Month: June 2018

Last year, when Publicis Groupe said it would pull out of the Cannes Lions festival and awards show and reinvest the funds in an artificial intelligence platform, it sparked other holding companies to rethink their presences. Many had become concerned that the festival, which takes place every June along the beach in the south of… Continue reading »

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There was, and probably still is, a fair amount of panic in the digital media industry as companies struggled to figure out how to solicit consent and properly process and transfer data under the recently enacted General Data Protection Regulation. A top concern of ad tech vendors in particular: Publishers, uncertain about whether their vendors were GDPR-compliant, would cull them post-GDPR.

It’s become increasingly common for publishers to reduce the number of vendors they work with. Publishers have shed vendors to help boost their site speed, increase CPMs and simplify cross-device campaigns. But few companies have cut vendors as a result of GDPR. In an online survey of Digiday+ members conducted this month, just 18 percent of the 16 companies surveyed admitted to cutting a vendor due to GDPR.

The post Digiday Research: As companies mull cutting vendors, over 50 percent employ CDPs appeared first on Digiday.

“Data-Driven Thinking” is written by members of the media community and contains fresh ideas on the digital revolution in media. Today’s column is written by Adam Broitman, chief strategy officer at Kiip. Despite the industry’s best efforts, the cost of ad fraud remains a $6.5 billion concern. Trust, in the world of digital advertising, is… Continue reading »

The post Today’s Ad Verification Providers May Fail Us In The Long Term appeared first on AdExchanger.

“The Sell Sider” is a column written for the sell side of the digital media community.  Today’s column is written by Alessandro De Zanche, an independent audience strategy consultant.  Media brands’ survival depends on a sound audience and data strategy. But before the strategy can be devised, a deep phase of audience and data auditing… Continue reading »

The post A Media Brand’s Audience And Data Strategy: A Bridge Between Current Assets, Future Goals appeared first on AdExchanger.

BarkBox has joined the growing group of direct-to-consumer companies that are redistributing their Facebook spending to traditional channels.

The subscription service, which delivers boxes of dog treats and toys starting at $21 per month, has spend around 75 percent of its ad budget on Facebook since launching in 2012. In April, it cut that to 25 percent to spend more on TV, direct mail, events and retail, with plans to add radio and out of home.

Facebook in January prioritized user posts over brand and publisher content, leading to increased competition for ad inventory in the feed and causing CPMs to shoot up 122 percent year over year, according to AdStage data reported by Recode. BarkBox is still using pet influencers with organic posts on social media. But it sees traditional media, especially TV, as a better deal than Facebook and a way to expose the company to a wider audience.

Other DTC companies like Brooklinen, Thinx, Roman and Curology have cut Facebook ad spending in favor of traditional channels, citing high inventory costs and cluttered Facebook feeds.

“Smart companies will always be looking to find eyeballs in other places at lower costs,” said Jay Livingston, CMO of Bark, the company behind BarkBox. “I’ve had conversations with CMOs who’ve said they wished they would’ve moved money away from [Facebook] sooner. That’s similar to us.”

BarkBox experimented with traditional media last summer when Livingston joined the company, partly because he had experience in TV and out of home as the former svp of global marketing at Bank of America. “We always knew we didn’t want to be at the mercy of one platform,” Livingston said.

In November, BarkBox tested its first national direct-response TV ad and looked at the number of subscriptions were generated in the five minutes after the ad aired. BarkBox would not share its results so far.

BarkBox does all of its creative in-house, unlike some other direct-to-consumer companies, so it can create a TV ad for one-tenth of the cost of an agency and with quick turnarounds — it created the company’s first TV ad in a month, Livingston said.

“That’s the difference-maker,” said Livingston. “If you add an expensive commercial in the mix, it suddenly makes those CPAs [cost per acquisitions] become less appealing.”

BarkBox, which is rumored to be going public, brought in over $100 million in revenue in 2017 and expects to double that this year, according to the company.

BarkBox also plans more events, which take the company outside of urban areas where the most of its BarkBox’s customers live. It was an official sponsor of the CMA Fest last weekend in Nashville, where BarkBox had a booth and passed out free dog toys.

Radio, print, out of home and physical retail locations are in the plans as well. It’s started selling toys in Target stores and will expand to other, unnamed big retail chains, Livingston said.

One place you won’t see BarkBox ads is the New York subway system, which is already crowded with other DTC companies such as Casper, Seamless and Away.

“If you’re really looking to maximize the amount of customers you get per dollar,” said Livingston, “that’s probably not where you would go.”

The post BarkBox cuts Facebook spending in favor of traditional channels appeared first on Digiday.

Cannes can be tough to navigate. We got some tips from Cannes veterans to help you avoid being the wide-eyed newbie wandering around the Croisette sweating, lost and not recognizing David Droga when you inevitably bump into him. 

Don’t overschedule yourself: It takes time to go from one place to another in Cannes; plus, everyone is running late. “You also don’t want to be the person running in the summer heat down the Croisette,” said 360i President Abbey Klaassen. Nobody likes that person.

Pack wisely: Lost luggage is inevitable. It’s a rite of passage in Cannes. “Just in case, bring a change of clothes in the carry-on, or better yet, don’t check at all,” said Jeremy Miller, chief communications officer at McCann.

Leave a few minutes for serendipity: You’ll never know who you’ll meet strolling along the Croisette. “Don’t over-calendarize your trip. Move by inertia and you will see, feel and learn more,” said Gyro CEO Christoph Becker.

Don’t forget the soccer: Every four Cannes, the World Cup happens at the same time. “It is my favorite thing, especially if you’re American and don’t get much out of it since they didn’t qualify. But suddenly, you’re in France,” said Klaassen. “Don’t forget to celebrate it.”

Don’t expect victory: Coming to Cannes with any expectation of victory may be the greatest mistake of all. “It will turn the week into a brooding cesspool of your own emotions,” said Muhtayzik-Hoffer co-founder John Matecyzk. “All celebrations will turn into mourning and questioning your self-worth.” If you do win, stay humble, and don’t tote your Lion around.

Wear comfortable shoes: Cannes is usually considered a pretty casual place, and shorts — as long as they’re not the denim kind — are totally OK in most places. But whether you choose to go fancy or stay casual, veterans agree the worst mistake is to wear uncomfortable shoes. “La Croisette is actually longer than you think,” Mcgarrybowen President Angela Johnson said. Another tip, from Essence Global CMO Cathy Carl, is more prosaic: Don’t forget the Body Glide.

Don’t skip the Palais: It’s become a badge of honor for some to proclaim how they didn’t even register for Cannes. But most veterans make it a point to at least stop by the Palais. “Being in the room with people uses a different part of your brain, and you hear things and realize things and process things in a new way,” said Matecyzk. “Don’t miss too many presentations.” (Also, the Palais is freezing, so bring a light jacket if you plan to spend any time there.)

Buy water: Hydration is your friend. Go to Monoprix, the French version of Target, near Rue d’Antibes, and buy some water for your room.

Don’t be cynical: It’s easy to hate the thought of thousands of advertising people in a self-congratulatory bacchanalia drafting off a real film festival. Try not to. As Matecyzk puts it: “Our industry has one global convention. It might as well be in the south of France.”

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