Let's Avoid Do Not Track

There's nothing like a Youtube video to show you that you are serious need of a diet. Beyond serious. Not that I didn't know, but ouch this is painful to watch.

But what I had to say was important enough for me to post this.

A Big Thank You To The iMedia Sponsor Companies!

First, as an attendee of iMedia, I want to send a shout out to the many companies that make this excellent series of events possible throughout the year.


But I want to thank you for more than that – because sponsor presentations are an excellent time for all of us to understand the tremendous amount of work being done EVERY DAY to make publisher media solutions work harder for users.

Tribal Fusion (disclosure: a C:SF client) kicked off iMedia with a thought provoking POV on how we need to think about the entire purchase funnel and its many stages in order to maximize results. As digital is becoming more of a lynchpin in marketing, we need to carefully understand the various levels of the consumer decision process, and understand what our plans lack. And then find solutions so we do something about the bottlenecks in our marketing efforts. Their presentation was really a statement about the new levels of marketing sophistication necessary to succeed in digital and get better results.


Tremor Media provided a look into their efforts to develop new ways to make online video even more powerful through capitalizing on the interactive nature of digital. But what was perhaps even more interesting were the ways that they are thinking about the space. Their preso offered ample evidence that online video needn't be and indeed isn't simply moving a TV experience from the boob toob onto a putty colored box.

Casale continued their long history of sponsorship with iMedia, and again it was their thinking and ideas that really enriched my experience here. Ideas about the best ways to target and how a relationship should work between an agency and a media partner. I hear both pubs and agencies critiquing each other a lot, and I was pleased to hear Casale put a stake in the ground about how these relationships can improve.


You know, there are a lot of people who poo-poo the network/site rep space, but those that do really fail to see the potential power of a network as a source of insights and ideas -- who better to help us understand what is going on out there than a company that connects with 100 million plus people a month? I am glad to see that networks are out to show us all of the value they can add rather than focus on the basic services they can provide. It’s that spirit of innovation that makes digital marketing such a cool thing to be a part of.


The other two sponsor presentations on Sunday were Appsavvy and DBG. I am going to start with DBG because what most amazed me about their presentation was how incredibly well produced their sponsored programming is. Great ideas…very well executed. I was dumbstruck because I think if you stacked their shows against much of the TV programming out their today, you’d be very surprised as to which programs looked better and hung together better. Beautiful programs centered on real ideas. And the brands really woven into the content -- this is so much more than Paula and Simon holding up curvy red cups.


Appsavvy was very new to me – I was most taken by the scale that they have created with their network of apps. I think the figure was 65MM uniques a month – a clear indication of the relevance of their content. They also brought along several of the developers of their most popular apps – who provided some tight insights on the communities they have assembled and are indeed so close to.


As always, I really enjoyed the sponsored presos and want to thank all of these companies for their patronage of iMedia for without them we wouldn’t have this great opportunity to learn and share ideas.

iMedia Mobile

Not sure if you are aware, but iMedia has a nice mobile site you can access on the go. Find it at m.imediaconnection.com.

Great Main Stage PresosToday At iMedia

I was really very pleased with both of the main stage presos this go round for iMedia.

First up was Jeff Glueck, CMO for Travelocity. I loved his presentation because here is a guy that believes in the medium and tries new things constantly, but also has that old school approach to business - making money good, losing money bad. It was great to hear from the guy that brought us the travelling gnome.

The gnome campaign is one I have always liked but was always mystified about. How ON EARTH did this get approved? Well, after seeing Jeff on stage, I get it.

He gave one great answer today about this bucketizing we do online -- DR versus branding -- as if DR is all about sales and branding is all about self indulgence. He correctly and courageously pointed out that it's ALL about sales. He also had some fascinating data about the relative effectiveness of analog versus digital media in driving sales -- several analog forms are the most efficient available, underscoring the need for digital to continue to innovate to improve results.

Travel is one of the strongest online categories -- and the result is that CPCs have been driven rather high -- so high in fact that media like DR TV can more than compete. He also showed a chart that indicated that for his company, a view through is relevant, but only for about 2 hours, not the 30 days digital companies like to use.

Great, thought provoking stuff, and delivered in a clear and entertaining way. Bravo.

Next up was a sort of presidential debate between Nick Denton at Gawker and Geoff Ramsey at eMarketer, essentially focused on how bad things are in our business. Ramsey the optimist, Denton the pessimist. I loved the energy that Brad Berens created as moderator for this event, and got a great deal of good info out of these wonderful speakers. And Ramsey was right, a lot of it is how you look at it -- half empty or half full, but I share Denton's views more than Ramsey's about the next two years.

Thanks for reading, and don't forget to write.

iMedia Video: How Agencies F Up

The title of this post explains it all. A great edit of content from the September
2008 iMedia Brand Summit in San Diego.

Palringo: Making IM Work Better On Cellys

OK, people have been IMing from phones for some time. But really only text. And as those of us who use IM know, there are so many other ways that IM has transformed the way we share online.

A UK company called Palringo is out to make IM work a lot harder online by adding dimension to the offering for mobile devices.

Here, let them tell you what they do:

What is Palringo?
Palringo is the first Rich Messaging Service - bringing together for the first time the ability to easily exchange text, voice and picture messages with friends, family and colleagues across all popular instant messaging services, whether sitting at a computer or on the move using a mobile phone or PDA.

What does all this do? Well, it makes messaging a lot more productive for a start. There are many instances in which pictures of video or other forms of content would aid to the richness of understanding as we broach topics via IM. Being able to send and deliver these to mobile eliminates the need to get to a PC to get your work --- or play -- done.

Palringo also lets you exchange voice messages -- to one or to many. This has benefits for phone to PC as well as phone to phone interactions.

Palringo supports the following messenger services

Palringo
AIM
Yahoo
MSN/Live
Google
ICQ
Jabber
Gadu Gadu

Additionally, you can use Palringo to create and participate in Palringo groups -- a sort of one to many/many to one form of communication.

And the price is right too! Free to personal (versus enterprise) users.

Check it out on their website, or through your celly!

Thanks for reading, and don't forget to write.

Thanks To iMedia For Running My "7 ways to ensure an emerging platform's success" piece

I love them loads for running my stuff! And because they are great people. Really more the second than the first, though having both is nice!

Thanks for reading, and don't forget to write.

New Article on iMediaConnection

I have a new piece on iMedia about buying high quality video. Thanks to iMedia for publishing my thoughts!

Thanks for reading, and don't forget to write.

New OLDM Article on iMediaConnection

Many thanks to iMedia for publishing another piece of mine. I deeply apopreciate everything they do.

Am I Intruding On Your Web Experience? GOOD.

The people at iMedia have lowered their standards enough to publish another missive from me, this one about the need for advertisers to intrude on users occasionally so that commerce can continue and the web can remain the deal of the millenium. Please click on over to take a look.

Thanks for reading, and don't forget to write.

Thanks iMedia

As the blinking banner says...

CLICK HERE!

Remarkable Insights on Sales...

...are available here. ;-) More proof that old is the new black!

iMedia: eHarmony.com

I was surprised to see eH at iMedia – I am not a member and didn’t know that they offered ads and sponsorships, though it is a logical move for a company with so many members. But I always thought…since eH is not a browsing site, that page views would be all that impressive. Unlike with Match or American Singles, their system isn’t set up for people (read: men) to trawl profiles and make page views.

I know nothing about how advertising works in their environment. Generally I don’t think banners are the way to go on dating sites because they are in my opinion beyond “low noticing value” – they may as well be transparent.

But what do I know? I have worked on only three ad programs on dating sites, all using Match, and the CTRs were not robust. But that’s three campaigns. Drop me a line if you have experience with this type of site. I’d love to hear your POV.

Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to write.

iMedia: SheKnows.com

As we all know, while women now represent more than half of the adult Americans who use the web, they tend to be underserved in content. True there are excellent offerings like iVillage, LifetimeTV, and SoapNet, but having new voices and approaches is a welcome addition to the web, at least in my opinion.

I was intro’d to SheKnows.com by Erin Leavitt during one minute matchups, and was intrigued by what she had to say. Part of that is because she is a good pitcher, but part was about her perspective on their audience.

Too often I think female media properties are binary – either Midwest Mom or Urban Hipsterette. I liked the youthful edit of SheKnows about real issues and real women. It seems to offer a combination of breadth of relevance as well as an aspirational editorial environment that could appeal to lots of SF women as well.

New voices for women – especially positive and rich ones like SheKnow.com, are a welcome addition to our space in my book.

Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to write.

iMedia: Sportgenic

OK, so I am very biased for this company. First, because they are our client, and second because Marti Funk works there. Robert and TJ should note that I love them too, but I have known Marti for a long time, and she’s such a joy from both intellectual and personal perspectives. If there were a Funk religion, I would tithe.

What I like most about Sportgenic the property is that it really provides value as a vertical that packages up an audience that is passionate about life – The blasé make for lousy customers, but the sort of people who get out there and run in the snow, or paint their faces Steelers colors are the kind that can drive amazing results for your brand.

I love energy in people and genuinely believe that SG packages that up in a large and loyal audience that is appropriate for any brand except perhaps for Popeye’s.

I think SG is the perfect company to do one of these presentations because so few people know the full story. Especially brands that are not related directly to sports. And Robert wowed his audience, involving whole tables in the concept while also delivering all of the critical information necessary to convince a bank, or a car manufacturer, or a packaged good to join SG’s pages.

Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to write.

iMedia: The Staffing Problem

I enjoyed the staffing problem breakout, but left feeling a little empty. We learned that everyone has the problem and no one has a magic bullet to solve it.

I did feel a little schooled about my impression of the younguns in the industry – that they have a sense of too much entitlement. I still believe that, but also now prefer it to Gen X’s fatalism. We should want the sort of person who is driven to succeed. But we should also not promote people until they have the skills and experience necessary.

Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to write.

iMedia: Bratz

Having now attended both an agency and a brand iMedia, I am struck by the significant fraction of agency people who are flat out rude baby brats with ridiculous sense of self importance. People who bitch about lack of high speed internet access by the pool and whatnot.

Let me give you a clue that comes from 22 years in the biz. You are not so important to the rotation of the earth and the survival of mankind that you can’t be out of touch for an hour.

Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to write.

iMedia: 5 Funniest Things I heard at iMedia

5) I know that the publishers pay for all this, but why do they think that gives them the right to sell to me during the conference?
4) Honestly, my network is exactly the same as theirs. But we charge more and give lousy service.
3) Our ad network broke the top 50 last month.
2) Once I heard over my cube wall, “I need 100% SOV of lung cancer. Pharma is a funny business.

And the number one funniest comment was a retort to the above:

1) Does that mean if I get an Alzheimer’s account I should ask for erratic surfing as BT?

Yes I know the last two are in terrible taste and rest assured that I am very familiar with the fact that these are serious, heartrending conditions. But we also have to laugh at the business of advertising health conditions. Or cry about it. I choose to laugh.

Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to write.

iMedia: ValueClick and Predictive BT

I loved the breakout session on predictive BT. Hosted by of ValueClick, and featuring a great case study about Cricket Wireless, the session really laid out the latest in BT in clear and concise ways. And Matt Boyd is the consummate gentleman, acknowledging his company’s perspective while offering a much broader and less self serving view of the BT industry.

For his gentlemanly conduct alone, Matt and his team deserve to be on your next RFP. Not to say that those are the only reasons why they should be on your list. But we should also reward the good guys who capture the spirit of the event and recognize that providing info is the best way to win.

Also, because I knew Matt when he was just starting in the biz and knee high to a grasshopper, and it’s nice to see his remarkable talents rewarded!

Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to write.

iMedia: One Minute MatchUps

iMedia takes an hour and half of the conference to have each “buyer” and “seller” meet 60 people that can make a difference for their businesses. I loved this aspect of the conference for three reasons:

1. I learned about 7 companies I knew nothing about.
2. I got to see 60 people pitch. There is NOTHING I appreciate more than hearing a good salesperson sell. For me it is art just as much as Mapplethorpe’s flower photos. (Check those out, BTW, the man did a lot more than take shocking pics of crosses in pee.)
3. I got to meet people who generally have to focus on buyers that have loads more cash than I do to throw around.

Special props to the people I thought delivered the best 90 second intros. Topix, Brightroll, Sportgenic, Tacoda/Platform A, National Geographic, and ValueClick. Not to say that the other pitchers weren’t awesome, but I like a certain style, and these folks got it. Many other presenters were also great!

Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to write.