Commentary

If You Don't Like What's Being Said, Change The Algorithm

One of the most surprising insights gleaned during the opening “branding” panel discussion at OMMA RTB Seattle was the discussion about how the “rest of the organization” is reacting to programmatic, particularly the most senior strategists, planners and, well, creative type people.

“We are finding that at slightly more senior levels, there’s a loss of interest,” Marlo Huang, VP-strategy at Liquid Advertising, and moderator of the panel noted, adding that it runs the gamut from planners to strategists and creatives.

“They want to be like Don Draper,” she added, noting, “They want to be the cool thing and [get] an article in Ad Age -- that kind of thing.”

Huang said it “becomes a challenge to retain” that talent, in a programmatic sense. At the same time, she said Liquid Advertising is trying to get the other side of the table -- “the quant guys and gals” to “think more big picture and challenge the numbers.”

Here’s my suggestion for fixing the problem, and it’s one that was conceived by none other than Golden Age agency chief Bill Bernbach, who created the original copywriter/art director creative team to deal with the then new technology of television advertising.

Fast forward to the last decade and digital agencies morphed that concept into teams of experience designers and technologists to conceive and create brilliant Web, mobile, social experiences. Well, how about doing the same thing by pairing programmatic traders with media strategists, and dare I say, actual “creatives.”

Okay, I know that as soon as I publish those words, oodles of bleeding edge agencies and trading desks will reply, “Hey, that’s exactly what we’re doing.” To which I respond, “Prove it.” I’m all ears -- and words.

 

2 comments about "If You Don't Like What's Being Said, Change The Algorithm".
Check to receive email when comments are posted.
  1. Amber Benson from Simpli.fi, November 20, 2013 at 5:02 p.m.

    I think this is very prescient, Joe in a "hey, haven't we always had this problem and already know the solution" kind of way. :) As a former agency interactive strategist now working in programmatic, I think we have to position programmatic as both an input to--real-time research and testing--and an output of--highly efficient, individualized advertising--the strategic and creative process. It's a partnership between information and intuition.

  2. Steve Plunkett from Cool Websites Organization, November 20, 2013 at 6:06 p.m.

    how the “rest of the organization” is reacting to programmatic, particularly the most senior strategists, planners and, well, creative type people.

    The work process has check points for technical expertise during discovery in addition to before and after the creative process.

    Sorry you have had bad experiences..

Next story loading loading..