Editorial | associates2

Editorial:

Trends in Advertising & Marketing

1. Programmatic – The term conjures up robotic controlled computers used for buying and selling media. According to eMarketer, they predict that advertisers in the U.S. will spend $3.36 billion on what is referred to as “Real-Time Bidding”, which is up from $2 billion in 2012.

The concept of programmatic advertising is like buying ads as products from online shopping portals like Amazon. Similar to search ads on Google in an auction format, where the media buyer pays whatever price the ad is worth at that moment. Programmatic analysis allows the buyer to fine tune their requests to specific audience demographics by using an intensive amount of data to figure out the right ad, the right viewer, and the right time of day. The ultimate goal is to allow machines to automatically handle all of the analysis and procedures involved with buying media - insertion orders, the paperwork, the trafficking and the worksheets.

2. Native Advertising – The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) data suggests that native advertising is a fast-growing segment of the $43 billion U.S. digital advertising market. A study in September 2013 indicated that 66% of American agencies and 64% of marketers planned to spend on native over the next six months, and its rise warranted native getting its own category in IAB's half-year report.

Considered one of the hottest industry buzzwords in the advertising community, native advertising is one of the leading topics in Advertising Week, making it one of the most talked about platforms globally.

The concept of native advertising blends brand-sponsored components into social platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, as well as news media sites. It has proven to be extremely successful when compared to traditional online advertising methods. Native advertising integrates storytelling, often referred to as “Storybuilding” that integrate the brand into the content.

Video – While the use of online video has developed less traction as an advertising platform such as mobile and native, it continues to be a point of discussion among industry executives. Those who have adopted video, have actually transitioned from traditional TV to digital streaming and statistics show this trend has doubled since 2012. Video has also become a topic of buying discussion in the programmatic model as well. Virool is one of the first companies to offer viral video publishing to advertisers that helps push their creative through the company's ad network.

Interactive pre-roll videos empower viewers to participate in video at the beginning of a show, which then allows them to watch without interruptions. Streaming site DramaFever gave viewers exactly that option — and found that 63% of viewers chose the option to engage in the beginning and then skip commercials throughout the rest of the content.

Mobile – Mobile was once an afterthought in the advertising world — but today, brands are perking up and paying attention, as mobile usage now comprises 60% of digital media consumption. With new smartphone releases and iPhone 6 sales skyrocketing, everybody's developing a mobile strategy. And while advertisers agree the platform has a ways to go before they can develop a viable advertising strategy, more and more marketers want in on the mobile game.

The dilemma is that traditional methods of advertising often don't translate well on mobile — and there's far less screen space on mobile than desktop. It's clear that brands and advertisers will need to get creative in order to develop successful mobile strategies.

Women in Digital – According to an article on the Mashable website “Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of Facebook, has made a name for herself as an advocate for working females everywhere. During an impassioned Advertising Week talk, she pointed out that women represent less than 3% of creative directors in the entire advertising industry, even though women control 80% of consumer spending in the United States. “We need to get more women in this room and every room,” she said. In line with this sentiment, another Advertising Week event focused specifically on getting more women into tech careers.”