It may be becoming a media world premised on agility, but it seems media agencies remain intrigued by the prospect of upfront media buys.
In this video interview with Beet.TV, Karen Chan, Group Director, Investment Innovation, GroupM, says the recent IAB NewFronts, a showcase for digital publishers to tout their slate and capabilities to ad buyers, was useful.
Insights and case studies
One of the most exciting aspects of NewFronts, according to Chan, is the case studies presented by partners. “I love actually the case studies that kind of get brought around, seeing how all the different partners are working together.
“What’s really great is usually at these type of events you’ll see things like new partnerships being announced, things that will actually help in the future for interoperability, transparency, really technological advancements.”
This wealth of information helps inform future campaigns, as Chan notes: “When we actually see all these different partners showcase what they can do, it kind of gets people thinking, ‘Okay, how can we utilize them in better ways for business outcomes for our clients?'”
Congratulations to @GroupMWorldwide's Karen Chan, a finalist in the @Fierce__Video Emerging Leaders Awards. #FierceEmergingLeaders2022https://t.co/rK3ar2UiFa
— FierceVideo (@Fierce__Video) May 12, 2022
Investment innovation is a newly created team within GroupM Investment responsible for working closely with clients, partners and key stakeholder practices.
It is tasked with positioning the setup in areas including advanced TV, cross-channel integrations, new ad formats and models, and measurement and research capabilities.
Exciting developments on the horizon
Chan was looking forward to the IAB Podcast Upfronts, on May 11, 2023, and other developments in the industry.
IAB was due to release new research quantifying the scale of US podcast advertising, which passed $1 billion in 2021.
“I think there will be a lot of different, cool partnerships and new product developments, a lot of shopper ads and all of that coming out. I think it’ll be exciting. I’m looking forward to all that.”
Holistic approach to media buying
With the convergence of the video landscape, it’s essential to look at the market holistically and see how different partners utilize various technologies and partnerships, Chan explains.
“We’re not necessarily looking at partners in silos necessarily with a converged video landscape right now,” she says.
“We’re trying to put together all the different things seeing how different partners utilize different technologies and partnerships together so that we can actually look holistically at the marketplace together.”
You’re watching Beet.TV’s coverage of the 2023 IAB NewFronts, presented by Teads. For more videos from this series, please visit this page.
