iMedia Summit Monday Recap

I am not a gloom and doom person and frankly am weary of conventional wisdom overshoot in our industry. I mean, if growth rates fall below 50% per quarter people get all jittery. It’s gonna be alright, people.  Take it from someone who’s been in advertising through three recessions and the dot bomb. And 37 rounds of layoffs in his life. Really! It’ll be OK, guys and gals!

As reassurance, I wanted to combat some of the black veils and eulogies being put forth of late to provide a list of nine things that made me more optimistic about the industry. All coming out of today’s iMedia Summit sessions, in the order they occurred at the show:

9. 24-7 Real Media gave a thought provoking presentation on how technology continues to drive a revolution in the ability of digital media to meet the precise needs of brands. Their perspective on what is happening in the ad network space was interesting and gave me pause. What’s more, their message and tone was realistically optimistic – that there will be fallout from the downturn but that there is no reason why the smart leaders of our industry cannot continue to grow and prosper – and grow stronger BECAUSE of the scarcity of resources and the weaning of weaker concepts and opportunities. 24-7 is a frequent sponsor of iMedia, so special props for that as well.

8. NBCU always has great things to say and says them in a clear and powerful way. Some of their new offerings – including customized audiences across the various NBC properties – offer interesting new opps for advertisers to seriously consider. Also, they have a new roadblock offering that offers an alternative to portal front page takeovers. Having more roadblocking and massive reach opps like these, across leading web properties, bodes well for the future of our medium because it helps us deliver greater value and present credible alternatives to clients.

7. Today’s keynote from Don Epperson, CEO of Havas Digital, offered a compelling vision for the future of agencies as – in a very real sense – data driven brand networks. For years agencies have been talking about creating data warehouses for brands – Havas’s vision is to layer on an auction based ad valuation model for its clients that places the focus on the consumer reached rather than the gif blinked. A focus on individual consumers has always been a cornerstone of digital, so this massive initiative offers a vision for the future you should definitely check out. You can agree or disagree with their approach, but you cannot doubt how strategically driven his message really is.

6. One Minute MatchUps: Some attendees groan about this part of the program, but I love it. The idea of one minute matchups is to give agencies and pubs/nets the opportunity to meet about 60 people in a single hour – to talk about what they are doing and get a Reader’s Digest version of what’s on offer. I absolutely love hearing a good salesperson do their pitch, even more so when they can effectively distill a massive offering of content, creative options and targeting technologies into an 18 second sentence. At the end of the show I am going to send out special shouts to the people I thought were rocking sellers, but overall I was impressed by the messages this year – both in their succinctness and in the attempt by many to make a 1 minute pitch a consultative sell. Dat takes mad skilz.

5. Microsoft Advertising’s al fresco cocktail hour offered another great opp for networking. And it makes me happy to be around so many people who are optimistic about the future of the business. I always appreciate companies that sponsor events like this because they are really the engine to collaboration in the industry.

4. Weatherbug’s beach themed dinner offered opps to meet and talk with more (optimistic) people, and to hear a really good band play a plethora of songs I actually knew the words to. Those in the industry should take (positive) note that the fact that the third song they performed was Brick House indicates that this is no longer just an industry of wide eyed 23 year olds. Welcome to wrinkles, iMedia. Just think of them as nooks and crannies to hold the wisdom.

When I know all the songs, you know you’re getting old, people. But remember the motto of my personal blog, “Old is the new black.”

3. The Hoover’s after hours reception was (I am told, 9:30PM is my bedtime) a rocking good time. Hoovers has really increased their prominence in the planning and buying arena with sponsorships of iMedia and other events. It’s not right for every brand but there’s nothing like Hoovers for the brands it clicks with.

2. I got to talk with about a dozen people starting new companies, which I think is a great sign that our future is bright. Over the next several months I’ll be doing little Q&As with some of these people and running them here at iMedia Connection.

1. Infectious optimism really made me feel great all day. And made me, for a time, forget about missing my little pup, Sleepy, who is, even as you read this, stamping his foot and wearing a little disgusted grimace. See, he’s at doggie day care back in O-Town wondering when I am going to come home and throw his ball.

Soon, Sleepers, Soon!

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