Mac Delaney of Merkle on Advertising Automation and Programmatic

Left to right Jay Sears Art Muldoon CEO and Cofounder Accordant Media Oleg Korenfeld Executive Vice President Ad Tech and Platforms Mediavest Spark Hossein Houssaini Global Head of Programmatic Solutions Havas Media Group Mac Delaneyamp160and Paul Dalton Chief Media Officer International DigitasLBi at the 4th Annual Automated Advertising Panel at Cannes this past summer Click on the links above to read Jay39s interviews with other members of this groupJAY SEARS What do you read to keep up with politics art and cultureMAC DELANEY For art and culture I read Jezebel daily sometimes twice a day As a man youamp8217d be wise to do the same I read TheWeek to stay current and Iamp8217m still a reader of BoingBoingnet Iamp8217ve also become obsessed with Hypebeast and HighSnobiety I avoid politicsSEARS What do you read to keep up with friendsDELANEY Facebook and InstagramSEARS What do you read to keep up with the advertising technology industryDELANEY Wall Street Journal CMO AdAge AdWeek AdExchanger RecodeSEARS Whatamp8217s your favorite commercial of all time DELANEY I donamp8217t have a favorite but the Nissan amp8220Toysamp8221 commercial from 1996 always stands out I met the CD recently at an industry cocktail party and he shared the story of how he came up with the idea of GI Joe picking up Barbie to Van Halenamp8217s You Really Got Me Like actors who want to be directors media people like me want to be creatives SighSEARS With regards to advertising automation what are the three biggest trends you expect to impact companies in 2016 and 2017 DELANEY amp160As tech licensing fees drop independent platforms will continue to feel the squeezeThose independent companies in the middle with no real datatechmedia differentiation will feel the squeezeMass SaaS adoption will push clients and agencies to put much more rigor around execution while technology platforms will need to build in a higher level of controlsSEARS With regards to advertising automation what are the three most overblown topics that you wish would just go away DELANEYProgrammaticViewabilityClients bringing it in houseSEARS Describe your company or division and then tell us the three most common issues with which you help clients with respect to advertising automation and programmatic tradingDELANEY If you fixed everything broken about todayamp8217s agency model adding everything thatamp8217s missing from org structure to competencies from the right DNA to the right compensation model youamp8217d have Merkle Merkle is the modern agency Merkle has a heritage of data management advanced analytics and modeling with the full spectrum marketing services wrapped around it including systems integration and change management consultingMerkle helps clients solve the complexity of the new marketing landscape by consolidating enabling and standing up best in class technology wrapping world class marketing services around the stack and consulting organizations seeking to translate the new vernacular into the oldworld dialectSEARS Tell us about your company or divisionDELANEYSEARS The majority of ad technology companies have struggled relatively small unprofitable or both Of the poor performers what are the commonalities between them that have contributed to this weakness DELANEY They held onto blackboxed managed service too long before rolling out a selfserve platform They chose to circumvent the media agencies in a play to capture greater share by going client direct They over invested in marketing and resources instead of staying leanSEARS A smaller handful of ad technology companies has achieved scale and performed better than the rest What are the commonalities between them that have contributed to this relative strength DELANEY Outstanding customer service by their teams and a collaborative fair and seasoned senior management team you could trustSEARS Do we live in a amp8220tale of two citiesamp8221 where Google and Facebook win almost everything advertisers are dictated to and other media companies fight for the scraps DELANEY By the numbers it may appear thatamp8217s the case For search there are few alternatives to Google so they earn every dollar recognize there You could argue the same for YouTube Facebook is the Google of search so thereamp8217s that With the rise of peoplebased marketing however publishers of all kinds will even the playing field by enabling scalable 11 marketing to become a reality This will form a solid bookend to Google and FacebookSEARS How can advertising automation help the strategy and planning functions directly or indirectly at an advertising agency DELANEY Peoplebased forecasting is important so the ability to connect an audience segment to a bankable media plan is key amp160SEARS Transparency on media costs on data on inventory continues to be a lightning rod issue Should transparency be a negotiated benefit for the advertiser client yes or noDELANEY Transparency is table stakes I see marketers already moving on having decided if the provider isnamp8217t able to break down costs theyamp8217re irrelevantSEARS Please answer the following statements yes or no DELANEYSEARS If you owned a yacht what would you name it DELANEY amp8220Jennieamp8221 after my wife Canamp8217t go wrong thereSEARS A young family member has come to you seeking career advice They must choose one of the following careers ad agency executive ad tech executive company marketing executive or ice cream shop owner on the French Riviera Which career path do you recommend and why DELANEY Company marketing executive Best worklifebalance in what will become a far more understood and appreciated divisionSEARS What is your favorite restaurant in the worldDELANEY Delaneyamp8217s Steakhouse Madison WISEARS Thanks MacThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet management or associated bloggersamp160

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Mac Delaney of Merkle on Advertising Automation and Programmatic

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Mac Delaney of Merkle on Advertising Automation and Programmatic

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