Agency

The video landscape is in a time of major flux, with digital viewing on the rise, advertisers seeking integrated campaigns and yet TV networks still holding most of the cards. But with the emergence of new technologies—and new measurement capabilities—video advertising is poised for change. Last year, Nielsen and Simulmedia brought together a core group of researchers, marketers and C-suite executives from all sides of the media industry to discuss the future of video advertising.

The rise in social media analytics tools has satisfied marketer demand for a way to measure and gather insights from social marketing efforts.

Getting consistency right also requires the attention of top leadership. That’s because by using a variety of channels and triggering more and more interactions with companies as they seek to meet discrete needs, customers create clusters of interactions that make their individual interactions less important than their cumulative experience. This customer journey can span all elements of a company and include everything from buying a product to actually using it, having issues with a product that require resolution, or simply making the decision to use a service or product for the first time.

In 2014, 7UP will amplify the EDM energy, community and movement with #7x7UP. This yearlong 7UP program will bring uplifting experiences to 7 festivals and events. As part of this exciting collaboration 7UP will partner with 7 DJs, including the world-renowned DJ, Tiësto, who helped 7UP light up a village in Chile as part of 7UP’s newly launched creative.

Dallas-based ad agency Richards/Lerma has been selected as creative agency of record by Pizza Patrón. The relationship will have the agency assisting in traditional, digital, social media and public relations programs for the Mexican centric pizza chain as well as some creative input on naming and product development work.

Everybody’s Phone Company, Inc. announced that its 2014 advertising and pre-paid home phone service packages will target the Hispanic market, which is Texas’ fastest growing demographic.

iNSPIRE! Agency received four ADDY Awards from the Dallas chapter of the American Advertising Federation, formerly the Dallas Ad League.

The overall verdict: The internet has been a plus for society and an especially good thing for individual users

In early February, Anheuser-Busch InBev, America’s largest brewer, signed a deal to buy the Blue Point Brewing Company, a well-respected Long Island craft beer company. With Anheuser-Busch InBev’s success, and its strong portfolio of beer brands that include Budweiser, Stella Artois, Beck’s, and Corona, why would the company feel impelled to buy a craft beer company?

Devices such as smartphones, tablets, laptops, desktops and portable gaming systems have made it easy for consumers to multitask while watching television. However, a November 2013 study by TiVo found that three-quarters of US TV viewers were more focused on what was on the tube, even when using a second screen.

The advertising industry is in a state of existential crisis, thanks to technology; analytics; migrating, fickle and/or distracted eyeballs; Netflix and other on-demand services; piracy; privacy; attribution; the decline of print as a medium; stagnating television audience numbers; and the fact that we can finally start to understand which 50% of our ad spend is wasted.

As a headline in today’s Wall Street Journaldeclares,“For Some Retailers, Success in Simply Staying Alive.” The lede does it even better: “For some of the country’s weakest retailers, less red is the new black.”

This month, just a week after being awarded “Best of Show” at the American Advertising Federation’s 52nd annual American Advertising Awards in Houston, Lopez Negrete Communications, Inc. also won Full Service Agency of the Year at the Media Alliance of Houston Star Awards Gala.

Dallas based TruMedia has change its name to truMC to better reflect their focus.

Adam Kasper, chief media officer at Havas, predicts that the content marketing business will grow, as content comes closer to media buying, and automation will have a huge impact on this growth.

Tippit & Moo, a full-service independent advertising agency based in Houston, has appointed David Flynn, Jr. as its new General Manager.  A seasoned and widely renowned analytical and strategic authority in the industry, Flynn will lead the highly awarded team at Tippit & Moo, whose premier clients include Fiesta Mart, Inc., Sonic Drive-Ins, Gabbanelli Accordions, Michaels Stores, Professional Sports Partners, Universal Technical Institute, InComm, and Zadok Jewelers, among others.

New Accenture research reports that more than 89 percent of female professionals around the globe and a similar number of male respondents believe building their “career capital” – those differentiated skills that define and advance their careers – is key to success in the workplace. The research, based on a survey of 4,100 male and female professionals in 32 countries, also found that professionals welcome change and are confident of their ability to succeed in the workplace.

I’ve been in the media industry for over six years in New York and San Diego at various ad agencies, and one of my favorite parts of the job is my interaction with sales reps. It could be argued that we work in the best industry in the world, because we’re tasked with innovating, strategizing and socializing. The list below includes dos and don’ts for both media buyers and planners and sales reps, based on my own observations, heart-to-hearts with some of my favorite reps, and conversations with fellow media people. If we all follow these simple rules, we can minimize frustrations and have more time for happy hours.

As the mobile ecosystem explodes, entertainment brands of all sizes are looking for ways to utilize the channel to deliver their messages and build demand. Mobile video is proving to be an extremely effective and valuable marketing channel for brands, and it is currently the fastest-growing ad format in all of mobile. When delivered with the right technology, with the right content, to the right audience, mobile video advertising can deliver impact even greater than television advertising.

Millennials – and younger ones in particular – are voracious content consumers across all media channels – television, online, games, apps and mobile. These teens are an attractive demographic that marketers are eager to capture through traditional and emerging channels alike. The greatest opportunity comes by creating and leveraging connections between the channels teens rely on, and nowhere is that truer than the screens that matter most: television and mobile devices. Unfortunately, few have figured out how to drive measurable cross-screen engagement. That needs to change and there are early signs that change is beginning.