COLOGNE — According to one local ad exec, Germany’s business culture emphasizes efficiency and planning up front, which minimizes the risk of failing. It’s very different from the ethos of some U.S. companies, which tend to try out several ideas to see what sticks.

However, while risky, that approach can lead to the discovery of bold new ideas.

“Please stay within your failure culture, [and] fail fast, because this on the other hand is one of the biggest innovation drivers,” says Patrick Dörfler, director of client services at the digital agency Conceptbakery, in an interview with Beet.TV recorded last month at DMEXCO.

Dörfler observes that digital and social content must be consumer-centric.

“To stay interesting on the pathway of the consumer, you have to be very clear in communication, so you either give them added value or you give them some entertainment,” he says. “If it’s not one of those two, just leave it.”

He also says that Conceptbakery is effectively using social platforms as a petri dish to see which iteration of a video resonates best with customers. Instead of putting one single TV spot out and hoping it works, creatives can now test three different versions on social with a minimal budget to see how engagement stacks up for each before figuring out how to utilize them.

This video is part of a series from DMEXCO, presented by Mediaocean. Please visit this page for our other videos.