Commentary

Here's Why Programmatic Is Stunting Digital Ad Spend

Okay, then. So here's why advertisers love TV so much and can't get enough of the Cannes experience. A new Millward Brown Digital study that polled 300 digital marketing decision makers at Fortune 5000 companies and agencies in the United States found that most of them allocate their budgets fairly evenly across digital advertising formats. However, 88% said that making emotional connections through digital media would encourage them to spend more on digital branding campaigns. And to that end, the survey also found that 30% of digital marketers believe that ads purchased through programmatic methods produce negative customer experiences that damage brand loyalty or negate their branding objectives in other ways." So, yeah, all that non-Cannes worthy programmatic crap? That's what is keeping marketers from increasing their digital spend. That and the fact that a banner is still a banner; it's just not a medium which lends itself well to creativity. Or emotional connection. 

Now this could be interesting. Or it could be yet another flashy partnership that plays out in the press and nowhere else. But we actually think there's some meat here. 360i has partnered with Mashable to use the publication's Velocity product -- a technology the publication developed in-house that monitors people's social media engagement to predict which content is about to go viral. Currently, the publication uses it to tout its own viral-worthy posts. Now, 360i will use these predictive insights to mold campaigns for its clients, ideally learning along the way what works and what doesn't and why.

Ouch! This has gotta hurt! As you may know, Apple is on the outs with TBWA and is in the process of hiring 1,000 people to staff an internal ad agency. Things are not going well. One ad exec who was approached by Apple is reported to have said: “The revolution has come and gone, and I’m not sure a job at Apple would be a creative opportunity. If I were going to go brand-side, there are a lot more interesting companies I’d rather work for, like Coke or Pepsi.” Ouch! Coke or Pepsi over Apple? But it's really no surprise. Steve Jobs is dead. Lee Clow is, for the most part, retired and out of the TBWA picture. And let's face it, Tim Cook is running a tight ship but he's no Steve Jobs. TBWA and Apple had a good, long run. Things have changed. Whether that change includes a gigantic internal agency or some as yet unforeseen relationship with a new agency is yet to be determined. But we can say, for what it's worth, iOS8 and leaked rumors of the iPhone 6 do seem quite cool.

It's probably not going to be as big as the Ming Dynasty but with McCann behind it, it's certainly going to try. Ming, which opened this week in New York, is headed by Commonwealth/McCann Creative Chairman Linus Karlsson who will be the agency's CCO. Joining Karlsson is Brian DiLorenzo, who will serve as CEO and former BBDO EVP Account Director Tara DeVeaux, who will serve as president. Part of McCann, the agency will be run independently. The new entity is touting itself as a "strategic, action-based creative company operating in the 'new to next' space" -- whatever that is.

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