Chris Marino

What role does contextual AI play in shaping the future of advertising? As end-users and technology companies increasingly prioritize privacy, contextual AI is poised to emerge as the primary tool for advertisers as it focuses on aligning the right messaging with the right context, making it essential for brands' future success. Kartal Goksel, CTO at Seedtag, believes that context reigns supreme when it comes to effective advertising. While the industry has typically depended on keywords and phrases to gauge context, he argues that a more nuanced, human understanding of context is crucial as this approach considers the broader meaning of words within the context of an article. Watch now: https://lnkd.in/e3aBPiYQ #ContextualAI #ConsumerPrivacy #ContextualAdvertising

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Some good points are made by PubMatic’s Andrew Baron in AdExchanger’s latest Data-Driven Thinking column. Ironically, cookies were never that big of a problem in the first place—your humble, anonymous cookie is far less personal than a hashed email (which, as the FTC recently reminded us, is in fact still PII). But to the writer’s point, years of worrying about their impending deprecation have led to some very positive changes. First- and carefully curated and enhanced second- and third-party data will always yield better results, assuming you can protect the privacy of the consumers who produced it. And yes, whatever more personally identifiable data you’re working with—whether it’s sell-side targeting, modeled audiences, or contextual signals—alternative IDs have shown great promise in creating a layer of privacy protection. However, the real challenge arises when these identifiers traverse the bidstream and are shared with third parties. No matter how secure your encryption, once data leaves your control, it’s vulnerable to exploitation or reverse engineering. Anything can happen. The signals aren’t the problem—it’s the way we’re sharing them. We built Symitri to solve these inherent privacy challenges in adtech infrastructure. By ensuring that personally identifiable data never leaves the control of its owner, Symitri offers truly deterministic targeting without sacrificing privacy. With Symitri, you can achieve precision, performance, and privacy—no compromises necessary. #Symitri #Privacy #DataProtection #Trust #TRUSTX https://lnkd.in/eS9Aem8B

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Why should political buyers warm up to CTV this season? Magnite's Head of Political Demand Erik Brydges spoke to AdExchanger about how political buyers are effectively using programmatic and ACR data.

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📹 Amazon is Shaking Up the Streaming Advertising Market! 📺 In January, Amazon made a bold move by making all Prime Video subscriptions ad-supported by default. Just six months in, the impact is clear and brands need to pay close attention to how this will further change the advertising landscape: 🔸 Subscription Changes: Prime Video now defaults to ad-supported at $14.99/month for Prime members and $8.99/month for non-Prime members. Want ad-free? It’s an extra $3/month. 🔸 Market Impact: Amazon joins Netflix and Disney in offering ad-supported tiers, leading to an oversupply in the ad marketplace and therefore companies like Disney are now working harder to attract advertisers. 🔸 Ad Market Dynamics: Prime Video could add over 50 billion impressions to the connected TV (CTV) market this year. Amazon's aggressive pricing strategy is pushing down ad costs, with CPM rates between $30 and $35 which is causing competitors, like Netflix, to lower their CPM rates to stay competitive. 🔸 Competitive Edge: Amazon’s extensive audience reach and customer data from Prime gives it a significant advantage! They can integrate their search advertising with Prime Video, enhancing content monetization and lowering ad prices. 🔸 Market Trends: More consumers are opting for cheaper ad-supported streaming plans. MoffettNathanson predicts a 33% growth in advertising video on demand this year. 🔸 Industry Adaptation: Amazon's approach is pushing the industry to focuse more on market share over high ad prices. SO... What are some things you should be thinking about for YOUR brand? 🔹 Commitment to a proper investment and appropriate flight length 🔹 Plan for ample amounts of video development and to A/B test 🔹 Leverage your data to create tailored targeting 🔹 Take advantage of competitive pricing NOW - test early & often 🔹 Look for the halo effect and take advantage of retargeting 🔹 Up your influencer marketing game - it can boost your credibility, especially with young shoppers 🚀 Exciting times ahead for streaming and advertising! We're following them closely here at The Topo Agency, so if you looking to learn more follow along, reach out to me or someone from my team and as always head over to our website at www.thetopoagency.com to learn more about service offerings! #Streaming #Advertising #Amazon #PrimeVideo #Marketing #TechTrends

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TLDR: Global marketers are very confident in their martech’s ability to measure holistic ROI. However, barely one-third measure their traditional and digital marketing efforts together. Audiences don’t consume media in silos, and neither should measurement. https://lnkd.in/d4tyritu

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What. A. Rollercoaster. George London at Upwave via Marketing Dive does a masterful job discussing Google's reversal to now retain cookies after years of touting their deprecation. Quote: "The repercussions of Google’s failed experiment are far-reaching. The credibility of privacy-enhancing technologies has been tarnished by association. Many advertisers have doubled down on potentially less privacy-friendly alternatives to #cookies, or feel vindicated in never having tried to move off cookies at all. The uncertainty surrounding the open web’s future has accelerated the flow of ad dollars into walled gardens, ironically concentrating more user data in the hands of a few tech giants." This was a good read for anyone in the #digitalads space.

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The second and, as of now, the final presidential debate is in the books. As we approach another critical election season, political campaigns must rethink how they reach voters. Thousands of voters will decide this race in 15 or so counties across a few battleground states. The key to victory? Aligning message with mindset. By aligning messages with relevant, real-time content, campaigns can engage voters in more personalized, meaningful ways—while ensuring brand suitability and maximizing reach. It was great talking with Chris Wood and MarTech, as we discuss how video-level contextual targeting in CTV empowers political campaigns to make smarter, data-driven decisions, delivering the right message to the right audience at the right time. Check out the article for more insights on how political strategies are evolving! #election2024 #adtech #programmatic #connectedtv #contextuladvertising https://lnkd.in/g8rBNnn3

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With every new tech innovation, retail is right there innovating in tandem. We’re seeing it again today as retailers are looking to uncover new ways to transform their business with AI. Recently, Laura Jones, CMO of Instacart sat down with Sean Downey to share how AI is supercharging their growth and helping to deliver unique customer experiences. Here are some key takeaways: Let the customer take the wheel: Instacart’s AI chatbot let’s shoppers ask for recommendations based on their needs, like gluten-free options. Data is king: Instacart has a ton of data on what people buy. They combine this data with machine learning to make smart recommendations and improve ad targeting. AI-powered everything: From product descriptions to creative campaigns, AI is helping Instacart optimize for agility and efficiency. Learn more about how AI can transform your retail business here: https://bit.ly/3zntUsE #retail #AI #ecommerce #innovation #customerexperience

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"When I started in programmatic in 2013, I never imagined how far it would come—or how important the human touch would remain. AI is transforming the industry, but traders still bring something irreplaceable: intuition, creativity, and the ability to adapt to the unexpected. It's not just about the tech; it's about how we use it to make smarter decisions and create real impact. The future of programmatic isn't just AI-driven—it's human-powered. #ProgrammaticAdvertising #AI #HumanTouch #DigitalInnovation"

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Netflix is the latest titan to recognize the value of programmatic advertising with the announcement of its strategy to distribute unsold OTT/CTV ad space across several different providers. The Trade Desk, Google DV360, Magnite are cited as the next batch of providers. Up until now, CTV media buyers had to go through Microsoft Xandr DSP or book with Netflix publisher-direct. It reminds me of the moment when Lamar Advertising Company took the same bold step to ensure their unsold space was programmatically available in top notch, third party SSP platforms like Place Exchange and others. It’s a rite of passage. Expanding the surface area of buy-side and sell-side platforms unlocks massive revenue dollars, when done right. Some of the smartest people in the world of business work at Netflix. This is proof of that. Many hands make light work! This layers on a new dimension for marketers when they say that they can now “Netflix and Chilll”. 📺😎👏🏼 #programmaticadvertising #ctv #innovation #followthemoney https://lnkd.in/gJU9ytZi

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Subliminal advertising has been a topic of fascination since the 1950s, but does it still work in today’s ad-heavy environment? 📺 One fascinating fact: consumers process millions of bits of information unconsciously every day, meaning many ads still affect us even if we don’t realize it. But with attention overload, the real question is—should brands focus on what’s hidden, or on capturing attention openly and authentically? Check out this insightful piece by Infillion’s Jamie Auslander on the evolution of subliminal messaging in advertising. #Infillion #AdvertisingTrends #SubliminalMessaging #ConsumerAttention #MarketingInsights

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Learn what it takes to crack the code on lead generation

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I think "local at scale" #marketing is the future of brand marketing. Where-to-buy-nearby coupled with real-time #local inventory and #clickandcollect will surely delight online shoppers.

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Most ecoms overutilize Meta & neglect Google hardcore—a huge mistake. Here’s the 3-part, modern playbook top brands run: This isn’t anecdotal… - Based on aggressive ad testing - Across both Meta & Google - For 10+ high-growth brands - All between $5M-$75M in rev Here it is: 1. TOFU PMAX (Prospecting) - Non-brand, new customers only - Single asset group * Later: Test separate PMAX - For high margin products, cats, etc. * Large accounts: Test Demand Gen (needs time) - To feed PMAX high intent, cold traffic - Requires great video; arbitrage from Meta - Test all types: statics, videos, & feed - Run Lookalikes (only campaign that has) 2. MOFU Standard Shopping - For manual bidding - So can control “branded ad” cost - 2nd PMAX gatekeeper to funnel off brand terms * Later: Harvest keywords - To test Generic PPC * Large accounts: Test Display Remarketing - E.g., YouTube - Audience = visitors (non-purchased) 3. BOFU Exact Match Brand PPC - Target Impression Share (95%+) - Should have massive ROAS - 1st PMAX gatekeeper to funnel off brand terms Stop sleeping on Google. Diversify and get all your eggs out of Meta’s basket 👊

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Netflix streaming was one of Amazon Web Services (AWS) early success stories and proofs of concept (I'll drop a link in the comments). "Amy Reinhard, the company’s president of advertising, was clear: Netflix will roll out a proprietary ad tech platform by next year." Could Netflix in-house #adtech be the next Netflix <> AWS collab? There's history there and this could be a major win for proving the value of AWS for Advertising out in the wild... #adtech + #cloud = 🔥

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There's a bigger play happening in podcasting than I think most of us in the industry realize, or willing to turn our eyes to. There are three companies that you should pay attention to more than you have been: Spotify, Amazon, and YouTube. I wish I could add a forth to emulte Scott Galloway's "The Four" (one of my favorite reads). Here goes: Spotify has essentially completed their multi year acquisition plan to build the next "Meta/Google" ads platform. If you look at their pod-related acquisitions, very few were profitable on their own. Content acquisitions (JRE/Call Her Daddy), Hosting (Anchor/Megaphone), Measurement (Podsights/Chartable)... but what do they have as a result? They have, in essence, built the "Google Ad Sense" of Podcasting--I bet they will eventually dismiss the idea of "buying podcast ads" and refer to what they do as "Spotify ads." SPAN, SAI, SPAA... it's all come together, and they don't need the IAB anymore, I guess. Amazon has a different leg up. They have content, but not as much as Spotify and definitely not the quantity of in platform listening. What do they have? They have the biggest database of buyer behavior at their disposal, and the ability to integrate their Amazon Ad tech into their podcasts to create a compelling ad market for buyers. https://lnkd.in/gnRjWgEx YouTube is a bit late to the podcast arms race, but it doesn't matter since their infrastructure is solid. YouTube already has accumulated so much pod listenership, and they are working on integrated search functions from Shorts to RSS (via YouTube Music). They're already the leader in pod discovery, and they already have one of the biggest ad ecosystems running via "ad sense" on pods--they can now optimize and continue to rob the others of their video opportunities. Plus, with Shopify integrations and on screen clickability performance tracking for brands is cleaner and already integrated into a platform they're familiar with at scale. The area it lacks is data sharing. No pixels, no clean visibility for brands. Here's what each are missing (IMO): Spotify: Trust. Amazon: Volume. YouTube: Measurement. Under these three giants, there's many other contenders to make industry changing impact, but I just don't see it happening unless serious efforts are made to keep up. In my view, Spotify and YouTube are neck and neck and Amazon is a silent underdog. The next 5 years are going to be exciting.

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Not to be outdone by AI search engines like Perplexity, Google is once again revolutionizing the search game. Elizabeth Reid, Google's Head of Search, announces full-page card-based results, video search with Google Lens for interactive questioning, and the rollout of ads in AI Overviews in the US in the blog post below. In other news, Cloudflare recently introduced AI Audit, which promises content creators insight into and control over AI model access to their websites. Tools like this will aid SEO enthusiasts in grasping optimization in an AI-centric search landscape. https://lnkd.in/gHiDqWt4 #Digital #Marketing #Search #AI

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👻 Nothing gets Adtechies in the spirit of Halloween more than Mark McEachran's recent AdExchanger piece. #RIPCookies Advertising is changing. External drivers such as major FAANG plans no longer overshadow internal sell side strategic initiatives. It turns out executing against roadmap priorities: ♻️ mitigates engineering waste 😨 eliminates scope creep 🎁 secures tangible deliverables 🙄 There is nothing more irritating than committing to a roadmap, but everything under the sun and outside of your control delaying it. We know Google's announcements derailed things more than once. Now that the embrace of Alt IDs is taking shape, its time to focus more on analytic attribution instead of inferred uplift. Answering the question of ROI was always the more important and interesting conversation anyways. That said, Mark does a great job explaining the shift and I'd recommend taking a read if you haven't gotten around to it yet.

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Do people still care about #PrimeDay? Well... yeah. But how does that translate to spending by both consumers and marketers? My Skai colleague Gil Sadeh recently gave Street Fight his perspective, including: 💵 75% of US consumers plan to spend the same or even more than they did last year. 👀 For brands, #PrimeDay2024 is an opportunity to raise visibility for slower-moving product lines. 🛒 Another tip: promote less expensive items so new buyers can sample your brand (then remarket your more premium items to them in the future). 🖥️ According to Skai's exclusive consumer survey, the top product categories this year will be: big-ticket electronics, home goods, fashion & apparel, and beauty & personal care items. Get more insights from Gil's interview here: https://lnkd.in/eUZccDZj

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