Placement Blocking

Example:

1. A newspaper edition would like to sell in different regions like geographical Regions, Countries, or other like North, South, or smaller units. Selling the northern placement would then block others from buying the same spot for ALL of the countries. 

AdType Blocking

Example:

1. Your periodical has a loose insert with a maximal weight of AdType of 100g. You can also sell other smaller AdTypes with less weight. But selling a 60g AdType would block the bigger inserts and decrease the overall values of 100g by 60g so that 40g would be left.
2. Full page layout blocks all single AdType. So AdType 1, 2, 3 and 4 will get an entry to block the full page. 

AdSpec Blocking

Examples:

1. Imagine that you are trying to sell the same inventory to different customers in the US and Europe. Therefore you will have two active AdPrices with different currencies and prices for the same AdSpec. But once it has been bought by either the US Customer or European Customer the other one can't have it also. Therefore the AdSpec needs to block itself. 
2. If a full 1/1 page blocks a double 2/1 on one side, the other full 1/1 pages on the another side must be also blocked. That can be solved using Ad Spec blocking records.

This AdSpec is sold in US Dollar and Euro on two different price list: Special and Standard. But once sold it can't be sold at another price. Therefore it also has a self-blocking record.If I sell it now to one customer for a specific day the booking calendar will show it as blocked so that I can't double book. Here is what the booking calendar for that item will look like. Please make sure to include the column AdSpec Name into the layout otherwise the second line would not show in red! 

Self-blocking

Example Out of Home: One AdPrice with a Placement "single sided" is blocking itself. This means that is availability decrease once it has been booked. Other line items with the same AdPrice, but the same Placement will be blocked, if you have created a blocking record for the placement to block "single sided" with "single sided" (itself). The Position Chart will handle this as if a "real" Blocking record with factor 1 exists.