CPX COO & President, Rob Rasko, met up with GE’s Director of Global Strategy, Andy Markowitz, at the IAB Leadership Meeting to talk about changing the ecosystem, the idea of more aggressive advertising, innovative marketing techniques, and more. Markowitz discussed the existing interest in digital within his group at GE, and that they will ultimately be charged with elevating practices and standards within the company. He plans to show people how to use technology to create more relevancy, both from a consumer standpoint, and a B2B standpoint.
Rasko and Markowitz discussed one of the major topics of conversation among IAB members: the growing tendency towards more aggressive, intrusive advertisements. Markowitz is open to exploring new ways of doing things, and believes there should be tolerance for new formats, but he was also sure to point out that it’s not an all or nothing situation. In other words, an ad doesn’t have to either be totally aggressive or not at all. He stressed the importance of using creative wisely, as well as taking the opportunity to create better contextual relevancy.
In terms of innovative marketing techniques, Markowitz would like to see better idea generation. More specifically, he would love for marketers to come in to a meeting ready to lay out an idea for what they can do with one of his businesses right away, and the more relevant the idea, the better. He would also appreciate more of a focus on B2B in addition to B2C. Additionally, Markowitz sees data becoming increasingly more relevant and a bigger piece of the puzzle in the near future. Not only will it be helpful from the audience selection standpoint, but also in terms of the ability to mine data and understand the audience better.
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Gary Bembridge, CPX Interactive’s new EVP of Sales, caught up with his former colleague, Moritz Loew, MSNBC’s Senior Director of National Sales, at the IAB Leadership Summit. The two discussed the value of the event, Loew mentioning the collective brainpower, and the ability to connect with content providers and context providers, as major benefits of attending. Loew also touched on the role of digital in a company’s overall marketing strategy, and MSNBC Interactive’s best practices.
CPX’s COO & President, Rob Rasko, recorded this message for the OM Expo, which took place in Madrid at the end of February. He begins in Spanish and later switches to English, as he talks about ad networks, platforms, CPX Interactive and the future of online media buying.
After his keynote speech at the IAB’s Annual Leadership Meeting last week, IAB Chairman Dave Moore took the time to speak with CPX COO & President, Rob Rasko. Moore talked about the event, his first as chairman, and the great opportunity to network, exchange ideas, compare problems and seek solutions together. He discussed the issue of self-regulation and the importance of educating legislators about how the Internet works, stressing that, especially in an economy that is still recovering, the last thing the industry needs is legislation that hurts business.
In addition to serving as Chairman for the IAB, Moore is also Chairman and Founder of 24/7 Real Media. When asked how 24/7 plans to affect the market in 2010, Moore referred back to a prediction he made in his keynote: that demand side platforms would become a service to every major agency. He discussed 24/7’s position as the inventors of the first demand side platform, known as B3, before the term was even coined, and the growth that platform has already experienced. This year, they plan on continuing to play a major role in driving the WPP digital strategy.
Rasko asked Moore to weigh in on the importance of service versus technology, and he explained that the two are intertwined: technology drives the effectiveness of a product. He also talked about integrating technologies and making them available on a seamless basis with the goal of being able to target as well, if not better, than anybody else in the industry. Moore believes that this integration and seamlessness would also be extremely helpful in dealing with different types of ad formats. In terms of more intrusive ad formats, which continue to become more prevalent, Moore feels that consumers will become comfortable with them over time. He likens their initial dislike to the first time radio and television programs were interrupted by advertisements, and stresses that although it will be an adjustment, consumers will learn that they have to accept it if they want to continue to get content as inexpensively as they have been getting it in the past.
Touching on a couple of the things IAB President, Randall Rothenberg, talked about in his interview with Rasko, Moore discusses the Networks and Exchanges Committee and the issue of free versus premium content. He explains that the major objective of committee’s recently established guidelines is to give advertisers additional comfort and insurance that their ad is going to be run in the right type of environment for their product. When it comes to pay walls, Moore supports premium content, and believes that providers need to find other ways to generate revenue outside of advertising. Destination sites, he says, need to figure out new and different ways to syndicate their content so they can reach greater audiences.
Overall, Moore is looking forward to the future. He calls this the beginning of the ‘Golden Age of Internet Advertising,’ and is very excited to be a part of it.
Last week, the IAB held its Annual Leadership Meeting: Ecosystem 2.0. CPX Interactive recognized that this would be a great opportunity to hear from the thought leaders in the industry, and was glad to sponsor Scribe Media’s video coverage of the event. CPX COO & President, Rob Rasko, had a chance to speak with Randall Rothenberg, President of the IAB, on a variety of topics.
Rothenberg looks forward to 2010 as a year of economic recovery. He believes that agencies and advertisers will be forced to take digital more seriously, despite their fears, as it becomes more mainstream.
He discusses two important growth areas for 2010, which he considers on the opposite ends of the spectrum. The first is an increased focus on mobile. Rothenberg cites the acquisition of AdMob by Google, and Quattro by Apple as evidence of a shift in focus. CPX can attest to this shift firsthand, as we have recently formed a partnership with Nexage to expand our reach to WAP sites and mobile apps. What Rothenberg finds most interesting is that mobile devices are being viewed by marketers as the bridge between brand advertising budgets and consumer advertising budgets.
The reinvention of the television screen as a fully interactive HD device is something else Rothenberg looks forward to this year. He believes that as the interactive television develops, it will cause brand advertising to flow like “nobody’s business” into interactive media. Rothenberg explains that companies and executives are starting to adapt to the obvious reality that the Internet is a disruptive medium. There is an imbalance between supply and demand that is putting pressure on classic CPM prices for class forms of display advertising, so business models have to change and adapt, he says. The biggest change he sees is the realization among companies that they can either make technology their friend, or it will be their enemy.
A member of the IAB’s Network and Exchanges Committee, Rasko asks Rothenberg about self-regulation, and the guidelines recently released by the committee. Rothenberg reflects on how much the public dialogue and support have increased over the past few years. The IAB is seeing an enormous amount of support for things like their Privacy Matters pro bono ad campaign. At the same time, Rothenberg stresses the importance that every company in the media and advertising/marketing industry (not just interactive) recognize that the threat of really bad regulation by regulators or politicians who don’t understand the business and aren’t necessarily willing to learn. In addition, it is also important for these companies to participate in very strong, very aggressive, independently enforced self regulation in order to prove that they are worthy of the consumers’ trust.
Although he feels like there has been a good deal of support from politicians, Rothenberg has also observed quite a lot of intentional fear mongering taking place in Washington. For example, phrases like “consumer data” are being enflamed, even though it has existed for 50 years. What people aren’t told is that “consumer data” includes such things as IP addresses that allow people to connect to the Internet. Rothenberg also touches on the topic of the dreaded use of cookies. He explains that unless cookies are used, the consumer will be overwhelmed with advertising, and refers to legislation that would limit them as the Spam Reinvention Act of 2010. Both Rasko and Rothenberg understand the need for greater education about the interactive industry. Rothenberg says we have to get a lot better at explaining the basic business operations and technological underpinnings of the interactive business.
In the next part of the conversation, Rothenberg expands on the keynote speech of IAB Chairman Dave Moore, explaining his own view on the direction the Web will take in the future in terms of free and paid content. Rothenberg refers to himself as a “flaming moderate” on the issue, and explains that he has always believed that it doesn’t have to be one or the other. There are thousands of variations and possibilities in terms of hybrid models of free and paid, and there are ways that both can be used to drive positive user experiences and positive business results.
Rasko introduces the concept of “coopetition” that he has observed among the members of the IAB, and Rothenberg expresses his gratitude for the efforts of members working together to help the IAB operate successfully.
Watch the video above for more from Rasko and Rothenberg, and stay tuned for much more from the event in the coming days.
Looking to solidify its commitment to a robust North American corporate footprint, CPX taps industry veteran to lead sales development efforts.
New York, NY, February 25, 2010–CPX Interactive has named Gary Bembridge, industry veteran and former sales manager for MSN, as Executive Vice President of Sales. Bembridge’s hiring is part of CPX’s mission to provide market-specific service to major brands and agencies across the globe. Bembridge will focus on developing new sales and support teams in major North American markets, including Detroit, Chicago, Miami and San Francisco.
The following two videos are the first in an ongoing initiative called Online with CPX Interactive. Learn about what makes CPX different, and the CEO’s ‘Elevator Pitch’ in these excerpts from a longer interview with our CEO, Mike Seiman.
CPX CEO, Mike Seiman, has been selected as an honoree of the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities Alumni Hall of Distinction, and will be recognized at a special ceremony on March 1. The Independent Sector Hall of Distinction includes more than 150 business, community, and government leaders who are graduates of colleges and universities across New York. Mike, a Hofstra alum, will be recognized at an awards ceremony at the New York State Capitol. In attendance will be William Stachowski, New York State Senator, and Robin Schimminger, New York State Assemblyman. CPX Interactive congratulates Mike on this honor!
Nexage Connects Mobile Advertising to Online Ad Networks
BOSTON, Feb. 9 /PRNewswire/ — Nexage (www.nexage.com), a leading developer of Mobile Yield Optimization solutions, today announced the deployment of its next generation AdMax solution that enables Online Advertising Networks to source high quality ad targeting opportunities across both the Mobile Web and Apps. CPX Interactive, a global online ad network, is the first online network to partner with Nexage for this new platform, allowing their advertisers to reach mobile audiences within Mobile Web and Apps.
