Legacy broadcast traffic software, replaced from scratch

Millenia3 managed broadcast media traffic for some of the world's biggest brands, getting TV and radio spots produced, cleared, and delivered to stations. Its custom legacy software was a hassle to use and nearly impossible to update, and a first rebuild with another agency had fallen through. We designed and built Portkey from scratch: one web platform for quotes, production, traffic instructions, and invoicing, connected to QuickBooks Online. We then supported it through Yangaroo's acquisition of Millenia3 in late 2023.

Client: Millenia3, broadcast traffic specialists, now part of Yangaroo
Built: Portkey, a replacement for their legacy software built from scratch
Services: UI/UX design, web development, QA, project management
Stack: Laravel, React, Inertia, MUI, QuickBooks Online
Engagement: Design and build in 2023, then support through Yangaroo’s acquisition of Millenia3

Results

42
Screens across quoting, production, traffic, and billing
20
Production tasks tracked for every spot
8
Invoice stages, from draft to paid

A show's page in Portkey on a laptop, with its projects, grids, and billing

What changed

Software that helps the work instead of slowing it

Legacy software

On Portkey

Software: Legacy softwareCustom legacy software that was a hassle to use and nearly impossible to update.; On PortkeyA web platform built around how each team works.
Handoffs: Legacy softwareA tool that got in the way of teams working together.; On PortkeyEach team emailed when work is ready for it, with the details attached.
Documents: Legacy softwarePDFs for partners, customers, and vendors made by hand.; On PortkeyQuotes, traffic instructions, and invoices generated from the work itself.
Billing: Legacy softwareTime-consuming manual invoicing.; On PortkeyInvoices checked against airplay and synced with QuickBooks Online.

How a campaign moves

From the first quote to the final invoice

Millenia3’s work runs through several teams, each with its own steps. We spent most of the design phase in discovery and wireframes with those teams, so Portkey follows the business as it actually runs.

Quote the work
Quotes are built from Millenia3’s catalog of services, priced with the rates set for each client and brand, and previewed or printed for the client.
Plan the grids
Each project holds grids for TV or radio that list the spots to run, in HD, SD, radio, or digital formats, with their flight dates.
Produce every spot
When a grid is ready, production gets an email listing the services each spot needs. Up to 20 tasks per spot, from clearance and captions to delivery, are checked off as they are done, and QC gets its own alert.
Send traffic instructions
Traffic instructions are drafted, published, and generated as PDFs for stations and partners, including a version their systems can read automatically.
Bill it
Invoices move through eight stages from draft to paid, pass an airplay review, and sync with QuickBooks Online, billed at the end of a flight, monthly, or quarterly as each client prefers.

What we built

Tools for the teams that run the business

Millenia3 gave us a wealth of documentation, and its accounting team worked with us directly on the QuickBooks integration, so the platform fits how each team already worked.

Search
Find anything as you type
One search covers clients, brands, campaigns, projects, grids, assets, traffic instructions, and invoices, with typeahead in the forms that need it.
Data grids
Dense tables built for daily work
Sortable, filterable data grids on MUI keep long lists of projects, spots, and invoices workable on one screen.
Rates
Pricing by client and brand
Rates are set per client and brand, with overrides where a deal calls for one, and applied when a grid’s services are billed.
Roles
A view for each team
Admin, production, and billing roles decide who can do what, so each team works in its own part of the platform.

Also in the platform