Having forecast that non-search-related advertising spend will increase in excess of 20% annually for the next few years, Carat is constantly evaluating its multiple tech partners and getting more of its people comfortable using programmatic platforms, according to Doug Ray, U.S. CEO & Global President.

As programmatic has evolved from a pure focus on efficiency to that of a value perspective, Carat has shifted to multi-platform solutions.

“It’s much more sophisticated now. Where perhaps where we used one DSP, now we’ve got a meta solution where we’re using anywhere from eight to 10 DSP’s at a given time and where data is now much more a part of that conversation,” Ray says. “That’s both in terms of how we’re targeting and how we’re using things like dynamic creative to create real performance and business outcomes.”

Carat’s view of programmatic is an ever-changing landscape characterized by technology on the fly.

“It’s moving so quickly that you need almost an R&D group that’s constantly evaluating the landscape and making sure were keeping our tech partners fit for purpose for where we are today,” Ray says.

Moving to private marketplaces and working with premium publishers is one way that clients are increasingly comfortable with programmatic despite the obstacles of viewability and fraud.

According to Ray, “Solving those issues will make clients a lot more comfortable about moving more dollars into the space.”

This video part of a series about the state of programmatic advertising sponsored by OpenX. Please find other videos from the series here.