digital

Ad exchange development mirrors that of paid search

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Marco Bertozzi: 08:03:2010
The battle for the ‘ad exchange’ dollar is hotting up. It reminds me of how things were with search. It crept up on people / media agencies and before they knew it the specialists were doing well and making good money and winning pitch after pitch in the specialist area.

As it went on we debated whether search was specialist or should be just another channel forming part of an everyday media plan and finally we ended up with a couple of serious search independent players and the main agency groups pretty much on top of things and integrating and coordinating search into wider marketing plans.

Here we go again! Anyone who went through that must be getting a sense of Deja Vu. Everyone is talking about Ad Exchanges and DSP’s, the specialists are springing up and making hay and claiming they are the only ones who know how to do it. The debates rage around best practice and who has the biggest and best capability, its an incredibly similar scenario – does anyone else feel it?

The big difference this time is the agency groups to a greater or lesser extent saw it coming and started to gear up for it, as you can imagine I am biased in that area as to who has done it best to date but in a way that’s irrelevant, the point is the people in the know in agencies are all working towards this revolution. It will be a revolution, it is the next phase in media communications and those that ignore this will be looking as silly as those that thought search was a fad. This transition is moving so quickly though and only the brave will really make the most of this wave.

I am enjoying being part of this new wave of communications and trading and have been so impressed by the work that has gone on, this is exciting stuff and it is just going to explode.

My new role at Vivaki Nerve Center , EMEA

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Marco Bertozzi:03.03.2010
After a break of three months I have very recently secured a new role at Vivaki Nerve Center. I set out to find a role that was at the heart of the world of digital and I am pleased to say this role 100% achieves that. I am also excited about the fact that we are still at the formative stages for the Vivaki Nerve Center and that I will be part of the definition and growth of the unit.

http://www.mediaweek.co.uk/news/994625/Marco-Bertozzi-hits-nerve-VivaKi/?DCMP=ILC-SEARCH

In the last three months I have spoken to many agency folk around the market and its been a fascinating view on the market. All the major agency groups are investing in their parent group offerings, seeing the benefits of aggregation of skills, knowledge, technology and of course media investment. I hope that as part of the VNC I will be working in what will be the future for Publicis Groupe and help lead the change.

As I have written about previously I believe that the one thing that is for certain is that technology and changing trading methods will alter the way agency groups structure around digital planning and buying. The role of the ‘media schedule’ will be less relevant when in fact we should be buying audiences regardless of their location or site they are visiting. Trading will be about buying at the best price to deliver the relevant ROI not about the fact you bought 10million impressions at a set price earlier in the month and that will combine search and display in all its formats.

On top of that we are of course dealing with the huge changes coming from mobile, social and video, three huge topics that we have to make a success of in our marketing solutions. I am constantly on my iPhone and Nexus one, I surf, blog, update and find information and there are many like me so our solutions need to be making the most of that audience. I believe we have a way to go in that arena as an industry, I look forward to working with Phonevalley and others in implementing these new strategies.

Whether it be social media, mobile or straight forward impression buying we also need cutting edge tracking and reporting solutions and I look forward to working with our partners and Groupe companies in helping us to deliver intuitive, useful and accurate reporting suites to help us across Search, display, video and social.

Having just spent a few days in San Francisco its clear there is an enormous amount to be getting on with, some tasks more straight forward than others but all equally exciting. Our strategic partnerships are going to really create some amazing opportunities for our clients and there will no doubt be more to come. I work in a group of amazingly talented companies including Razorfish, Digitas, Performics and many others so this should be an exciting times and I cant wait to start.

After 2 years of iPhone, should you buy a Google Nexus One?

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Marco Bertozzi:04.02.2010

I have read a lot about the Nexus One, more than I should have I suspect! Much of it is technical, detailed analysis. One reviewer was commenting on the weight distribution of the phone! That’s all well and good but not what most people are interested in, the question is ‘If I have had an iPhone for years should I buy a Nexus One?’ Just answer that..so thats what I will do.

I really wanted to like the Nexus One, after spending all that money it was vital I actually liked it! My first impressions that absolutely stand out compared to the iPhone:

Just so quick. This is your day to day usage, this is the diving in and out of apps, looking at the web, all of that stuff that you might not think about, but when you see it all speeded up you realise the benefits. Any iPhone user is unlikely to complain about the speed of their phone but that’s because they have nothing to compare it to, once you use the Nexus One you will find the iPhone slow, especially in the opening of the apps, no more waiting.

It does feel very shiny and new! The screen is amazing, you really notice it. Anyone who likes new gadgets will love the feel of it, everything comes alive in your hand. I am personally not keen on the colour, and I don’t think the layout of how the apps and buttons work is as intuitive as the iPhone although you quickly get used to it. The four home buttons at the base of the screen are used a lot to access functions within apps as opposed to being built into the app like on an iPhone, again I prefer the simple iPhone layout. The track ball could be useful in text mode but I think it ruins the look and is really not needed.

The App store and the Apps themselves are lacking on the phone, they feel less finished, a lot less of them and it is an area where the iPhone dominates, lets see how long that lasts. Anyone who has had an iPhone and moves to the Nexus will be frustrated by the fact nothing crosses over, sounds obvious but it feels wasteful having all those apps that I have invested in just sitting on my iPhone, yes you can still use them over WiFi but it would be good if the developers allowed you to transfer to the Nexus One if you bought them on the iPhone, or at least at a discounted rate.

Overall it is a great phone, the keyboard is not as good as the iPhone, more fiddly but again you will get used to that, the touch screen is designed for the phone to be held at an angle which means if you aim straight down you often miss your target, frustrating but again you get used to it. The speech to text functionality is very hit and miss in my opinion, its fine if you talk very clearly and slowly, it will be useful in some circumstances but not everyday usage I would say.

Overall I am pleased with it, most things people moan about are simple functionalities that people are not used to, does not mean they are bad. As with all things, give it some time and it will be second nature. It feels very special and even an avid iPhone user will have to admit it feels like a different league. That said it has some way to go in a couple of areas, annoying you can’t sync your Outlook Calendar, but I reckon they will be continually sending upgrades as time goes by. The biggest thing of all for me..I am glad to be back in the early adopter bracket, everyone has an iPhone now, it bores me.

As a footnote if you have a iPhone bluetooth handset, it will sync with the Nexus One, so at least thats one thing you will not be wasting on your swap to N1.

How can Google Nexus One not support Microsoft Exchange?

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Marco Bertozzi:30:01:2010
In this day and age I find it infuriating when major players in software and or hardware dont work together. Surely now they are waking up to the fact that we live in an open source world and putting up barriers may make themselves feel better but it annoys the people spending the money. Especially around mainstream ways of communicating like email systems.

How is it possible that Google’s Nexus One does not synch with Outlook Exchange Calendars etc, its madness, is Google not a serious business operation? Do they think the world will change to Gmail? Of course not, so instead they are just pissing off all those people who would love to have a Nexus One but connect to Exchange.

Likewise the news that the iPad does not support Flash, I mean come on, it’s a joke, the world runs on Flash how can they not support it when we are talking about a device designed to enjoy the consumption of all the best the web has to offer! These companies need to start thinking of the end consumers rather than their own protectionism, its madness, I hope very much that Google will reconsider this stance in the coming weeks.

Apple tablet, islate, whatever, I cant wait..

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Marco Bertozzi:24:01:2010

Lets start with what it could look like, here is a video giving you an idea. Think large iPhone, we hope including 3G or 4G connectivity.

Why is it so exciting, well for me it is simple. I love the iPhone and how it works but get frustrated by the size, clearly for a phone its great but with the islate you can enjoy that fluid iPhone experience but with a screen worth having. Is this meant to replace the home PC? I dont think so, thats not what I need. I have a laptop at home if I want to do work stuff, or I have a work lap top, no this is for browsing, blogging, emailing, videos,social media, it will be great for that stuff.

On top of that if it has 3G then I can use it anywhere without wireless which would be great, it may serve as a hub at home for my music, will it stream to my TV? If I buy Apple TV it may double up with that? The possibilities are endless, thats why I am excited.

Its unveiled tomorrow so lets sit back and see exactly how good it is, heres to a new way of computing!

Shifting Direct marketing budgets make sexy social media just another channel.

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Marco Bertozzi: 23:01:2010

Brand Republic released news of some research by Alterian that DM budgets are morphing into social media. Now to be clear, I have not seen the research so perhaps it will give me all the detail I am about to question but none the less, its still an interesting subject.

2/3 years ago every client wanted to know how to use social media in their advertising. They wanted to know how to have conversations with customers, how to turn dull into sexy, create millions of fans of car insurance and at the time, no one had an answer. Part of that was the reticence of clients, some of it was media agencies still getting their heads around it and some was actually the fact the very carriers of social audience, did not know what to do either.

While this lack of innovation continued the audiences on the likes of Facebook sky rocketed and advertising rates fell accordingly and that then opened up a huge opportunity for Direct Marketing, not one to one marketing but good old fashion buy it cheap and expect a low response rate type DM. Is this what all those advertisers that have shifted DM budgets into social media have done or have they done anything interesting, have they changed their approach or their channel? I suspect not, I imagine they have bought up vast amount of impressions, overlaid some targeting, just as they would with mail shots and they have accepted a very low response rate and carried on filling their order books. There is still so much room for genuine use of social media and that needs to come from their main brand budgets, not their backwater DM budgets.

Take a look at Compare the Market/Meerkat, everyone knows it, everyone has seen it, but that is a great example of a brave client taking the plunge to make themselves stand out from the competition. I can think of quite a few insurance companies who must be thinking, why were we not brave enough?

WiFi on planes, tubes and trains, we all know its coming – good or bad?

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Marco Bertozzi:15.01.2010
It is inevitable. 10 Years ago when you went on holiday that was it, you were out of touch, out of sight, out of mind. That was not just about the technology it was also a reflection on work society not demanding you to be available, a holiday was exactly that.

Over time the demands by work have increased more and more with technology aiding and abetting all the way along. Phones turned to Blackberrys and iPhones, every conceivable space became WiFi and generally speaking now there are less and less problems with phone connectivity around the globe. As I mentioned above there are two issues here, one is the way it has become more and more acceptable to disturb people on holidays and at weekends and the other is technology making communication possible wherever you are. I want to talk about the latter.

The biggest thing to change here is the march of WiFi into once untouched havens of non connectivity. The train, although mobile broadband has eroded that for some time, but the bastions, that have withstood all attempts – the air flight and The Tube!

Its all changing, WiFi in planes is already up and running in the US and in 2010 Lufthansa, Virgin and sure many more will pick up the mantel for International flights. Interesting that research in the US has shown that there is a huge drop off of usage when one has to pay (up to 12 dollars for a 5hr+ flight), cost being the issue, I am not so sure. I think that people are not ready a world where they are never out of touch. Why would the usage drop off because of the cost? Its mainly used by business people who would expense their companies anyway, no this is about the last haven for people to not be contacted, trying to be retained. The plane flight is an opportunity to do what you want to do without guilt, work, sleep, play, talk, whatever suits, without blame. Marc Ruxin in his blog on a similar discussion quoted the fact that Napoleon often waited six months to answer post as most of the things that were urgently needed to be done had either been done or disappeared..so true. How many times do you catch up on email that if you had been there right from the start you would have waded in, but because you were caught up elsewhere they sorted themselves out.

On a situation closer to home, the idea of having connectivity for your phone on the tube will be both very useful and very annoying. Again the tube journey for many is their time to think, digest the news, read a favourite book etc etc, that will be destroyed by getting a signal. And what will the subject of the calls be about? ‘I am running late’ ‘problems on the tube’ ‘my boss is an idiot’ you can imagine, except multiply by thousands in a confined space, as far as I am concerned the Tube just got worse Obviously it will be a brilliant turn of events when I need to make that ‘I am running late call!’

All in all though the erosion of these last frontiers of isolation just answers probably what people are after but sometimes I think only because of either mobile addiction or work pressure. Deep down dont we enjoy those times where we are forced to consider filling our own time rather than Outlook telling us what we should be doing?

How would you come across online if I searched for you?

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It just struck me as I did a bit of research on some people, you can tell a lot about a person as to whether or not they are on Youtube.

Most people worry about keeping their Linkedin profile up to date, a good CV, perhaps they Tweet a bit and blog a bit but actually one of the most powerful mediums is that of video. In my research of some senior media players it has been fascinating to see who either a) cares or b) has time to create their online CVs with a professional Youtube appearance ranking top in my mind.

What a Youtube performance allows is for someone you have not met to come to life, you may learn a little about their character, approach and beliefs. That is useful and powerful stuff when you are about to be interviewed by them. Perhaps its superficial to judge someone on that basis but I think it says a lot about them as people. It usually means they are not afraid to put their thoughts out there, often in positions of influence hence why they are presenting at conferences etc (most likely video scenarios) and therefore likely to be well connected.

There is much talk about your online persona, is the CV almost irrelevant now, is it more about your online presence, your content that appears if someone searches for you, how many followers you have and so on, I believe probably more and more. Put yourself in the shoes of a candidate you have to interview and search for your name, how do you come across? What would you think of you? All employers are turning to the web to research people, I think its time to check out your own online CV.

So if you are presenting soon at a conference, get yourself recorded!

Companies that make me opt out are dishonest

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Marco Bertozzi:10.01.10
Today I bought a couple of things online, one from a major retailer and one from a smaller online company. The experience was pretty good in both cases except one thing, I was again asked to opt out of receiving endless email sales materials rather than opt in. What is the comparison? You go to the supermarket to buy some bread and milk and as you arrive at checkout they pile your basket high with goods that you have to take out if you don’t want them, who would ever do that? Well except Ryanair and Easyjet with their online ticket buying process!

I find it amazing that I still have to do this, it is one of the most annoying things online. I find it particularly irritating because I have had many a client ask me whether something should be opt in or out and on receiving my advice to make everything opt in, they say ‘well lets leave it as opt out and we will get more names/ numbers or whatever they are after. That’s why it annoys me because they know what they are doing. They are purposely trying to trick you, they have discussed this endlessly and have decided upon the dishonest route.

Today it was Marks and Spencers, yes the home of trust, the company we all say nice things about and yet they too continue to ask me to opt out, well pack it in! Any mainstream, reputable, grown up advertiser should not be doing this, it’s dishonest and is praying on those that don’t know or don’t bother looking through pages of text for the opt out. It’s up there with banking small print. Please.Stop.Opt out.

New Facebook push notifications will mean mobile dominates FB usage, even in the office

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Marco Bertozzi:07:01:10
Discussion around whether or not Facebook should be banned in the office has pushed more and more people towards using mobile as the primary route to Facebook interaction. The numbers are impressive about how much people update their status via their mobile.

Now work will arguably be more interrupted than ever as people to take up Facebook’s new 3.1 update that allows push notifications to your iphone. At least before people often left FB open on their screen and could see messages easily, now they will be shovelling through their bags and desks as their phone beeps with that expectant moment when you wonder which of your friends has sought you out! The facts according to Razorfish annual study – Razorfish Feed – are scary for the workplace, apparently the average connected person updates their FB pages every 37 minutes, the full report can be found here:

Click to access Razorfish_FEED09_Webinar.pdf

Facebook is part of life now so I think offices that ban its use need to get over it as it is here to stay and part of our communication, I would rather see banned the trend of recent years of everyone wearing headphones at work. It is the most depressing of sights to see a bank of people all with headphones, no one learning from each other, no one knowing if your team member is talking utter rubbish on the phone. The office has changed, lets worry about things that stop people communicating rather than things that encourage it.