Agency Trading Desks Lag In Awareness, Understanding
Despite their growing importance in the real-time media trading marketplace, agency trading desks are one of the least understood parts of the advertising technology ecosystem, especially among the stakeholders that may count most: marketers. In what is believed to be the first study of its kind, Advertiser Perceptions Inc. has begun releasing findings of its first “Ad Tech Study,” which finds that a third of marketers either have no or very little awareness of agency trading desks.
The study, which is based on a survey of 345 advertising execs, ad technology suppliers and investors in December, found that even ad agencies lag the rest of the ad technology industry in terms of their familiarity with agency trading desks.
Only 77% of ad agency executives said they were very or somewhat familiar with trading desks, vs. 79% of media sellers.
The only advertising technology category generating lower overall awareness than agency trading desks, was so-called Supply-Side Platforms, or SSPs -- companies such as Rubicon Project, Pubmatic and AdMeld that help publishers manage and optimize the supply of their biddable media impressions in programmatic media-buying marketplace.
Overall, 64% of respondents said they were very or somewhat familiar with SSPs. Among agency executives, awareness of SPPs fell to 58%, ironically trailing the awareness of marketers (63%) by five points.
“There’s so much noise in the ad tech marketplace that it's creating a lot of confusion,” says Randy Cohen, a partner at API, which conducted the new ad technology survey as a means of “benchmarking” the awareness of various entities in the technology supply chain. He said API was motivated to begin tracking ad technology suppliers because of the rapid invention and reinvention of technology suppliers and the overall confusion some observers feel when looking at things like Lumascapes infamous chart illustrating the complexity of it.
One of the problems, Cohen said, was that new and emerging ad technology suppliers often create new jargon in an attempt to differentiate themselves from other suppliers.
“If you think about it, I think the tech companies are marketing to themselves and to investors rather than to agencies and marketers,” Cohen said, adding that API will conduct periodic studies to measure changes in awareness and sentiment of various components of the ad technology sector.
API is best known for its tracking studies of advertiser and agency awareness and sentiment of ad-supported media suppliers, including TV networks, magazines and digital publishers.
Not surprisingly, the Ad Tech Study shows the greatest overall awareness was generated by the oldest segments of the ad technology industry: ad nets.
Overall, 95% of respondents were very/somewhat familiar with ad networks. Among agency executives (99%) and marketers (100%), there was almost no lack of awareness.
Very/Somewhat Familiar With Agency Trading Desks
| Total | 76% |
| Marketers | 67% |
| Agency Executives | 77% |
| Buy-Side | 74% |
| Sell-Side | 79% |
| Investors | 78% |
Source: Advertiser Perceptions Inc.’s 2012 Ad Tech Study.
Recent Online Media Daily Articles
-
Acquisitions Flourish, Google To Seek Equity Firm To Further Deals June 19, 1:24 p.m.
Google is considering alliances with private-equity firms to help structure acquisition deals, but the tech company ... -
Millennial Expands Video Ad Options June 19, 11:44 a.m.
Mobile ad network Millennial Media is stepping up its video ad offerings with the launch of ... -
CIMM Issues Request For Data, Cross-Platform Metrics June 19, 9:29 a.m.
The Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement (CIMM) said it has issued a request for proposals involving ... -
Heads Or Tails: Facebook Grows A Long One, Surpasses 1 Million Advertisers June 19, 7:48 a.m.
Facebook has reached an important ad industry milestone, becoming one of the few mega platforms to ... -
Consumer Action: Most Web Users Want Control Over Tracking June 18, 8:20 p.m.
Most Web users have expectations about privacy that appear to be at odds with current practices ... -
Affiliate Channels Attract Global Buying, Tailored Marketing Programs June 18, 5:54 p.m.
The Internet continues to make the world smaller for affiliate marketers, but there are physical challenges ... -
Motorola Hires Digitas For Global Media Account June 18, 5:43 p.m.
Google-owned Motorola has appointed Publicis Groupe’s Digitas to handle global media duties, according to sources. Those ... -
Microsoft Rolls Out Ad Pano, Mobile Ad Format June 18, 3:03 p.m.
With the help of the broader ad industry, Microsoft this week is rolling out a mobile ... -
Kiip Debuts Self-Serve Option For Advertisers June 18, 2:23 p.m.
Mobile rewards network Kiip has added a self-serve option for advertisers aimed at attracting more small- and medium-sized ... -
Mindshare Taps Elkins As Managing Director, Digital, West Coast June 18, 1:51 p.m.
Mindshare, part of WPP's GroupM, has tapped digital marketing veteran Amy Elkins to be managing director, ...
Be the first to comment on "Agency Trading Desks Lag In Awareness, Understanding"
Leave a Comment