TV Ads Should Sell Stuff, Not Just Win Awards: Amazon’s Jeremy Helfand
CANNES, France – At Cannes Lions, where executives can usually survive an entire panel by saying “AI,” “creativity” and “consumer connection” in various combinations, Jeremy Helfand arrived with a more practical ambition. The vice president of Prime Video advertising at Amazon wants streaming television to do something radical: help brands actually sell things.
Speaking with Beet.TV contributor David Kaplan, Helfand outlined Amazon’s vision for Prime Video as both an entertainment destination and an advertising machine powered by what he described as “trillions of signals.” The message was clear. Streaming TV is no longer content to be television with a Wi-Fi password. It wants to become a shopping cart too.
Streaming TV discovers it can count
Helfand argued that Prime Video’s advantage comes from its ability to combine premium entertainment with data-driven advertising.
“Prime Video is focused on being a first-stop entertainment destination for both customers and for brands,” he said. He added that the platform’s ability to leverage “trillions of signals to deliver a more relevant experience” helps create advertising that works for viewers as well as marketers.
That phrase, “trillions of signals,” is the sort of number that makes media buyers either very excited or slightly concerned that their refrigerator is now participating in audience measurement.
AI’s job is making more ads and making them cheaper
Asked the mandatory Cannes question about artificial intelligence, Helfand delivered a refreshingly practical answer.
Rather than portraying AI as a digital messiah, he described it as a tool that can help brands create more advertising variations and improve relevance. AI can “democratize creative” by helping advertisers produce campaigns that are “more effective as well as more varied,” he said.
The benefits extend beyond creative development. Helfand also pointed to behind-the-scenes improvements in ad delivery, optimization and inventory management. In other words, AI is not just writing marketing copy. It’s helping make the plumbing work better too.
The remote control becomes a checkout button
For decades, television’s primary contribution to commerce was convincing viewers to buy something later. Streaming wants to shorten that process considerably.
“The expectation for streaming TV should be that it’s a full funnel advertising medium,” Helfand said. He argued that advertisers should be able to achieve “whatever objective” they have, whether brand awareness, conversion or performance goals.
Prime Video’s interactive ad units allow viewers to complete purchases with “a single click of the remote,” turning the traditional couch-to-store journey into something closer to couch-to-couch commerce.
The television remote has spent decades helping people avoid advertising. Amazon would now like it to help complete transactions.
From product placement to social media victory laps
Helfand described what he called a “continuum” of brand integration opportunities, ranging from direct placements inside content to broader sponsorship and co-branded marketing campaigns.
One example involved Prime Video’s “Off Campus” series and hydration brand Liquid I.V. According to Helfand, the campaign combined in-show integration, co-branded advertising featuring the show’s characters and social media amplification. The result was what he called Liquid I.V.’s “most effective social marketing campaign ever.”
Cannes attendees may find comfort in learning that product placement has evolved from a soda can sitting on a kitchen counter into a multi-platform marketing ecosystem supported by social content, branded storytelling and enough measurement dashboards to power a small utility company.
Television for the little guys
Perhaps Helfand’s most notable point concerned accessibility. He argued that streaming television is becoming available to advertisers far beyond the traditional roster of national brands with giant media budgets.
“Whether you’re a large national brand or you’re a small, medium sized business local advertiser,” Prime Video can provide access to streaming television advertising, he said. AI-driven creative tools and improved targeting capabilities are helping lower barriers to entry.
“The idea that we can democratize television for any type of advertiser is a fantastic opportunity,” Helfand said.
That may be one of the more significant shifts underway in media. For generations, television advertising was a club with a very expensive cover charge. Amazon’s pitch is that the velvet rope is coming down, though naturally there will still be plenty of opportunities to buy something once you get inside.
CANNES, France – At Cannes Lions, where executives can usually survive an entire panel by saying “AI,” “creativity” and “consumer connection” in various combinations, Jeremy Helfand arrived with a more practical ambition. The vice president of Prime Video advertising at Amazon wants streaming television to do something radical: help brands actually sell things.
Speaking with Beet.TV contributor David Kaplan, Helfand outlined Amazon’s vision for Prime Video as both an entertainment destination and an advertising machine powered by what he described as “trillions of signals.” The message was clear. Streaming TV is no longer content to be television with a Wi-Fi password. It wants to become a shopping cart too.
Streaming TV discovers it can count
Helfand argued that Prime Video’s advantage comes from its ability to combine premium entertainment with data-driven advertising.
“Prime Video is focused on being a first-stop entertainment destination for both customers and for brands,” he said. He added that the platform’s ability to leverage “trillions of signals to deliver a more relevant experience” helps create advertising that works for viewers as well as marketers.
That phrase, “trillions of signals,” is the sort of number that makes media buyers either very excited or slightly concerned that their refrigerator is now participating in audience measurement.
AI’s job is making more ads and making them cheaper
Asked the mandatory Cannes question about artificial intelligence, Helfand delivered a refreshingly practical answer.
Rather than portraying AI as a digital messiah, he described it as a tool that can help brands create more advertising variations and improve relevance. AI can “democratize creative” by helping advertisers produce campaigns that are “more effective as well as more varied,” he said.
The benefits extend beyond creative development. Helfand also pointed to behind-the-scenes improvements in ad delivery, optimization and inventory management. In other words, AI is not just writing marketing copy. It’s helping make the plumbing work better too.
The remote control becomes a checkout button
For decades, television’s primary contribution to commerce was convincing viewers to buy something later. Streaming wants to shorten that process considerably.
“The expectation for streaming TV should be that it’s a full funnel advertising medium,” Helfand said. He argued that advertisers should be able to achieve “whatever objective” they have, whether brand awareness, conversion or performance goals.
Prime Video’s interactive ad units allow viewers to complete purchases with “a single click of the remote,” turning the traditional couch-to-store journey into something closer to couch-to-couch commerce.
The television remote has spent decades helping people avoid advertising. Amazon would now like it to help complete transactions.
From product placement to social media victory laps
Helfand described what he called a “continuum” of brand integration opportunities, ranging from direct placements inside content to broader sponsorship and co-branded marketing campaigns.
One example involved Prime Video’s “Off Campus” series and hydration brand Liquid I.V. According to Helfand, the campaign combined in-show integration, co-branded advertising featuring the show’s characters and social media amplification. The result was what he called Liquid I.V.’s “most effective social marketing campaign ever.”
Cannes attendees may find comfort in learning that product placement has evolved from a soda can sitting on a kitchen counter into a multi-platform marketing ecosystem supported by social content, branded storytelling and enough measurement dashboards to power a small utility company.
Television for the little guys
Perhaps Helfand’s most notable point concerned accessibility. He argued that streaming television is becoming available to advertisers far beyond the traditional roster of national brands with giant media budgets.
“Whether you’re a large national brand or you’re a small, medium sized business local advertiser,” Prime Video can provide access to streaming television advertising, he said. AI-driven creative tools and improved targeting capabilities are helping lower barriers to entry.
“The idea that we can democratize television for any type of advertiser is a fantastic opportunity,” Helfand said.
That may be one of the more significant shifts underway in media. For generations, television advertising was a club with a very expensive cover charge. Amazon’s pitch is that the velvet rope is coming down, though naturally there will still be plenty of opportunities to buy something once you get inside.
