Ad Age Ad Exchange and Ad Network Guide is Out and ContextWeb is in
Posted by Jay Sears on Tue, Apr 21, 2009 @ 07:08 AM
Ad Age’s annual ad exchange and ad network guide came out this week and ContextWeb’s ADSDAQ Exchange is featured in a two page advertising spread. The highlight is a Q&A we are running with ContextWeb board member (Martha Stewart head, IAB chairperson, ex-Yahoo!, ex-DoubleClick among other spots) Wenda Harris Millard. Wenda discussed the art and science of advertising and the paramount importance of delivering insight to your customer.
Here is the Q&A:
AN INTERVIEW WITH WENDA HARRIS MILLARD, PRESIDENT, MEDIA AND CO-CEO, MARTHA STEWART LIVING OMNIMEDIA AND CONTEXTWEB BOARD MEMBER
Q: At the Internet Advertising Bureau’s annual meeting, you spoke about advertising being about the art and science of persuasion and participation. Tell us more.
WHM: Art and science, persuasion and participation, the advertising industry encompasses them all. The best agencies will offer greater strategic and creative capabilities without sacrificing their skills of mastering media complexity. And in my view, the way for us all to master media complexity is to leverage the advancements in technology and the evolving abundance of data to inform us, but not always make our final decision. We cannot put ourselves in binary mode, but must operate with an “and” attitude, recognizing that there is a necessity for right- and left-brain influences and decision-making. It is imperative for advertising professionals not to allow the advertising and technology worlds to collide, but rather to urge them into collaboration.
Q: How has the growing involvement of science and technology benefited advertisers and their agencies?
WHM: While for years the business seemed to err on the side of DESKart, I think it now errs on the side of science and math. Technology continues to facilitate our ability to target our audiences far more specifically than offline media can ever afford. Thanks to technology, we have an ever-growing supply of data that industry professionals can turn into true insight to create a more precise approach to marketing and advertising. All that said, we still have to appreciate and leverage the “art part” of the business. The smartest media plan isn’t so smart if the creative isn’t persuasive.
Q: It has been said, “2009 will be the year of the data dragon, and it will be tamed.” Please explain what you believe is the meaning and significance of this quote.
WHM: Growing this industry requires intelligent use of data. Due to technology, we currently sit atop a mountain of real-time metrics. The biggest opportunity for agencies today is to pull insights from this growing flood of new data and turn that into tradable, actionable information on behalf of marketers. That insight needs not only to inform where and how commercial messaging is directed or targeted but also needs to inform as to what the message is or should be. In other words, insight can (and inarguably should) shape creative to produce messaging that will persuade the consumer to become interested, involved and engaged with brands.
-- Jay Sears
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