Party Post! Party Post! Party Post! Oops. Sorry. This Is A Serious Blog
Oh yes. For certain the ad:tech blog is a very, very serious media outlet. After all, it’s our job to share with you every up to the minute happening we can find during each conference. From panel content to keynote quality to exhibit hall activity to important exhibitor announcements.
But, let’s get unserious for a minute here. Everyone loves a great party. Everyone loves the chance to mix and mingle with their fellow industry mates. And that’s what conference parties provide. So, serious or unserious, we consider it our job to make you aware of all the partylicious goodness that’s scheduled for each conference. So, here we go.
As previously mentioned, Moss Networks, along with Advertise.com, Adknowledge and GenieKnows, will host its VIP MIX + Mingle at the Hudson Terrace Wednesday, November 4 from 10PM to close. Also on Wednesday, The Oldtimers Foundation will host an event at the Thom Bar from 7PM to 9PM. Also on Wednesday (yes, this is always the problem), Elephant Traffic will host a VIP (is anyone not a VIP?) Launch Party at 1 Oak from 7PM to 11PM.
Also on Wednesday (get used to this), Mozes, Billboard and ad:tech will co-host the official Opening Party at the Roosevelt Hotel from 7PM to…we have no idea. Also on Wednesday (yawn…), Eyeblaster will host its 8th Annual Eyeblaster Awards party at Providence from 8PM until midnight. And, and, and also on Wednesday (WTF???), the Mother of all Parties, Money Makers III will take place at Pacha from 9PM until, well, breakfast the next morning.
Oops. Oh wait. Another one! Epic will be hosting their second annual party at Marquee from 9PM until 2AM. This one’s called Heaven and Hell. Interesting.
Got it all? Are you sure? A Google calendar of all the parties is here. If there’s one saving grace here it’s that we can all go to bed early the second night of the conference because not a single company we know of is hosting a party. Not. One. Party.
So feel free to party all you want Wednesday night because it looks like that’s all you’re gonna get. On Thursday night you’ll just have to settle for a quiet dinner with friends. Or a hook up with that special person you met the night before. Either choice is a good one.
read more...You Can Get A Lot of ad:tech For $35!
For just $35, you can get yourself an ad:tech New York Exhibit Hall pass. That low price will get you into the exhibit hall wwith 250 exhibitors, access to seven keynote presentations, the welcome reception party, lunch forums, Google workshops and three keynotes at the concurrent Content Revenue Strategies conference.
All for $35. Seriously. Register here.
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Don’t Fret. You Will be Able to Get to and From Javits
OK so this year, after many years at the Hilton, ad:tech New York is moving to the Javits Center. It’s a mixed blessing. It’s a bigger space so it won’t be the sardine can-like crowding the Hilton conference became famous for. But it’s not exactly near anything in the city.
To make things easier for those of us who loved to be able to pop up to our hotel room between session, ad:tech will have several lounge areas where attendees can work. The Beer Garden, where food and beer will be available, will also be back. And there will be a full on bus shuttle service between Javits and several Times Square hotels:
Shuttle Transportation provided by Academy Bus - Buses will run on a 10 to 15 minute pickup schedule:
ROUTE 1 (464) SERVICING: Westin New York, W NY Times Square
Pick-up on 45th St, Off Broadway (near Marriott Marquis Hotel)
ROUTE 2 (1406) SERVICING: Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers and Sheraton Manhattan
Pick-up on 7TH Ave, BTW 52nd & 53rd St (Across from the hotel)
HOURS OF SERVICE:
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4 7:15 am – 11:15 am; 4:00 pm – 7:30 pm
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5 8:00 am – 12:00 pm; 3:30 pm – 7:00 pm
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6 8:00 am – 2:30 pm
Exhibit Hall Drinking Returns to ad:tech
On Wednesday, November 4, the first day of ad:tech New York, from 4:30PM to 6PM, ad:tech will be hosting a welcome reception in the exhibit hall to celebrate its move from the Hilton to the Javits Center. Just like the old days when a certain ad network whose name we can’t remember at the moment used to host exhibit hall receptions at every conference.
You’ll be in the exhibit hall anyway (won’t you?) so you might as well grab a drink and mingle a bit. It’s your perfect chance to go talk to that booth babe you’ve been eyeing all day.
read more...Sir Martin Sorrel Is In The House
WPP Chief Executive Martin Sorell will deliver the opening keynote at ad:tech New York November 4-6 at the Javits Centers. Sorrel has been equally lauded and maligned over his tenure with WPP. Hes been sensationalized for his high-profile divorce, a libel suit involving “vicious” images and mergers and acquisitions that were questioned by some. No doubt, the keynote will be interesting. Hopefully George Parker will show up and ask some pointed questions. That could be interesting!
read more...Moss Networks to Host VIP Mixx + Mingle at ad:tech New York
ad:tech New York is about one month away and you all know what that means. Party invites. So, yes, the first one are rolling in. First up is Moss Networks which, along with Advertise.com, Adknowledge and GenieKnows, will host it VIP MIX + Mingle at the Hudson Terrace Wednesday, November 4 from 10PM to close. So check out the details here and put it on your calendar.
read more...WPP Chief Martin Sorrell to Keynote ad:tech New York
OK so we are focused on Chicago ad:tech which occurs at Navy Pier September 1-2 but we thought you’d be interested to know the one and only Sir Martin Sorrell will make an appearance as keynote speaker at ad:tech New York November 4-6. Sorrell is CEO of agency holding company WPP and has had his fair share of success as well as criticism for his handling of the business over the past few years. No doubt, the keynote will be an interesting one.
Wikipedia Founder Jimmy Wales will also keynote. Other speakers include IAB President and CEO Randall Rothenberg, Nielsen Online International President Jonathan Carson and SearchEngineLand Editor in Chief Danny Sullivan.
read more...ad:tech New York Closes: Despite Economy, Optimism Reigns
While it’s said attendance was down slightly from past conferences, the New York ad:tech conference was, by all counts, alive and well despite 24/7 news reports of doom and gloom. It’s true the economy is not doing too well right now nor is it expected to improve over the course of the next year. But, thankfully, the online and interactive market space is one of the few bright spots amongst the graying economic skyline.
In his keynote address Tuesday morning eMarketer Co-Founder and CEO Geoff Ramsey said he expects to see a 14.5 percent growth rate in U.S. online ad spending in 2009, not bad for an economy that’s supposed to be tanking. Many other sources have proclaimed such health as well for the space which bodes well for those of us making our living in online marketing.
read more...The Revolution Will Be Widgetized! Among other Things
The Next Frontier: Advertising in Applications.
This panel struck me as one of the most relevant to marketers at ad:tech NY this year. Topics included widgets, in-game advertising and in-cloud applications (server-hosted productivity supplements to Word and Excel). A representative from Facebook also discussed what ad models work well for the social network.
Liza Hausman of Gigya introduced the talk on widgets. (See her discuss it, in part, in the video above. Try not to wince when Escourrou, bless his heart, says “marketeers.”) She observed people used to spend time on destination sites; now they bring content wherever they go: a social network, a blog, a desktop, their start page.
As a result, widgets present a real opportunity for marketers. “Anything that can be done on a website can be done on a widget,” she pointed out. “Most importantly, widgets have to be installed by a user to a page.” That’s the world’s best validation of your value add - and obviously also a huge hurdle.
Half-ass a widget, and it’ll never move past your subsite.
read more...Hey, Cool-Hunters. I’ve Got Your Millennials Right Here.
Obama, Apple and Ice Cream - Building Brand Passion Among Millennials.
This ad:tech panel consisted of six Millennials, which—according to the official (coughs) definition—represent those born between 1979 and 1994. Wanna know if they actually respond to your email blasts and big Flash banners? Watch the video above. And if you happen to be shilling for Urban Outfitters, pat yourself on the back.
Alloy’s Samantha Skey served as moderator and cow prod. This company’s entire raison d’etre is to know kids better than they know themselves, then package them in silver spoonfuls to ravenous marketers. Once in awhile, Skey made an irrefutable statement about their transparent whims, backed by video footage of some poor dope proving her right.
read more...Booths, Booth and More Booths. Exhibit Hall Explored Photography-Style
On Monday and Tuesday during ad:tech New York, the exhibit hall was filled with activity. Every last square inch of available space inside the Hilton had been converted to booth space for the final appearance of ad:tech in the Hilton. Yes, the conference will continue. It’s just moving to the Javits Center next year so everyone wil have some vreathing room as they traverse the exhibit hall floor.
ad:tech blogger Andrew Paradies strolled the floor and took several shots of exhibitors booths on Monday and Tuesday. Check out Andrew’s photo album here and see who you recognize. And here’s another album from Steve Hall.
read more...It’s the Skinny on Search and Synergy.
At this jewel of an ad:tech session, each panelist lavished the audience with a drop of wisdom from their collective fountains. What follows are my scoopings.
Tips for managing a brand in the new media landscape, courtesy of MTVN’s Julie Sun:
- You’ve heard the expression “knowledge is power.” Well, sound social knowledge can protect a brand. Monitor user-created pages like Wikipedia; see what people say about you, and communicate your point of view. (Avoid the temptation to link-whore, though.)
- Do research to find out where your users are. (Don’t play with Facebook, for example, if your users aren’t there.) Given your objectives, ID which space works best for you.
- Support your online social initiatives year-round. (For chrissake, don’t take down a subsite just because you stopped running TV ads for it. What makes the web cool is its ability to keep ads going long after the money stops. KEEP THE SITE UP. DON’T DELETE THOSE VIDEOS, EITHER.)
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Even Nimble Long Tail Media Will Suffer in Economic Downturn
The ad:tech power panel “Will the long-tail go bankrupt?” was extremely timely given current economic conditions. Digital content is everywhere online and is growing exponentially. This epic flood of digital content and unprecedented media fragmentation has produced a fundamental conundrum: it’s hard to make money. This panel explored how the long-tail can make money, and the barriers to growth, especially given where the economy is going.
MODERATOR:
Emily Steel, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal
PANELISTS:
Matt Palmer, Executive VP, General Manager, Stardoll
Jordan Bitterman, Digitas
Matt Coppet, Head of Global Media Strategy, UBS
Philip Mitchell, Ogilvy
Jim Louderback, CEO, Revision3
The Billion $$ Question. How can the Long-Tail make $$$?
The extent to which advertising can be incorporated into content in a relevant and natural way has great effect on the “worth” of the ad impression. And this goes beyond display-based advertising. Jim Louderback, CEO of Revision3 used an example of how a beer sponsorship was incorporated into their podcast. The DiggNation podcast has long featured guys drinking beer. Incorporating sponsors for the beer was a logical and natural tie-in, without the need to directly relate it to the content. (DiggNation is a technology/news blog). According to Jim Louderback sponsors see as high as 100% unaided awareness from sponsorships which is significantly higher than display based ads.
read more...Mobile Social Networking: Now Is The Time for Innovation
“Mobile is both the most personal device and location-based device..its also the only 24/7 session,” stated Evan Tana, Director of Product Management and Marketing at Loopt. And so very true! I had just Twittered from one such mobile device a few minutes before to notify my followers of my presence in the session—how very appropriate, eh?
As the last session of the day, the last remaining stalwarts filed in to hear about this still very emerging platform, and disappointed we were not! With a solid panel consisting of some of the most active doers and thought leaders in the space, the session remained relevant and to the point (and kudos to moderator Mickey Alam Khan, EIC of MobileMarketer.com for keeping the audience engaged with frequent breaks throughout for Q&A). Ok so lets get down to the good stuff:
MODERATOR:
Mickey Alam Khan, Editor-in-Chief, Mobile Marketer magazine
PANELISTS:
Evan Tana, Director of Product Management and Marketing, Loopt
Mike Howard, VP of Sales, Kiwibox.com
Polly Lieberman, VP, Advertising Sales, buzzd
Andrew Osmak, Senior VP, Business Development, Lavalife
Jordan Greene, Principal, Mobile Media, Mella Media
