• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, October 21, 2014

Some big media agencies executives don’t like the idea of “mom and pop” businesses competing with major brands when it comes for inventory on open programmatic exchanges.

But publishers say there is another side of the story. “Every impression is a battleground," says Oscar Garza, director of programmatic of Essence, in speaking at OMMA Chicago: Art & Science Digital Advertising event.

Even if it's a small retailer/business, like a pizzeria, Garza says “you can value certain impressions quite highly”, especially if you get the consumer at the right time and location. He adds: “Even the mom and pop, in taking down a major CPG [advertiser]. is about knowing that consumer.”

“Right now automation is what is making small companies able to compete for dollars against large advertisers,” says Amy Dickerson, vp of director of digital for Spark.

“We find that our small clients are the most progressive around this,” says Richard Routman, chief revenue officer of Sporting News Media, “because they don’t have the resources that bigger brands have.”

Routman says: “It shouldn’t really matter the size and breathe of your spend. As long as you are leveraging it the right way --  and going after a finite audience.”