Less BS, More Facts, Some Opinions
Why wouldn’t DSPs want to secure the best possible access to OTT inventory through programmatic while accessing the impression commitments and set pricing provided by direct deals? If DSPs want to compete with more traditional advertising platforms, they will need to do just that, writes Doug Huntington, CEO of FatTail.
The post Manual Deals Just Won’t Cut It For Premium OTT Inventory appeared first on AdExchanger.
Here’s today’s AdExchanger.com news round-up… Want it by email? Sign up here. TikTok, TikTok Everywhere While other social platforms emulate TikTok’s short-form video tactics, TikTok is trying to be more like TV. (Really, it doesn’t consider itself a social media platform.) Extending the max video length to ten minutes earlier this year was one move. TikTok… Continue reading »
The post TikTok Took On Social – Next Up Is TV; Millennials Will be Haunted By Nostalgia Brands appeared first on AdExchanger.
Poppi, a gut health beverage brand created in 2020, has primarily used social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, platforms where conversations about gut health have been popular in recent years, to get the word out. This month, the brand is shifting gears from digital to field marketing for the first time with an out-of-home advertising campaign.
“Everyone has been locked down for the last few years, and we’ve been desperate to get out and really show who and what Poppi is,” said Allison Ellsworth, founder of Poppi, adding that the brand’s campaign features out-of-home ads while also using social media influencers to promote the product.
Aside from OOH ads in New York, Poppi is also doing 270 demos across the city with guerrilla sampling.
“It’s a big push to just really get our name out there and to just saturate the city of New York,” said Ellsworth, commenting on the fact that they could not do this prior to this year due to the city shutting down from 2020-2021. As summer is a time when people try to stay hydrated despite the heat, the brand’s promotional campaign serves to bring awareness to the brand among its millennial and Gen Z target audience.
Poppi spent a little over $1 million for this campaign, according to Ellsworth, and the budget was split between OOH, print ads, influencer marketing, Amazon, and social media marketing through TikTok. Starting in July, it will run for six weeks. Ellsworth did not give exact figures on which channel received how much. However, Ellsworth estimated that 80% of the budget went toward influencer marketing.
The brand tapped influencers such as Larray, a YouTube personality, Angel Merino, a celebrity make-up artist and beauty influencer, Brigette Pheloung, a TikTok star, and Makayla London, a fashion model and TikTok star to help promote the campaign. Poppi chose those influencers with factors such as follower size, their impact with their millennial and Gen Z audience and authenticity.
“You want to have diversity, you want to have inclusivity, you want to have people of color, people [who are] plus size, LGBTQ, straight red hair, right? Like you want to also be super-inclusive within these campaigns so that it’s authentic and real,” said Ellsworth of the brand’s influencer strategy.
“Carefully choosing who to work with in a creator partnership is key for brands today,” noted Magda Houalla, senior director of marketing strategy at the full-service sales, marketing, and promotions agency Aspire.
“Brand and creator partnerships today are so much more than a handful of posts on social media; we’re seeing creators have a direct impact on product development, attend events alongside industry experts, and of course, create content that fuels every marketing channel for the brand,” said Houalla. “Giving each creator the opportunity to add their own personal touch to engage audiences [will help] in ways that will resonate.”
Sol Betesh, COO & co-founder, Fallen Media, the creator-driven content studio building next-gen media brands commented further about Poppi’s strategy for this campaign: “Brands are starting to recognize the ultimate value in two trends: great content and talented creators. When you combine the two, you’re set up for real valuable engagement with your audience.”
Poppi is not the only brand that is branching out from digital ads to more traditional mediums now. As previously reported by Digiday, Uproad is also doing these advertising campaigns. The two startups launched during the pandemic in 2020, and both of them aim to take advantage of the fact that people are now out and about more than during the early days of the pandemic.
An omnichannel approach in the current market conditions is “no longer a luxury, it’s a requirement,” said Matt Davis, co-founder and CEO of the food and beverage service company Mosaic Foods, of Poppi’s overall strategy.
The post Why gut health soda brand Poppi aims to ‘saturate’ New York City with OOH ads as it targets Gen Z, millennials appeared first on Digiday.
The overturning of Roe v. Wade last month sent shockwaves through the business world, with companies across the advertising, tech and media industries issuing public statements against the ruling and offering to help employees travel to regions with superior access to abortions if necessary.
One sector that has been notably silent during the post-Roe outcry is esports. Few esports organizations have issued public statements of any sort regarding the ruling. Even League of Legends developer Riot Games was tentative to speak out: A Riot Games skins producer, rather than a public relations manager, shared the company’s internal memo in support of abortion access.
This relatively muted response is surprising for an industry that expressed forceful support for Black Lives Matter in summer 2020 and was rife with rainbow-themed posts and banners as recently as this past Gay Pride Month.
To explore esports brands’ response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Digiday caught up with one of the few esports executives whose organization did respond to the news: Ben Spoont, CEO of Misfits Gaming. When Spoont heard of the ruling, he moved quickly — immediately circulating an internal message promising Misfits employees that the organization would support them in any efforts to travel to states with abortion access. He went on to share the statement in a public-facing tweet, writing that the Supreme Court was “destroying the rights [of] women.”
“It was very simple: I sat on my computer, went into Slack, typed it and hit send,” Spoont said. “And if you read my message, I even put my own neck on the line.”
Read more of Spoont’s thoughts on the esports industry’s reaction to the Roe v. Wade news below.
This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.
On the industry’s mild response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade thus far:
“It was incredibly surprising to me,” Spoont said. “My belief of the gaming industry is that it is way more progressive, and should be more progressive in nature, because our core audience is younger, and generally speaking, the younger you go, the more progressive and liberal you go.”
Spoont’s answer to this question reflects his strong understanding of the demographics and ideological preferences of the modern gaming and esports audience. However, misconceptions about gamers continue to abound, and the industry is only a few years out from the widespread stereotype of the gamer as a basement-dwelling incel — not necessarily the most progressive demographic. Furthermore, some esports organizations are localized to markets where the majority of the audience is against abortion rights, making it risky for them to speak out publicly. (This was arguably a source of concern for the Florida-based Misfits Gaming, but Spoont did not express concern.)
It’s also possible that privately-held esports organizations that would otherwise be inclined to speak out are afraid of disgruntling their current or future investors. The millionaires and billionaires investing in the esports industry are not as progressive as the average esports fan, and esports organizations certainly take their opinions to heart.
Still, the DNA of the esports industry is younger and more liberal than the average population, and it’s likely that esports organizations will provide quiet support to their employees following the ruling, regardless of their public statements on the matter. “I assume that many of them, privately, posted similar messages like I posted, and they just didn’t publish it,” Spoont said.
On the potential to turn off fans in conservative markets:
“I say this with peace and love: I don’t want them as my fans,” Spoont said. “Our community, and the fans that we are looking to attract, need to represent our values. And when you think about the communities that we are aggregating, the content creators that we have, it is one of intense diversity and inclusion. The core is that we really do stand for diversity and inclusion, championing women’s rights and LGBTQIA and the rights of humans. And so if someone wants to hate us for that, I’ll welcome it, because that means we’re doing something right.”
Beyond the ideological fervor of Spoont’s statement, supporting abortion rights is a wise business move. After all, the majority of Americans support the legality of abortions in all or most cases. But despite the logic behind the decision, even other esports organizations that spoke up about the ruling are skittish about going too hard on the issue of abortion. The only other prominent esports organization that has made a public pledge like Misfits’ is Evil Geniuses — but EG declined to put a representative forward for an interview about the decision, with a public relations representative saying that the org didn’t “want to be centerstage on the issue.”
On fans’ and brand partners’ responses to Misfits’ public statement:
Brand partnerships are a major revenue stream for most esports organizations, and Misfits is no exception. Although many non-gaming-endemic brands have made their own statements in support of abortion rights, Spoont’s public statement still risked provoking the ire of politically averse fans or sponsors.
“They’ve reacted positively, and I think that is an indication of the partners that we wish to have,” Spoont said. “I want to be clear: I respect other people’s opinion on the matter. I think they’re wrong, but I respect the fact that I have an opinion. At the core, we simply believe that this is a health care decision.”
Although Spoont’s statement puts Misfits in a more unstable position than some of its more silent competitors, there are potential benefits to be reaped from making such a move. Esports has expanded more rapidly than some organizations have been able to adjust, creating lingering issues of brand safety for orgs whose past toxicity issues or problematic opinions lurk just beneath the surface.
By putting itself front and center, Misfits is aligning its brand with equity and social justice, potentially getting ahead of esports’ brand-safety reckoning — and presenting a more positive vision for the esports community. “Esports is a great place for brands to get involved, because you’re looking at people who are representative of that community,” said Michael Baggs, strategy director for the social media agency The Social Element. “They’re people that have a great-sized audience most of the time, and within esports, there’s a big push for diversity to be honestly represented.”
The post ‘If someone wants to hate us for that, I’ll welcome it’: Misfits Gaming CEO Ben Spoont debriefs on esports industry’s muted Roe response appeared first on Digiday.
Some 15 years ago, in July 2007, Mad Men premiered on AMC and introduced audiences to creative director Don Draper played by Jon Hamm. Another now recognizable face also appeared in that pilot: Stephanie Courtney, the actress who plays Progressive’s pitchwoman Flo, played a switchboard operator in the show’s pilot.
The creative team for the insurance brand recently rolled out a new campaign featuring Hamm along with Courtney and used their history as a “wink and a nod,” according to Hamm. Digiday caught up with Hamm to hear about how he works with brands, how he decides what’s right for him as a pitchman and whether he’s seen the Zoomerified Don Draper meme.
This conversation has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.
Yeah, I like to have some sort of influence. I think I have a pretty good barometer to what’s funny as well as to what’s going to play and won’t be off-putting to a viewer. It’s all a fun-house version of me. You don’t want to lean too heavily on that. You don’t want to come across as vain. It’s better to come across as silly and in on the joke, having fun with it. Those are the ones I’ve been able to succeed with whether it’s the Apple commercial or this Progressive campaign or even ones I’ve done for H&R Block or Skip the Dishes up in Canada.
I have a decent amount of participation in the process without stepping on people’s toes while also allowing the agencies, who I know first-hand obviously how much work, effort, time and equity they put into things, how hard they work and how many lawyers have to vet it. It’s not lost on me how much work goes into [an ad campaign] so I’d never want to come in and blow it all up like, Oh this won’t work. There’s always a way to massage it to fit on me a little better. For the most part, agencies have been very receptive to input like that.
It depends upon a couple of things. The most important is generally what does the brand really stand for? You don’t want to be involved with something you’re not committed to because then it’s just a for pay gig. The other is the creative. You want to have fun with it. If you align yourself with the right brands your ability to be an effective representative of those brands is significantly greater.
It’s important to be able to maintain those relationships. Mercedes is a perfect example. I’ve been the voice of the brand in North America going on 13 years now and I’ve outlasted CEOs. It’s a great job to have. I’m really proud of the work I’ve put into it. Their creative for a car company is second to none. It represents what they do and who they are very well and my voice is a good fit for that. It’s things like that. It’s the other end of the spectrum from me clowning around and making fun of myself ala the Progressive spot. Fortunately, we’re able to run the gamut of those things too. That’s part of the fun of making commercials.
I have not seen that. I’ve seen quite a few Don Draper memes but I haven’t seen that. I’ll have to look that up.
Yeah, I guess so. You don’t really know it’s happening until someone informs you of it. It means you’ve penetrated culture in some way, which in some form is a compliment. But I don’t pay much attention to it.
I’m still holding onto the idea that when you say people don’t watch the way they watched anymore – I think some people don’t do that anymore. I think quite a few people still do. There’s swathes of the consumer landscape that are still processing content and processing advertising the same way otherwise nobody would spend money on direct mail or People magazine anymore. There still are consumers using that media. They’re not the loudest and they’re not the flashiest and certainly not the youngest. But when you talk about brand loyalty and people who do the buying and will do the buying over a long term, especially when you’re talking about things like insurance, I think the traditional way [of advertising] is still very effective to those people.
But you’ll also see these micro spots for social media. That’s a viable way to reach people as well. It’s more of a multi-pronged approach nowadays. The powers that be aren’t going to leave a dollar on the table. If there’s another way to reach consumers they’ll find it.
As society continues to climb out of the Covid pandemic, advertisers have taken a second look at out-of-home advertising in hopes to catch the attention of consumers while they’re out and about. As the channel was reignited, marketers looked beyond the usual major metropolitan cities like NYC and LA to follow people where they moved throughout the pandemic, including secondary cities like Atlanta and Miami. Seemingly, those efforts are paying off per new research from OOH marketplace company OneScreen.ai. Find a breakdown of the research by the numbers below:
“If we can pave the way but get punched around along the way, that’s fine. We don’t care.”
— OKCupid Chief Marketing Officer Melissa Hobley when asked about the brand’s plan to use its app and its ads to fight for abortion rights.
The post Marketing Briefing: ‘In on the joke’: Actor Jon Hamm on what’s right for him as a pitchman, how he works with brands appeared first on Digiday.
For all the news (and panic) associated with the coming death of the third-party cookie, there has been a flurry of action on the part of agencies and brands to prepare, but very little consensus on what that preparation entails.
Digiday+ Research found in an April survey that the vast majority of agency and brand professionals agree that preparations are underway for Google to sunset third-party cookies at the end of next year. But when asked about how exactly they are preparing, a majority was nowhere to be found.
Of the 146 industry pros surveyed by Digiday, 70% of agency and brand executives said their businesses are busy actively preparing for the end of the third-party cookie.
But when it comes to what specifically agencies and brands are working on to take them beyond third-party cookies, responses to Digiday’s survey were across the board. Among respondents, there was no majority concerning what agencies and brands are working on as a replacement for the third-party cookie.
First-party data, ad tech-built cookie alternatives and contextual targeting did come close: 49% of agency and brand execs said their businesses are investing more in technology to acquire first-party data, 45% plan on using ad tech-built alternatives to the third-party cookie and 45% are spending more on contextual targeting campaigns. Meanwhile, a third of agency and brand execs are looking to second-party data partnerships, Digiday’s research found.
And where does Google’s suggested replacement for third-party cookies – Google Topics – fall in the conversation among agency and brand execs? Among those surveyed by Digiday, more than 40% did not agree or disagree that Google Topics will effectively replace the third-party cookie.
Clearly, industry execs have plenty of drive and options when it comes to charting the path beyond the third-party cookie. But the map for measurement and targeting past the end of next year is far from complete.
The post Digiday+ Research: Agencies, brands don’t agree on specific path beyond third-party cookie expiration appeared first on Digiday.
Short-form vertical video platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts have proven to be a shortcut for creators to accumulate large audiences. But what’s the long game for the creators’ businesses?
During VidCon — the digital video industry’s annual gathering — Digiday spoke with creators and industry executives about the current business priorities for creators. Topping the list seems to be diversifying their mix of platforms and revenue streams, including developing income sources outside of video. For more, watch the video above.
The post How short-form video creators like TikTok stars are playing the revenue diversification long game appeared first on Digiday.
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts • Stitcher • Spotify
Heading into this year’s annual TV advertising upfront negotiations, the big story was whether TV ad buyers and sellers would move en masse away from using Nielsen’s measurements as the currency for their upfront deals. They didn’t. However, that doesn’t mean the measurement makeover wave has ebbed, GroupM executive director of research and investment analytics Bharad Ramesh said in the latest episode of the Digiday Podcast.
“I don’t know if things have quieted down. They may be quiet publicly, but we know internally — and I know speaking for some of our other agency peers — internally there’s a lot of work going on in terms of lining up tests or talking to networks about shadowing currencies or even, in the case of another agency, piloting for the upfront with an alternative currency,” said Ramesh.
Much of the industry’s measurement work currently revolves around testing the various measurement providers in order to assess their pros and cons. For example, GroupM has been running tests with more than a dozen of its largest clients to evaluate measurement providers — including iSpot.tv and Comscore as well as Nielsen’s upcoming revamped measurement system Nielsen One — so that in the first quarter of 2023, WPP’s ad buying arm and its clients can decide on which to use as currencies in next year’s upfront market.
“Essentially we’re taking a campaign that’s scheduled to run in Q2 and Q3 of this year, and we want to be able to capture the campaign with the alternate providers where possible,” said Ramesh. However, he added, “the goal is not to compare and contrast as much as to understand where each of these currencies are in terms of their readiness.”
Here are a few highlights from the conversation, which have been edited for length and clarity.
Decision time
Our goal is to be in a position [in] Q1 of next year where our clients and our client teams are familiar with these alternatives. So the decision time for us, it’s always been — and we’ve been saying this since last November — the next upfront, 2023-24. We want to assess all these currency providers, make sure our clients and client teams [get] a first-hand look at what’s happening, what’s real and what’s not. And then get to the point early next year where we can make an informed decision.
Counting and converting the currencies
The trading currency is going to be one or two. It wouldn’t be done on a campaign basis because I can’t have one campaign on iSpot, another campaign on Nielsen, another campaign on VideoAmp. That will just confuse everybody. What we are trying to also solve for, as a GroupM solution, is to try and come up with a currency converted in some way or form.
The universal support sticking point
The reason we can’t use one alternate currency across this upfront is because it’s not applicable across all the media providers. If it’s one client, we would expect to use the same currency for that one client across the ecosystem. The reason we are not using these alternative currencies in the upfront is exactly because every network has their choice and it doesn’t work for our clients.
Bigger than TV
If you look at our top 10 video partners today, it includes Amazon, Roku and YouTube. Going forward, it may include one or two social platforms. It might include [Dotdash] Meredith with their premium video offering or Condé [Nast] with their video offering. The moment you’re saying that the measurement system is going to unify linear and online, with [connected TV] in between, then all of a sudden my choice set of premium video partners from a TV buy goes from just the networks and Amazon and Roku to Condé and Meredith also. And there’s a whole conversation on TikTok that you need to have at some point, and Twitter. Essentially, as your definition of premium video expands beyond just the traditional network partners, the currency needs to be scaled across all of it.
The post GroupM’s Bharad Ramesh explains why TV advertising’s measurement shift is only getting started appeared first on Digiday.