RTBlog spoke with Phil Barrett, senior VP at Purch, a publisher of Web titles that include Tom’s Guide and Tom’s Hardware. Purch sites help people make buying decisions
about technology. Barrett discussed his predictions for 2016, which include a new emphasis on consumers' lifetime value and commerce replacing traditional ad revenues.
The App vs. Mobile
Web War is Dead; Lifetime Value Becomes the New Fight.
"The app vs mobile Web war is over, and it’s safe to say that apps are winning the battle. As consumers increasingly trend
toward the in-app experience, publishers are feeling the pressure.
"In 2016, it’s imperative for media companies to focus on increasing the number of 'lifetime value' (LTV) customers
they attract to their sites through apps and decide how best to capture their attention for the long haul. It will be crucial to understand the importance of offering LTV customers a relevant user
experience, versus serving them an ad the first time they visit a site.
"With mobile apps, there's a much stronger opportunity to develop relationships with consumers and develop LTV.
Publishers can offer services and useful benefits and will focus on monetizing consumers over a longer period of time.
Header Bidding Heats Up.
"Over the past couple of years,
we saw publishers begin to delve into header bidding. Even though the new technology allows exchanges to bring in demand before the ad server call, it kills the waterfall approach where direct buys
occur first.
"In 2016, it’s critical for ad tech companies to invent their own offerings that deliver and create premium, customer advertising opportunities for publishers and brands
across the media industry. These offerings must manage header bidding partners and ensure that they know if the deal is worth their time or not. Ad tech companies will realize if they manage the
header bidding process in-house, they’ll be able to garner better results and satisfy advertisers. With header bidding, publishers are recognizing that they can increase yield and profitability
without having to drive tons of additional traffic.
"I believe some publishers will build their own header bidding systems, or they’ll acquire them.
"Mobile header bidding is the
next frontier. If marketers are willing to pay a premium for mobile app users, the data is richer and there are even more efficiencies to be gained."
Content & ECommerce Replaces
Traditional Ad Revenue.
"The digital advertising revenue that many publishers currently rely on has suffered. How can publishers adequately generate revenue in today’s digital
publishing world? By creating differentiated platforms that buck the ad-supported model and devise new types of monetization.
"In 2016, it’s imperative that publishers incorporate
user-generated content, ecommerce and native advertising in order to survive and prosper."