RizePoint in 2018 Shatter List for Actively Working to Break Technology’s Glass Ceiling

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January 24, 2018

AdBirds and Dynamic Yield Announce Global Partnership

Partnership Combines Dynamic Yield’s World-Class Personalization Technology with the Analytics and Digital Marketing Expertise of Adbirds

Dynamic Yield, the world’s first personalization technology stack and AdBirds, a global team of former Google employees who specialize in digital marketing and eCommerce, today announced a global partnership to help clients deploy world-class personalization and optimization programs.

According to McKinsey, personalization done right can drive a 10-30% increase in revenue and 15% boost in efficiency of marketing spend. However, Dynamic Yield’s Personalization Maturity Assessment found that only 17% of companies claim to have personalization in place, citing “lack of resources” as the leading barrier (49% of respondents). This partnership aims to directly tackle that problem by combining technology and expertise.

“The AdBirds team consists of world-class analytics and optimization gurus. We are honored to welcome them to the Dynamic Yield partner family to continue to provide the best possible service to our customers,” said Colton Perry, VP Channel at Dynamic Yield.

Also Read: Periscope By McKinsey and Dynamic Yield Announce Global Alliance

AdBirds’ director Rens den Hollander already sees a great impact on his clients’ results, “The results that Dynamic Yield’s tools have produced for our global customers have been very impressive. We have received nothing but positive feedback, which made it an easy decision to partner with Dynamic Yield.”

AdBirds operates in more than 60 countries with local knowledge in each market, ensuring the best possible digital results for clients worldwide. Dynamic Yield’s technology powers personalization, recommendations, automated optimization, messaging and triggered emails from a single SaaS platform, empowering marketers to create seamless experiences across channels.

The Essential Audience Fidelity Framework for Search Marketing Success

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Matt Mierzejewski

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January 24, 2018

The Essential Audience Fidelity Framework for Search Marketing Success

In late 2015, Google first announced the rollout of Google Customer Match, giving advertisers the ability to target their known, first-party customers directly via search. As we close out 2017, some marketers are still behind the curve in adopting a full range of people-based marketing capabilities in their search strategies.

Today’s marketer must approach paid search beginning with people, not a keyword. Search ads then become meaningful interactions with customers in their journey, creating brand engagement, value, and loyalty.

Audience Visibility and Fidelity

Paid search has always sought to market to specific individuals. At its origin, search advertisers used the keyword to understand the people behind the keyboard. Keywords gave us insight into each user’s intent, based on what and how they searched. Now, more than ever, advertisers have access to audience data, which allows us to understand the history and context of the individual’s digital journey.

As audience targeting rapidly grows to become an important signal in search targeting, this creates the opportunity to combine the user’s history, context, and intent to create powerful business intelligence.

Search audiences today have three levels of visibility: known, semi-known and unknown. Within this framework, the relative targeting fidelities can be defined as good, better and best. It is important to note that marketers should always begin investing with the highest fidelity (best) and broaden from there to include lower fidelity targeting (better and good).

Also Read: Who’s Responsible for Solving the Billion-Dollar Ad Fraud Problem?

Best

Fully known individuals are identified via one-to-one email address match, such as with Customer Match. Here, in real time, the advertiser can vary its ad auction bid, ad messaging, and custom landing page experience based on the known customer. Furthermore, the advertiser has the capability to leverage first-party data to inform decisioning. This is the highest form of people-based marketing fidelity or best.

Google Customer Match Uploader service also provides advertisers the ability to augment their first-party data files by including their customers’ phone numbers, mailing addresses, and physical addresses to cross-reference for email addresses that can be leveraged and matched by Google.

Better

Semi-known individuals are largely targeted via search-based cookie lists, or remarketing lists for search ads (RLSA). The limitation is that the customer must have previously engaged with the advertiser’s brand via search, and the cookie is set on a browser and device basis as opposed to a fully known user basis.

Additionally, these cookie-based signals are limited to the activity performed by the browser, as opposed to fully known individuals, including their attributes and conversion behaviors. Google also allows for similar audiences for search and Shopping, which are basically look-alike targeting options built around RLSAs.

Another form of semi-known audience targeting leverages Google’s demographic, geographic, and other known user attributes. Google makes these targeting criteria available directly in the AdWords interface. The advertiser does not need to have first- or third-party data, and the searcher does not need to have any prior engagement with the advertiser’s website. Google’s knowledge of the individual in age, gender, geography, and household income represent the main contributors to audience targeting capabilities within the Google ad platform. This data is not perfectly reliable, so it is listed in the low end of our semi-known audience category. Within this people-based-marketing fidelity framework, semi-known audiences can be defined as better.

Good

Unknown individuals are the audience of general, non-targeted search. Here, the primary intent signals are users’ search queries without regard for who they are, where they are, or what other behaviors and attributes ladder into their customer journey. This is the lowest form of PBM fidelity, or good.

In Merkle’s Q3 Digital Marketing Report, it was revealed that 20% of all Google traffic was audience addressable, which is twice as high as the previous year. Clearly, the opportunities to deploy a people-based marketing strategy within search are growing rapidly.

Advertisers should seek to leverage all levels of search audience targeting by ensuring the following tactics are incorporated into their programs:

Media strategy and planning begins with audience first – fully known, semi-known and unknown.
When forecasting and budgeting for search, invest your first dollar in fully known individuals, then semi-known individuals, and finally unknown individuals.
Tracking and measurement technology are leveraged to connect search within the full customer journey on a fully known individual level.
Bid, messaging, and landing page/user experience strategies are customized based on the fidelity of audience targeting to maximize performance and customer engagement.

Also Read: Eight Ways AI Will Be Used In Marketing In 2018

GoDaddy Acquires Marketing Automation Provider Main Street Hub To Cater To SMBs

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January 24, 2018

GoDaddy Acquires Marketing Automation Provider Main Street Hub To Cater To SMBs

The $125 Million Cash Deal Will Help Go Daddy Offer Small Businesses A Boost In Social Media Engagement

GoDaddy Inc., the world’s largest cloud platform dedicated to small, independent ventures, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Main Street Hub for approximately $125 million in cash plus up to $50 million in potential future earnouts. The transaction has been approved by the GoDaddy board of directors and is expected to close late in the second quarter of 2018, subject to customary regulatory and other closing requirements. GoDaddy is not changing its previously issued 2018 guidance in connection with the announced acquisition of Main Street Hub.

Main Street Hub provides small businesses with a complete “do-it-for-me” service for managing engagement on the most popular social networks. Main Street Hub combines dedicated teams of branding experts – photographers, writers, designers, marketers – with proprietary technology to manage activity on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Yelp, among others, to help small businesses acquire new customers and build stronger relationships with existing customers. Today, more than 10,000 small businesses rely on Main Street Hub to optimize their social media engagement.

Also Read: Small Businesses Benefit From Selling Through Amazon, Etsy, or eBay in Addition to Online Stores

The acquisition furthers GoDaddy’s professional services strategy for small business owners who prefer to have dedicated experts build their online presence and manage it for them to accelerate growth and achieve their goals. GoDaddy will offer customers a complete suite of “do-it-for-me” capabilities for building a powerful online presence that can be delivered by either GoDaddy small business experts or, for more advanced features and functionality, GoDaddy’s community of web professionals.

“GoDaddy’s 17 million small business customers come to us because they know their online presence can help them reach their customers and grow their businesses, but even with the right tools, customers struggle to find the time or know-how to effectively manage their social media presence. Joining forces with Main Street Hub better enables us to help our customers reach their goals while saving them time and offering peace of mind,” said Lauren Antonoff, Senior Vice President of Presence and Commerce, GoDaddy.

Also Read: Trends in Marketing Technology Budgets Could Impact Data Quality and Hygiene

Matt Stuart, co-CEO and co-founder, Main Street Hub, added, “Main Street Hub and GoDaddy both share the same unrelenting passion for helping small businesses succeed. We complement each other strategically, culturally and across our products and services. We now have the scale and resources to help millions more business owners realize the value of having an optimized social media presence – our team can’t wait to get started.”

Main Street Hub co-CEOs and co-founders Matt Stuart and Andrew Allison will join GoDaddy in leadership positions within GoDaddy’s Presence and Commerce business unit.

GoDaddy will maintain Main Street Hub’s offices in Austin, Texas.

28 Ways Artificial Intelligence Will Affect Your Business and Life in 2018

By

Katie Lundin

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January 24, 2018

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28 Ways Artificial Intelligence Will Affect Your Business and Life in 2018

Like it or not, the machines are claiming new territory.

And by “machines” I mean artificial intelligence (AI).

Our business and personal lives are touched by AI every day. That friendly lady who took your information and looked up your account when you called your insurance company?

A robot.

That helpful service on Netflix that recommends new shows to watch?

An AI algorithm.

That stilted voice that gives you directions when you’re lost in a new city?

AI.

Amazon’s helpful home assistant, Alexa and Apple’s assistant, Siri?

AI.

Without realizing it, we’re interacting with “thinking” machines on an unprecedented level and in forms, we had only imagined before. A trends report on artificial intelligence explains:

AI isn’t a singular technology, but an umbrella term that includes machine learning, voice recognition, predictive analytics, among others, to solve a problem.

Artificial intelligence technologies of all forms are gaining momentum in 2018.

Whether you’re excited, indifferent, or stocking a bunker with dry goods, there are a number of ways that your life is likely to be impacted by artificial intelligence in the coming years.

And, if you’re a small business owner, you need to be thinking about how your business is likely to be impacted by AI.

You can’t afford to ignore the opportunities presented by utilizing artificial intelligence technologies in your business. Mark Skilton, Professor of Practice at Warwick Business School shared the following in a policy briefing:

AI technologies are likely to provide new market opportunities and competitive advantage. Perceptive organizations are already investing in proof of concept studies to determine whether there are opportunities to benefit from AI.

The numbers bear out his claim. Every business owner and would-be entrepreneur should check out these 28 statistics about AI in 2018 (and beyond).

Also Read: Marketing Strategies Turn to Mobile for Data and the Role of AI in 2018

AI in Our Lives

AI technology is already touching the majority of people in the United States. The Webby Awards AI Trends Report revealed that:

79% of U.S. adults indicated they had used some form of artificial intelligence in the last 12 months, and 65% acknowledged that automation has a significant impact on their daily lives.

Humans still hold an understandable amount of mistrust for artificial intelligence. It comes as no surprise then that people prefer to reserve the decisions that are most important to their health, wealth and well-being for themselves. 69% of people polled would prefer healthcare decisions to be made personally without the influence of automation. (Webby Trend Report)
60% of those surveyed preferred to handle money matters on their own without AI interference. (Webby Trend Report). But we continue to see services like Wealthfront and Betterment gain more customers, and we expect that more and more people will shift to machine-based investment strategies.
81% of people polled anticipate that AI automated devices will drive cars in the next 10 years. We’re already seeing this feature from Tesla and numerous other automakers (in limited form).

Perhaps all of these years of using GPS to help us get around helped pave the way for its AI big brother. Artificial intelligence seems to have earned an accepted place in our transportation future.

80% of those polled expect to see automated devices deliver products to our doors. (Webby Trend Report). This provides an interesting opportunity for smaller businesses to continue to differentiate by providing personal, human-powered service to their customers.

Mixed Success

AI is still a field in development. Everyone is keen to jump on board and take advantage of the benefits it offers. But the technology is still evolving to meet the expectations that both businesses and consumers hold.

These real-life examples show the mixed results that AI is experiencing today.

While the idea of a robot assistant seems appealing to a wide swath of consumers, the reality may not live up to the anticipation. One of the most well-known artificial intelligence agents, Apple’s Siri, is only reportedly used by about 15% of iPhone users. That leaves 85% of iPhone users who don’t seem to find value in the robot pal who lives in their pocket. (Intelligent Voice)
More troubling, 46% of iPhone owners who douse Siri, believe that Siri’s capabilities have been “oversold.”As Siri is a primary selling feature for a flagship product from one of the most renowned technology companies in the world, this begs the question – can anyone really execute an interactive voice recognition-based bot in a useful and meaningful way? (Intelligent Voice)
The Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas has adopted the use of an artificial intelligence concierge called “Rose” to assist their guests and provide a unique interactive experience. Since Rose’s introduction, the hotel has seen a 39% increase in on-site spending and 90% of guests who interacted with Rose reported that they would recommend her. (Social Media Week)
Unsurprisingly, the companies who prioritize innovation seem to be better at adapting and taking advantage of new technologies. Narrative Science found that 61% of companies with a dedicated innovation strategy are using AI technologies to mine their data for thus-far unidentified business opportunities. This is in stark contrast to the 22% of businesses without an innovation strategy who are utilizing AI in the same fashion.

Data mining is still limited to larger companies, but increasingly, tools are available to help even small companies assess their data and turn those assessments into actionable tactics.

For example, even smaller businesses can effectively use chatbots to increase profits. At crowdspring, we fully appreciate the advantages AI can bring to a business. For example, you may have noticed that we use an AI bot for lead generation on our site and our blog, to encourage readers to subscribe. We know that many entrepreneurs and small business owners need help with naming their company, logo design, web design and other graphic design projects, but lead forms are not always the best way to help us measure and follow-up on that interest. The AI bot allows us to adopt a low-key, conversational approach, rather than using forms (as most companies do in such cases).

Who is Driving AI’s Growth?

A Forrester Data Infographic reveals that business technology decision makers – or people making technology decisions who work in roles outside of IT – are big proponents of incorporating AI technology into their businesses. Data has shown that:

63% of business Technology Decisions Makers (tdms in a role outside of IT) are implementing, have implemented, or are expanding the use of artificial intelligence.

Traditional tech decision makers (who work in the IT field) are slower to embrace AI technology at 43%.

Are We Ready for AI?

A startling statistic from Forrester points out that while more than 60% of executives believe that their business is not where it should be in terms of its digital transformation, 20% of CEOs will fail to act. Forrester predicts that this will lead those firms to fail or be acquired by other more tech-savvy businesses. (Forrester)
Forrester also reports that retailers are largely unprepared to take advantage of intelligent agents, or “bots.” Among many other tasks, these programs can provide shopping suggestions or guide shopping choices for their internet clientele. Forrester’s Predictions 2018 report goes on to explain:

Lack of skills, quasi-differentiated brands, and aged operations are hurdles for traditional retailers — but the role of intelligent agents will be the thorniest issue in 2018. Only 33% of retailers understand the disruptive nature of intelligent agents; 67% do not.

AI technology is still in its infancy and growing pains are inevitable. It’s projected that 75% of AI projects in 2018 will fall short of expectations because they “fail to model operational considerations.” But, the good news is that this will likely lead decision-makers to revisit the scope of their AI investments and proceed with a better understanding of the field. Firms will be better equipped to achieve success with this additional learning under their belts.
AI is already in the process of reshaping businesses around the world. But, it’s often not simply a plug-and-play solution. Changes to infrastructure may be called for in order for a business to take full advantage of AI technology. In the next year alone, it is estimated that59% of business tech decision makers polled consider changing their business model to support AI to be a “high” or “critical” priorityfor the next 12 months.
One of the biggest challenges to implementing AI technology is managing the transition to replace a business’s existing data practices. 26% of business tech decision makers cite data practice change management as a major AI challenge. (Forrester AI Infographic)

The Language Barrier

When a new technology is introduced there’s always a bit of a lag as the world catches up. The same is true of artificial intelligence technologies. Some people fail to understand AI’s impact because they don’t speak its language. Narrative Science shares that 38% of companies surveyed reported that they were using AI technologies in their workplace; but, 88% of companies surveyed were actually using tech that relies on AIto function.
Unique proprietary algorithms are the backbone of platforms like Facebook, Amazon, and Google. A failure to understand these algorithms can pose a serious challenge to marketing efforts. For that reason, it’s essential that marketing professionals source talent that can act as translator and influencer between the marketing team and the platforms that rely on AI algorithms. Forrester predicts that:

25% of CMOs will fail to do this, resulting in their brand becoming undifferentiated and silenced in the market.

Also Read: How will AI Feed Account Based Marketing?

Concerns about the Future

With the advent of any new technology, there are always concerns worth exploring. How will AI impact our businesses, our economy, and our lives? While it’s easy to get swept up in the excitement and hype, it’s important to consider the impact that artificial intelligence technology may have. Here are a few examples of the concerns that consumers hold about AI as we head into 2018:

Increased automation has some people very concerned about the future of their jobs – and rightly so.

For example, considering that one of the most anticipated uses of artificial intelligence in the coming years is to create self-driving vehicles, those in the trucking industry may have a reason for alarm. The American Trucking Association’s estimate shows that there are 3.5 million US-based truck drivers who stand a 79% chance of losing their job due to vehicle automation. (2018 Webby Trend Report: This Automated Life)

This fear is not limited to one industry. The Webby AI Trend Report goes on to show that almost one-third of the people surveyed are concerned that automation may eliminate their job.
Concerns about AI extend beyond job loss to other factors of life as well. 45% of those polled worry that AI and increased automation may pose a privacy risk.(Webby AI Trend Report)
And, a clear majority of the people surveyed – 57%– reported concerns about the impact automated artificial intelligence will have on the world economy over the next 10 years.

Where Will AI Appear in 2018?

AI technology will perform many tasks in a wide range of business fields in 2018. Here are just a few of the places you’ll find artificial intelligence next year…

Businesses rely on market insight to strategize, plan and make product or service design choices. In 2018, AI technology will take on a larger share of the insight delivery process. According to an infographic from Forrester, 31% of business tech decision makers plan to implement AI technology to improve the delivery of their business’s insight services.
It logically follows that 33% of business tech decision makers anticipate that AI will aid in the improvement of products and services and cite this as a key benefit of artificial intelligence technology. (Forrester AI Infographic)
Narrative Science reports that 38% of businesses surveyed feel that providing predictions on customer, machine and business health is the most important service that artificial intelligence technology can provide.
27% of businesses that feel that the most valuable service AI can offer is automating manual and repetitive tasks. (Narrative Science)
In a world of constant media bombardment, people are learning the value of quiet as they seek to escape from all of the noise. It’s estimated that 1% of the US population, will spend roughly $24 billion, using AI services to filter out media that isn’t relevant to them. (Forrester)
Intelligent agents are somewhat commonplace today. Amazon and Netflix are always at the ready with new suggestions for you to purchase or watch. I’d wager that many of us don’t even notice the creepily accurate (and sometimes outlandish, or redundant) recommendations that we see popping up on our screens. Forrester predicts that 10% of purchase decisions will be guided by a platform’s intelligent agent or bot, starting the “real economic impact of empowered machines.”

As you look ahead to the new year it’s important to strategize in order to optimize your chances of success in our constantly-evolving technological landscape. By all signs, artificial intelligence is just starting to find its place in our businesses and lives. We hope these statistics give you a better understanding of what to expect in 2018.

Cognovi Labs Closes $2.3 Million Seed Funding

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January 24, 2018

Cognovi Labs Closes $2.3 Million Seed Funding

Graduate of Ikove Startup Nursery to Further Scale Its Emotion-Based Ai Technology, Following String of High-Profile Political Predictions

Cognovi Labs, the developer of the SaaS platform for emotion-based artificial intelligence (Emotion AI), closed $2.3 million in seed funding. Columbus-based Ikove Venture Partners led the capital raise alongside HBS Alumni Angels of Greater New York, Bossa Nova Investimentos and a leading angel investor group from Europe.

Cognovi leverages its Emotion AI to make predictions for businesses, investors, advertisement agencies and political events. This funding follows a string of successful Cognovi predictions for several high-profile outcomes – including predicting the Brexit referendum hours before the polls closed, foretelling the results of the 2016 U.S. presidential election and most recently, accurately predicting a Doug Jones victory for the 2017 Alabama Senate race weeks before sexual harassment claims surfaced against Roy Moore.

“The fact that we were massively oversubscribed by the first day of our 10-day European roadshow is a clear indication of the huge potential for Cognovi Labs’ artificial intelligence platform and business opportunity. We now have the financial strength to scale out our client engagement, expand our core team and refine our commercial product to realize our market potential,” said Beni Gradwohl, Ph.D., CEO and co-founder of Cognovi Labs.

Also Read: How will AI Feed Account Based Marketing?

Cognovi Labs’ AI technology was developed by Dr. Amit Sheth at the Kno.e.sis Center at Wright State University, which is one of the leading AI labs in the world. Through the Startup Nursery – which provided the funding and go-to-market strategy – Ikove vetted the underlying technology and then launched Cognovi Labs in partnership with the university, Amit Sheth and Beni Gradwohl.

Flavio Lobato, managing partner and co-founder of Ikove Venture Partners, added, “Through our Startup Nursery, we are committed to closing the commercialization gap for high-impact technologies. We’re proud to see the continued success of Cognovi’s Emotion AI technology as well as their growth within the predictive analytics industry.”

Are Your Consumers Getting Along With Chatbots?

By

Yolande D'Mello

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January 24, 2018

Are Your Consumers Getting Along With Your Chatbots?

Businesses Should Look For Opportunities to Bridge The Gap Between Consumers and Greater Chatbot Understanding ‒ Those Who Do Will Reap The Reward, says PointSource

AI’s most popular application to date – chatbots – are everywhere these days. Chances are you have interacted with them while banking, shopping or trying to find the best insurance for your car. Now that brands are convinced about using chatbots, they hope consumers as kicked. PointSource‘s report ‘Finding Common Ground Between Consumers And Artificial Intelligence’ throws light on what consumers think about their interactions with AI and what brands are doing wrong.

By 2020, Gartner estimates that chatbots will be handling 85 percent of customer service interactions. And by 2022, Juniper Research estimates chatbots will be contributing to over $8 billion in annual cost savings. Tech giants are currently the driving force behind what AI-powered experiences look like, prioritizing calls for streamlined and faster interactions. However, with Constellation expecting the AI market to surpass $100 billion by 2025, the technology is primed to help all businesses address the ever-changing needs of 21st-century consumers, regardless of their existing digital capabilities. But how do consumers feel?

Excited But Scared

To date, consumers’ excitement about a future where Artificial Intelligence plays a larger role only slightly outweighs their worries. AI adoption sits at a critical turning point, and it’s up to brands to develop customer experiences that highlight the technology’s strengths and safeguard consumers against its potential pitfalls. The first order of business on the path to valuable AI touch points is demystification. How do consumers really feel about chatbots? What do valuable AI-powered experiences look like from their perspective? As businesses answer questions like these, they’ll find it easier to improve their existing AI interactions and to seed new innovations in ways that make sense for their unique business goals and experiences.

To date, just 43 percent of consumers say they’ve interacted with a chatbot in the past year. However, considering that Oracle finds that 80 percent of businesses hope to implement chatbots by 2020, if that interaction number is not already much higher, we can expect it to be in the near future.

Well-executed chatbots are not the implementations that people notice or remember. It’s the poorly executed ones that leave a bad taste in consumers’ mouths.

What’s Holding Consumer’s Back?

While 90 percent of consumers feel that companies are prepared to best use chatbots, over half (54 percent) would still prefer to talk to a customer service representative. It seems that trust in an organization has yet to transfer to the technologies at its disposal, despite the fact that decision makers are adding chatbot solutions to first-and-foremost improve consumers’ experiences.

To push chatbots beyond their current adoption hump, businesses must take stock of their target audiences and analyze users’ relationships with AI.

This means both what users find attractive about AI, and what’s turning them off. Uncovering insights like these through additional customer research is the single best way to find AI’s new opportunities and to chip away at its biggest potential barriers.

We spoke to Greg Ng, VP of Digital Engagement at PointSource, a Globant Company about how to get consumers and chatbots to get along.

MTS: Are there certain industries that have adopted chatbots sooner than others?
Greg: Today an increasing number of businesses across different verticals are leveraging chatbots. In fact, we found 43 percent of consumers have interacted with a chatbot in the past year, and another 23 percent said they aren’t sure if they have ‒ indicating chatbot adoption may be more widespread than we think.

In particular, consumers have really embraced chatbots in the retail industry. Our study found that consumers are open to chatbots in retail interactions throughout the majority of the customer journey, preferring to use them instead of humans when looking for product information online (34 percent), looking for pricing information or discounts online (36 percent), checking to see if an item is in stock (38 percent), searching for delivery information (36 percent) and tracking the delivery of an item (39 percent).

However, consumer comfortability with chatbot assistance significantly drops off for more complicated, high-stake retail interactions. Eighty percent of consumers prefer to speak with a human when resolving problems post-purchase, and another 71 percent want the human element during the in-store experience.

The financial services industry has also been quick to integrate chatbots, but retail consumer preferences bleed into insurance interactions, too. Insurance policyholders are most open to the idea of chatbots facilitating simple and routine activities like policy reminders (36 percent) or checking the status of a claim (29 percent). However, users still prefer the human touch when dealing with more sensitive needs. Three-fourths (77 percent) of respondents seeking out healthcare advice want to talk to a human, and 67 percent feel similarly about submitting a claim.

To push chatbots beyond their use-case limitations, business must take stock of their target audiences and analyze users’ relationships with AI ‒ what they find attractive and what’s turning them off. Uncovering insights like these through additional customer research is the single best way to find AI’s new opportunities and to chip away at its biggest potential barriers.

MTS: Usually, we consider first movers to adapt technology as occupying a position of advantage. Have there been instances where consumers have been alienated by technology that is too new for comfort?
Greg: The challenge organizations face today with integrating new technology is understanding how to seamlessly fit it in to their customers’ lives. The current state of chatbots is a prime example of this. Forward-thinking decision makers are adding chatbot solutions with the goal of improving consumers’ experiences, yet consumers still aren’t completely seeing that end result. Case in point, we found that 90 percent of consumers feel that companies are prepared to best use chatbots, yet over half (54 percent) still want to talk to a customer service representative. While businesses have consumers’ best interest in mind, consumers aren’t going to embrace chatbots if they don’t comfortably solve their needs.

However, we found there are several opportunities for businesses to warm consumers up to the concept of chatbots.

There are four factors that would increase comfortability with chatbots, including assurance of the option to talk to a human if necessary (49 percent), accuracy of information (39 percent), a clear understanding of how personal information is being used (39 percent), and receiving personalized user experiences (22 percent).

Only 14 percent of consumers say nothing would make them more comfortable with a chatbot ‒ indicating there is plenty of room for further consumer adoption.

Consumers will always set the threshold for what’s comfortable, but businesses can serve as the gap that shows them AI’s true potential. It’s critical for businesses to understand which situations are high stakes for consumers and provide the right experiences to make them feel at ease.

Also Read: TechBytes with Barry Pellas, Chief Technology Officer, PointSource

MTS: Brands usually look at making a conversation with a chatbot as near-human as possible. Is this still advisable?
Greg: I believe this is a huge mistake. Consumers expect authentic interactions with real people. So if a brand decides to use a chatbot, it is important for them to be transparent with the customer that they are not interacting with a person.

This is not a hindrance, rather an opportunity for brands to demonstrate the value of interacting with a chatbot, which includes 24-hour support, no wait times to receive assistance, and more.

MTS: While working on this report, what were the most surprising results that were thrown up?
Greg: Today it’s almost impossible to go online without coming across an article about AI, yet the majority of tech users don’t even know when AI is in their experiences. Just over half (54 percent) of consumers reported using an AI application in the past year, yet another 62 percent identified having used an AI-enabled device in the same time frame. This means that 8 percent of survey takers didn’t know they were using AI, a statistic that likely doesn’t even capture the full scope of misunderstood AI experiences in America.

That said, businesses should look for opportunities to bridge the gap between consumers and greater chatbot understanding ‒ and those who do will reap the reward. We found that when AI is present, half of consumers (49 percent) are already willing to shop more frequently, 34 percent will spend more money and 38 percent will share their experiences with friends and family.

To reach this promise land, businesses should focus on identifying opportunities where AI integrates seamlessly into the customer experience. While this requires a deep understanding of consumers and company-wide commitment, it’s critical for businesses to lay the groundwork for AI today so they can scale their programs in tandem with growing comfort levels tomorrow.

Recommended Read: SAP Survey: US Consumers Want Better Service and More Transparency in Data Collection

Blueshift Launches Predictive Audience Syndication for Facebook

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January 24, 2018

Blueshift Launches Predictive Audience Syndication for Facebook

New Release Enables Marketers to Integrate Facebook Custom Audiences into Cross-Channel Marketing

Blueshift, the leader in Artificial Intelligence (AI) Powered Cross-Channel Marketing, announced Blueshift Predictive Audiences for Facebook. Using Blueshift’s AI, brands can now optimize their ROI on Facebook and drive 1:1 customer experiences. The latest release extends Blueshift’s Cross-Channel Platform that already supports channels like Email, Mobile Push notifications, SMS, and Websites.

Marketers can now use Blueshift’s AI engine to create Predictive Audiences based on a 360-degree view of customers. For instance, marketers might create Predictive Audiences based on propensity (e.g. likelihood to churn or likelihood to complete a purchase), affinity (e.g. category preferences) and customer lifetime value. Audiences are updated based on real-time data and are continuously synced with Facebook.

Artifact Uprising, an online provider of premium quality custom photo goods, who already depends on Blueshift’s AI for intelligent email & mobile marketing, is an early adopter of the new capability. “We are seeing great results from the use of Blueshift’s AI in our Cross-Channel Marketing. Unifying all of our customer data across channels with Blueshift has enabled us to move faster and scale our personalization.”

Another customer, BiggerPockets, the world’s largest online hub for real estate investors, is seeing dramatically higher conversions on Facebook with the new capability. “We achieved a 10X increase in webinar registrations through Facebook by using Blueshift’s Audience Syndication. The Audience Syndication provides an efficient way to find potential customers on Facebook by leveraging existing customer data,” said Lauren Hogan, Director of Marketing at BiggerPockets.

Also Read: How Marketers Can Optimize $682 Billion in Expected Spend in 2018

With Predictive Audience Syndication, you can create segments of customers who are likely to engage, convert or churn using predictive scores and affinities. Using these segments as Facebook Custom Audiences increases the ROI of Facebook campaigns. The new offering extends Blueshift’s core capabilities around segmentation, recommendations & customer journey orchestration to Facebook in the following ways:

Build & sync audiences in a few clicks: Blueshift’s visual segment builder enables the marketer to create advanced audiences in a few clicks by selecting the right conditions and syncing them with Facebook. No need for an army of analysts running SQL queries.
Optimize Ad Spend using predictive audiences: Accelerate ROI with predictive scores & affinities targeting customers based on their likelihood to engage, convert or churn.
Integrate Facebook as a dynamic component of a cross-channel marketing strategy: Customers automatically move in and out of various custom audiences in Facebook based on how they engage in other channels such as email, website and mobile apps.

Also Read: Get a Standing Ovation from your Ad Audiences

Marketers are using the new release to reactivate dormant customers, improve purchase rates, and to create lookalike audiences in Facebook based on a full understanding of customer lifetime value.

“This release is another significant step in our mission to help companies activate their customer data using AI. We are excited that our customers are now able to use Blueshift to drive 1:1 engagement on social and paid channels in addition to owned channels like email, websites and mobile apps,” said Vijay Chittoor, co-founder & CEO of Blueshift.

Blueshift’s other recent innovations in AI Powered Marketing include “AI-Powered Customer Journeys,” a next-generation solution that enables marketers to deliver content-rich & personalized customer engagement across every marketing channel. Blueshift was also recently awarded a patent for its AI Powered Marketing.

Digimind Social Intelligence Solution Unveiled with Advanced Listening and Analytical Capabilities

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January 24, 2018

Digimind Social Intelligence Solution Unveiled with Advanced Listening and Analytical Capabilities

Digimind Social Now Seamlessly Integrates Thousands of Global TV and Radio Sources with over 850 Million Online Data Sources, Providing Brands with a 360-Degree View of Brand Reputation, Consumer Insights, and Market Trends

Leading social listening and intelligence software provider, Digimind, has announced the monitoring of more than 2,000 international TV and radio sources within its platform. Expanding its enhanced listening and analytics capabilities to international offline sources, Digimind Social enables brands to access pieces of vital market knowledge other online analytics tools ignore.

With real-time detection of online, TV, and radio mentions in one intuitive platform, brands can use Digimind Social to easily understand public perception of their brand or market trends at any given moment.

Digimind Social Integrates with More than 2K TV and Radio Sources

In modern organizations, heads of marketing, brand, communications, and consumer insights need to be the company leaders in understanding and communicating the current state of the brand and its market. In order to do this effectively, these individuals must rely on monitoring a vast array of disparate sources with varying degrees of data quality in order to piece together a brand picture.

Recommended Read: TechBytes with Jeremy Pinkham, CTO, Lotame

With Digimind Social, organizations have the assurance of 850 million online data sources, integrated with more than 2,000 TV and radio sources to provide the only comprehensive depiction of its brand reputation, consumer insights, and market trends in one place.

How Digimind Social Brings Analytics at One Place

Digimind Social achieves unique listening and analytics through–

– Tracking a mix of international sources such as BBC, CNN, and Fox News as well as sources unique to 21 countries across North America, Europe, Africa and Asia, such as NBC, ABC, and CBS in the US; TF1, France 2, and Canal+ in France; and CCTV1 and CCTV2 in China.

– Monitoring any brand or topic mentioned by applying natural language processing (NLP) technologies in more than 61 languages

– Recording and processing 52,000 hours of content per day and delivering 1.4 billion lines of text per month

At the time of this announcement, Paul Vivant, CEO of Digimind, said, “With the shift to digital-centric strategies over the past decade, a plethora of marketing tools have been designed to focus on online data. But with 119.6 million television viewers and 268 million radio listeners in the US alone, traditional outlets are far from vanishing.”

Paul added, “With TV and radio source integration, Digimind Social breaks down data silos, and connects every piece of the customer centricity puzzle in one place.”

Digimind Social Helps Marketers Meet Target Audiences

The latest improvements to Digimind Social also enable marketers to meet their target audiences where they spend their digital lives.

In the US, 85 percent of TV viewers watch programs while simultaneously engaging multimedia through a second screen, such as the laptop, tablet, or smartphone. In order to get a 360-degree-view of consumer insights, organizations need to track the visibility of their brand through offline sources while tracking online reactions by these viewers to truly understand public perception.

Currently, Digimind is the leading social media listening and competitive intelligence software, designed for brands and agencies who want to accelerate digital transformation through an insights-driven approach. Recognized by Forrester and Gartner, Digimind’s best-in-class technology transforms social and online data into actionable business insights, enabling marketers to effectively plan, execute, and analyze their marketing strategy.

Refer.com Acquires Referral Key

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January 24, 2018

The Move Unites The World’s Largest Online Referral Network with The World’s Leading Referral SaaS Solution

Recently Refer.com, Inc. shook-up both the SaaS and small business world by announcing its acquisition of Referral Key, Inc. – the world’s largest online referral network. Boston based Referral Key is home to nearly 5 million professionals and businesses who come together to connect and help grow each other’s businesses by referring prospective clients to one another.

Refer.com CEO, Tom Gay, described the opportunity, “At its core, it’s simple… Referrals are the primary source of new business for millions of professionals and SMBs worldwide. Refer.com SaaS products and services already deliver tremendous value to our diverse worldwide customer base. Today we welcome Referral Key members from over 200 countries into our family and we’re focused on bringing our tools to this expansive, growing Referral Key audience to help members reach their sales goals.”

Also Read: Small Businesses Benefit From Selling Through Amazon, Etsy, or eBay in Addition to Online Stores

Lewis A. Weinstein, founder and CEO of Referral Key added, “These are exciting times. Refer’s compelling product offerings for small business professionals combined with Referral Key’s millions of referral-minded individuals is a natural fit and will drive significant value for our members.”

Also Read: How will AI Feed Account Based Marketing?

Refer.com President Brandon Barnum continued, “We will continue to ramp up our data-driven innovation and now Referral Key’s incredible numbers will supercharge our ability to bring even more value to our clients. We’ve already analyzed mountains of data, captured nearly 100K survey responses and gathered years’ worth of qualitative feedback; we know Referral Key members are clamoring for the services and products Refer has pioneered.”

Also Read: Five Keys to Managing Change

When asked how the Referral Key team viewed the acquisition, product guru Christopher Ott shared, “We all like Refer.com because in the small business world, Refer is to referral relationships as Salesforce is to a CRM. Refer is an evolving SaaS platform based on a proven methodology that delivers an edge to its customers. Referral Key members are serious about more effectively cultivating reciprocal referral relationships. With Refer.com we’re delivering on our promise to help millions of businesses gain sales breakthroughs!”

Financial terms of the transaction are undisclosed.

Five Best Practices for Successful People-Based Marketing

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Justin Schuster

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January 24, 2018

Five Best Practices for Successful People-Based Marketing

The CMO of Acxiom Explains How The Most Modern People-Based Marketing Platform Uses Datapoints From Multiple Channels to Break Down Traditional Data Silos and Get All Parts of the Marketing Stack Working Together

The term “people-based marketing” is relatively new, but the concept behind it is grounded in more than 50 years of marketing practices and ongoing innovation. Marketers have always wanted to reach their customers with the most relevant message based on what they know.

What’s new in the past few years is the ability to achieve this at scale by connecting people, data, and devices.

People-based marketing uses these connections to break down data silos and get all parts of the marketing stack working together. Instead of running an independent search, mobile, and email campaigns, for example, people-based marketing enables outreach to the same individual across all offline and digital channels.

Also Read: Acxiom Announces Audience Cloud For Advanced Cross-Channel Management of Acxiom Data

This is not only more effective since multichannel campaigns typically outperform single channel campaigns, it’s also more efficient, and it creates more seamless experiences for consumers.

There are five essential best practices that sit at the heart of effective people-based marketing today:

Embrace Identity Resolution

From a practical perspective, you need to be able to recognize a consumer whenever and wherever you come across them in order for people-based marketing to work. In our fragmented, multi-platform world this can seem complicated. A customer may show up as jane@janesmith.com, as an anonymous cookie, or as a mobile device ID. They may also have two postal addresses, use multiple TV streaming services, and spend time on Facebook and Pandora.

Effective identity resolution enables you to connect these dots, so you can integrate your data and create a single view of the customer.

Also Read: Acxiom and Amex Advance Launch New Data-Driven Offering to Predict Consumer Purchase Intent

Augment Your Customer Data

Consumers are inundated with information – they respond best to offers that are personalized, and their needs and interests are constantly changing.

For example, if Jane just bought a minivan, it’s ineffective to send her offers on minivans or, even more off-track, a Maserati.

Effective people-based marketing uses identity resolution to augment what you know about a customer with what others know, so you can strengthen your ability to engage. It draws on all the first and third-party data available to discern what Jane really needs, be it a new car seat for her kids or offers on family-friendly vacations.

Move Data Where it Needs to Go

To engage consumers throughout their buying journey, the right messages need to be delivered across multiple channels and devices. Behind the scenes, this means audience data for a campaign needs to be distributed to multiple tools and publisher partners.

Also Read: Acxiom Expands International Footprint with Launch of AbiliTec Identity Resolution and InfoBase Consumer Insights in Mexico

If you want to run a campaign to offer maintenance services to Jane and other new car buyers, for example, that audience data needs to be populated across the marketing tools you use for email, direct mail, display, search, social, etc. The basic formula for success here is:

Identity Resolution + Data-Enrichment + Omnichannel Activation = Personalized Messages Everywhere.

Target, Measure, and Repeat

Effective people-based marketing goes beyond targeting – it uses identity resolution to connect data at the level of real, individual people for measurement as well.

Marketers always need to understand where to invest their resources to drive the biggest impact on sales.

By connecting data on who saw your campaigns with data on who made a purchase online or through a brick-and-mortar location, you can measure sales lift and perform cross-channel attribution analysis.

Insights from this effort can help you substantially increase efficiency over time. Consider the maintenance services campaign above – analysis of connected data might reveal that publisher A drives higher conversion than publisher B, or the combo of display and email outperforms direct mail, allowing you to adjust appropriately.

And once the adjustments are made, you can see how they perform and continue to refine iteratively from there.

Use Data Ethically

People-based marketing depends on data, and consumers only share their data with brands they trust. To build and maintain that trust, it’s incumbent on brands to treat consumer data with the utmost care and respect.

In addition to making sure data is secure and used in ways that comply with the law, this also includes putting controls in place to ensure data use is just and fair to consumers. Companies that fail to use data ethically will find their customers choose to take their business elsewhere.

Periscope By McKinsey Announces Availability of its Sales Solutions on the Anaplan Platform

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January 24, 2018

Periscope By McKinsey Announces Availability of its Sales Solutions on the Anaplan Platform

Periscope Rep Planner, Now Available on the Anaplan App Hub, Is an End-To-End Sales Growth Analytics Solution

Periscope By McKinsey, a suite of solutions focusing on price, promotion, assortment, sales and marketing optimization to achieve sustainable revenue growth, has announced that Periscope Rep Planner, part of its Sales Solutions is now available on the Anaplan platform. Anaplan provides a cloud planning platform that connects data, people, and plans in every part of a business.

Large and fast-growing organizations use Anaplan’s cloud platform in every business function to make better-informed plans and decisions and drive faster more effective planning processes. Periscope Rep Planner, now available on the Anaplan App Hub, is an end-to-end sales growth analytics solution that empowers companies to plan, prioritize, and pursue growth opportunities within their customer base. On average, Rep Planner enables clients to achieve a 5-10% annual rise in sales productivity through reduced planning time and improved operational efficiency, with fewer planning resources.

Also Read: Periscope By McKinsey and Dynamic Yield Announce Global Alliance

“With the ever-increasing competition in today’s market, B2B companies need to find ways to streamline sales processes and accelerate revenue. By making our Sales Solutions available on the Anaplan platform, our clients can run high-impact sales planning processes across their entire enterprise. We are excited to announce the availability of Periscope Rep Planner on the Anaplan platform to help more companies accelerate revenue and sales productivity,” said Brian Elliott, Managing Partner of Periscope By McKinsey.

Also Read: Anaplan Named to Forbes 2017 Cloud 100 List

Utilizing the Anaplan platform enables Periscope’s Sales Solutions to provide additional capabilities including the ability to:

Identify and prioritize growth opportunities in the users’ customer base
Organize and optimize deployment of the users’ sales team
Enable a comprehensive performance management approach including goals, quotas, and compensation systems

Also Read: Anaplan Reports Unprecedented Momentum for Its Sales Performance Management Solutions

Paul Melchiorre, Chief Revenue Officer, Anaplan, added, “Anaplan represents a game-changing leap beyond traditional business intelligence and enterprise performance management systems. Helping companies excel at sales performance management is important to us at Anaplan. Periscope Rep Planner is a vital solution to help our customers’ sales organizations stay ahead of their competition.”

Recommended Read: 2018 – THE NEED FOR SPEED

Digital Media Veteran Mike Peralta Takes On As EVP, Central Sales & Operations At Criteo

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January 24, 2018

Digital Media Veteran Mike Peralta Takes On As EVP, Central Sales & Operations At Criteo

Mike Peralta Has Global Experience in Effective Sales Strategies Development, Data Management and Performance Advertising Platform Management

Criteo S.A., the leading commerce marketing technology company, named Mike Peralta as Executive Vice President (EVP), Central Sales & Operations. Peralta brings more than 20 years of management and internet technology experience with deep expertise in the advertising technology and digital advertising industries. In his new role with Criteo, he will oversee the central sales team to drive forward revenue operations and demand for Criteo’s newly launched products, including Criteo Audience MatchBETA and Criteo Customer Acquisition.

Peralta has global experience in effective sales strategies development, data management and performance advertising platform management. As a trusted executive and leader, Peralta will be instrumental in amplifying Criteo’s focus on innovation through its Commerce Marketing Ecosystem. His proven track record of maximizing customer ROI, and ability to evolve companies into multi-product powerhouses, make him an ideal addition to Criteo. As part of his role, Peralta will also spearhead the rollout of a new incentive management platform, and actively integrate Criteo Brand Solutions into the larger, global organization. He will report directly to Mollie Spilman, Criteo’s Chief Operating Officer, who is regarded as one of the most respected executives shaping today’s commerce marketing landscape.

Also Read: Criteo Elevates Mollie Spilman To Chief Operating Officer

“The constant evolution of our industry demands a strong lineup of products and services that align with the sales, profitability and ROI goals of our clients, and even stronger stewards to help transform it. Having previously worked with Mike for several years at AOL, I can attest to his impressive background developing and maintaining lucrative revenue channels, and his ability to cultivate meaningful relationships with clients and partners. We’re confident his leadership and management skills will be instrumental to the continued success and satisfaction of our customers,” said Mollie Spilman, Chief Operating Officer at Criteo.

Also Read: Criteo Announces New Header Bidding Technology that Delivers 40% Higher Publisher Revenue

Mike added, “It’s abundantly clear that today’s shoppers are savvier than ever, and brands and retailers are in need of products that support a true omnishopping strategy. Between Criteo’s notable industry research, new product introductions and focus on data collaboration, it’s poised to successfully bring its customers into this new age of omnishopping, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to be a part of it. I am looking forward to joining this team during this pivotal time of retail resurgence.”

Prior to his position at Criteo, Peralta was President and CEO of AudienceScience where he oversaw all functional areas of the company and serviced P&G’s global advertising budget. Previously, he held numerous executive positions in the U.S., Europe and Asia, including roles as the CRO of MediaMath, COO of Magnetic, CRO of Tumri and an SVP at AOL and Advertising.com. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental and Civil Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and has done graduate work in Management and Public Policy from New York University. In addition, Peralta was a member of IAB Leadership Board and serves as an advisory board member to a number of start-ups and VC funds.

Qualtrics Announces Speakers and Agenda for X4 Experience Management Summit 2018

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January 24, 2018

Qualtrics Announces Speakers and Agenda for X4 Experience Management Summit 2018

Qualtrics X4 Experience Management Summit Would Witness Is an Annual Gathering of World’s Most Prolific Experience Leaders

Qualtrics, a leader in research and experience management, has announced the world’s largest conference dedicated to the importance of experiences in business across customers, employees, products, and brands.

The 2018 X4 Experience Management Summit™ unites experience management leaders from top organizations and influential global brands such as Airbnb, American Express, Bain, BMW, Buzzfeed, Citi, Coca-Cola, Forbes, Forrester, Gartner, Google, JetBlue, LinkedIn, McKinsey, Michelin, Porsche, Salesforce, Spotify, Stanford, Temkin, Walmart, Yale, and Zillow.

X4 Experience Management Summit will take place March 6-9, 2018, in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Symposium Agenda and Keynote Speakers at X4 Experience Management Summit

The X4 Experience Management Summit provides two days of captivating keynotes, mainstage presentations, 40+ expert workshops, 100+ engaging breakout sessions, a private concert by Maroon 5, a casino night networking party, and an exclusive ski day at Park City with ski legend Jonny Moseley.

X4 Experience Management Summit will feature keynote speakers such as–

Tony Hawk: Skateboarding legend and community activist;
Shawn Achor: Happiness expert, Ted Talk presenter, and New York Times best-selling author;
Liz Wiseman: Thought leader, executive advisor and The Wall Street Journal and New York Times best-selling author, and;
Angela Duckworth: CEO of Character Lab, education expert, and New York Times best-selling author.

Currently, Qualtrics provides a single system of record for all experience data, also called X-data™, allowing organizations to manage the four core experiences of business—customer, product, employee and brand experiences—on one platform. Over 8,500 enterprises worldwide, including more than 75 percent of the Fortune 100 and 99 of the top 100 U.S. business schools, rely on Qualtrics.

TechBytes with Jeremy Pinkham, CTO, Lotame

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January 24, 2018

Jeremy Pinkham
CTO, Lotame

Lotame recently announced their partnership with a leading Automated Content Recognition (ACR) data company, Inscape. The objective of this partnership is to deliver advanced television planning, targeting and measurement through Lotame’s aiTV: Platform. To understand the core tenets of Lotame’s DMP, Audience Optimizer, and the concept of ‘pre-enriched data‘, we spoke to Lotame’s Chief Technology Officer, Jeremy Pinkham.

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Tell us about your role at Lotame and the team you handle.

At Lotame, my team and I are focused on building, deploying and maintaining the core technologies that power both our data management platform (DMP) and our data exchange (LDX). At the end of the day, Lotame’s mission is to enable companies — whether they are an advertiser, agency or a publisher — to use data to build stronger connections with their consumers and audiences. My team makes this possible technologically and ensures that we can achieve this mission every single day.

Is customer data the new ‘digital business currency’?

Definitely. Data is the new currency for our industry. In the world of digital advertising and programmatic, data has grown exponentially in both volume and importance. The use of large datasets in predicting outcomes, understanding audiences and breaking down media silos is more widespread now than ever before. We have entered an era of data-driven marketing campaigns focused on audience engagement and one-to-one brand experiences.

At the heart of this revolution is data, yes. But we are there, too. This is what excites me about our company. Data is meaningless without a DMP to collect, manage and activate it. DMPs gives clients the ability to centralize and manage their customers’ databases, analyze their marketing efforts, inform content management systems, and power advertising platforms. This is an exciting time for Lotame, which can be the ultimate guide for our clients in this new data-powered era.

How do you meet customer expectations when it comes to providing access to audience segments?

It comes down to data and technology flexibility, which we can provide clients because we are independent. Keep in mind — we are the largest independent DMP business in the world. Not being part of a marketing cloud or large conglomerate affords us the ability to be laser-focused on data and the value it brings our clients. We know that our independence is a benefit to them, as it enables our solutions to be agile and flexible. So, our DMP enables you to collect first-party data from any source — including websites, apps, social, email, CRM, search, campaign data, and beyond — for one holistic view of your consumers.

Of course, this flexibility extends beyond collection into audience segmentation. You can use this data to create audience segments inside the DMP, by selecting the specific demographics, interests and actions you want to target against. Or, you can learn more about your consumers with insights gleaned from our global third-party data exchange. And cutting-edge analytics tools built into our DMP enable you to uncover new insights into both the audience segments you create and the people who engage with your campaigns or content. But, again, this all comes from being an independent provider, first and foremost.

What are the core tenets of Lotame’s Audience Optimizer?

When you run any campaign, there are KPIs you are likely watching closely and use as a measurement of campaign success. Common KPIs are clicks on ads, the CTR, conversions or purchases, the CVR, or the CPA. Your campaigns may be performing well and may even surpass thresholds you or your advertiser have established — but there is always room for improvement and further cost savings.

This is where Audience Optimizer comes in. Audience Optimizer is our modeling solution that allows marketers to create powerful look-alike and act-alike audiences using first-party data sets. It analyzes the behavioral attributes of a user’s profile to determine which attributes are most likely to predict a user’s actions. By understanding the user’s past engagements, Audience Optimizer performs pattern-matching to locate new profiles. While other types of campaign optimization, like creative optimization, inventory optimization, and bid optimization, can improve campaign performance by finding new creative iterations or inventory sources for a broad campaign, Audience Optimizer locates new profiles most likely to perform your desired campaign KPI, whether a click, conversion, or some other type of engagement.

Tell us about the concept of ‘pre-enriched data’?

Pre-enriched data is what we at Lotame typically call “Audience Enrichment.” Audience enrichment is a way to further enhance the data you have already collected about your current audience. Audience data is information about the people who respond to your advertisements.buy your business’s products, visit your site, or use your app — these are the audience segments you will want to target during future marketing campaigns. Audience enrichment works by taking your first-party business data, like the data you gathered on people visiting your website and media properties and enriching that information with third-party data such as data gathered on other websites, apps, and platforms.

At Lotame, we provide pre-enriched data like this through the Lotame Data Exchange (LDX), which is the largest in the world today. The LDX has thousands of “pre-enriched” high-quality audience profiles available to marketers, that reflect advanced demographics, and interest- and intent-based data.

How do you see Data Management Platforms evolving around customer data for better intent insights?

Data Management platforms such as Lotame have evolved to include support for data sets from a multitude of platforms, from cookies to mobile devices to televison viewership, but the future of DMPs is in creating automated and intelligent ways of using that data with less and less hands on human interaction. Whether that be proactive analytics, audience optimization, or simply driving more efficient marketing on all sides of the ecosystems; intelligent and automatic applications of the vast data sets are where things are ramping up. Intent insights are an obvious area to apply these techniques because there is a lot of value, and a lot of noise to sift through to find the valuable signals.

How does Lotame improve data portability and drive customization across multiple marketing channels?

A DMP sits at the center of the advertising ecosystem. It gives you audience insights and analysis of your audience, your campaign performance, and the value of your content. And yet, without a way to deliver the data to other platforms that can serve the ads and match the data to a desired performance action – it’s all kind of a wasted effort.

That’s why we support integrations with all major advertising and marketing vendors and platforms. Again, this is where our independence comes into play. It gives you the freedom to decide where and how to activate your data. Our data is available in every major DSP and exchange, including Google, AppNexus, The Trade Desk, Turn, TubeMogul, Videology, Tremor Media, Yahoo, DataXu, and more. We have also built server-to-server (S2S) and API integrations with these platforms to help ensure that you can actually do amazing things with your data.

We have worked from day one to give customers maximum data portability – so their data goes wherever they are. At the end of the day, it is your data. You have the right to control it, share it and use it how you see fit. I am proud to have built technology that enables that. On the flip side, DMPs connected to larger marketing clouds have more restrictions on what you can and cannot do with your own data. It is absurd.

How critical is it for modern businesses to leverage AI and machine learning capabilities for better data and analytic management?

As the data explosion continues, AI and machine learning will be an absolute requirement for anyone that wants to make sense of data and put it into action. The volume and velocity in which it is collected and stored today, is impossible to navigate and manage without intelligent algorithms supporting on the back-end. As a DMP vendor, we have led our category in the area of AI and machine learning technology and will be incorporating more of this technology into future updates, features, and services. AI and machine learning is poised to fundamentally shape how data marketing will be used in the future. It will extend beyond targeting into quality and attribution.

Thanks for chatting with us, Jeremy.
Stay tuned for more insights on marketing technologies. To participate in our Tech Bytes program, email us at news@martechseries-67ee47.ingress-bonde.easywp.com

Also Read: TechBytes with Omar Abdala, Chief Scientist, Lotame

Clinch For Facebook Enables Marketers to Personalize Videos to Generate More ROI

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January 24, 2018

Clinch Secures $10M in Series A Funding Round to Support Accelerated Growth and Increasing Demand for Omnichannel Personalization

Company Completes Facebook Marketing API Accelerator

Personalization has been the biggest marketing breakthrough in 2017, however, personalizing digital video has remained elusive to advertisers, particularly on one of the largest digital advertising platforms, Facebook.

To address this need, Clinch, a creative technology company that powers dynamic, personalized video advertising, announced the launch of “Clinch for Facebook”, a video personalization engine built specifically for the social network, as well as Instagram. Clinch for Facebook allows for rapid A/B testing of creatives and generates personalized campaigns at scale (both video and display) using unique Facebook formats such as Canvas, Collections and Instagram Stories. In addition, the product provides analytics and insights regarding client data segments and the best performing creative.

Also Read: AdMaster 2018 Digital Marketing Trends Report: 70% of Advertisers Continue to Increase Digital Marketing Budget

The solution enables brands to personalize videos on Facebook using a combination of Facebook’s data, third-party data as well as their own first-party data to ensure the right audience gets the right video with the most relevant message. Videos can be customized to highlight different messages, graphics, call to actions and even drive consumers to the closest location where a product or service is sold.

Clinch For Facebook Enables Marketers to Personalize Videos to Generate More ROI — Boaz Cohen

“As more marketing dollars shift towards Facebook and video, it was imperative that we create an offering that would provide a seamless personalization experience on the platform. Now, advertisers are able to leverage a wealth of data to provide consumers with a relevant, meaningful video experience that improves conversations and ROI to generate increased sales,” said Boaz Cohen, Chief Product Officer for Clinch.

Also Read: TechBytes with Boaz Cohen, CPO, Clinch

The product is the result of Clinch’s successful completion of the Facebook Marketing API Accelerator, a prestigious program offered by Facebook to encourage the development of technologies to support advertisers. Clinch for Facebook integrates directly with Facebook’s API to remove barriers to entry and enables brands to leverage data to create personalized videos at scale.

Clinch was chosen as a top company for Facebook’s Marketing API Accelerator “Grow Track” after a worldwide search for the most innovative, ad-tech companies on their platform with two goals in mind—self-starter and mission-focused. Criteria used by Facebook included companies that are committed, fast-moving, and tackling a huge and relevant problem.

Interview with Pieterjan Bouten, Co-Founder & CEO, Showpad

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January 24, 2018

[easy-profiles profile_twitter=”https://twitter.com/pieterjan” profile_linkedin=”https://www.linkedin.com/in/pieterjanbouten/”]

[mnky_testimonial_slider slide_speed=”3″][mnky_testimonial name=”” author_dec=”” position=”Designer”]“It’s important to keep this in mind as AI becomes more prevalent so that businesses can start to build a foundation to support the evolution of this technology.”[/mnky_testimonial][/mnky_testimonial_slider]

Tell us about your role and how you got here. What inspired you to start a content management platform?

I’m the Co-founder and CEO of Showpad. Along with my Co-founder and Chief Product Officer, Louis, I set the long-term vision, mission and strategic direction for the company, try to attract the best talent and make sure everything that is needed is in place so we can execute our plans.

At Showpad, we believe the buyer experience is key to winning, growing and retaining your business. At a high level, we want to make Sales and Marketing smarter and help them to dramatically improve the buyer experience. We help our customers make the transition from the old sales conversation, which is usually standardized and more feature driven, to the new sales conversation, which is highly personalized and all about providing new insights to the buyer.

Our inspiration for Showpad came about seven years ago when a friend of mine was running into some serious Sales and Marketing challenges. His sales team was constantly using outdated materials and marketing and they didn’t have a clue what was happening in the field. He was complaining about an experience where he was at a German trade show and had to use French sales material, which didn’t work for obvious reasons. On top of that, he was printing Marketing and Sales materials out and shipping them around, which was both expensive and impossible to track. I felt like there had to be a better way.

Showpad started as a mobile-first solution that’s grown into a broader platform for every device. We also have integrations with Salesforce and other leading Sales and Marketing technologies like Sharepoint, Marketo, etc. We built our company in Belgium and are therefore incredibly invested in the country’s tech community. Now, we have a global customer portfolio, offices in San Francisco, London and Portland, and are opening a brand new office and North American headquarters in Chicago.

Are B2B Content Marketers the new-age leaders in sales conversations?

B2B Content Marketers play a very important role in the sales process, but can’t drive leads through the funnel without the help of the sales team. Whenever you have sales organizations selling complex products, it usually means there are multiple buyers and a lengthy sales process with many different steps. For these Marketers and Salespeople to be successful, content has to be relevant and accurate for all buyers at all stages of the sales cycle.

However, many organizations lack the insights and technology to make this a reality. Many Marketing teams create content that supports the digital buyer journey, and there’s a ton of tech out there that supports that. But what about the Sales channel? In many organizations, Sales is the forgotten Marketing channel.

Our goal is to provide B2B Content Marketers with analytics and insights that help them optimize content for their sellers and buyers. We also enable sellers to have more relevant conversations, which improves the buying experience and ultimately brings in more revenue for their organizations. Technology is changing the role of sales reps, and even replacing their jobs in some industries. But when you are bringing to market more complex (B2B) products that are expensive, possibly require installation, implementation, service and price negotiation installations, there will always be the need for the human touch to get to a successful outcome.

How should CMOs tie in their MarTech stack with latest content recommendations Engines?

From our experience in working with many global CMOs and Marketing leaders, many have the right tools to publish and measure content effectiveness across their digital channels, but they don’t have the ability to optimize what is often their most important channel: Sales. They lack the capabilities to make Sales Teams more relevant and empower them to deliver a better buying experience by surfacing the right content at the right time.

When you have the right content but aren’t sure where to use it, that’s where recommendations can play a role. For example, understanding that a buyer has already seen the spec-sheet can push you to start a conversation about additional features so you’re able to keep the conversation relevant while also providing new, interesting information.

As Sales Enablement technologies mature, how do you see inside sales strategies evolve by 2020?

For many companies, their inside sales strategies have become focused on ease of access to content and tracking how that content is being used. We expect that these things will be standard by 2020.

For us at Showpad, we believe the next shift will go beyond just sharing content and tracking usage, and move more into being relevant, personalized and able to address buyer needs in the best possible way. At the end of the day, the sales experience that organizations are able to deliver and replicate at scale will become their differentiating factor.

On that note, while the majority of the ABM (Account Based Marketing) discussion has been for marketers, we at Showpad are focusing on ABM for sales. There will be the same dynamic with Marketing Automation – how can we share content with a specific CMO, create a microsite for content and help discover new features and drive a more value-based conversation on top of that. This type of interaction is what we see as the future of sales. We’re focused on delivering the most innovative B2B sales and marketing success platform in the industry.

With GDPR round the corner, how should businesses empower customers with the right information on products and services along the buyer’s journey?

We welcome GDPR. Showpad has always focused on privacy for all of our users, and we only process data in the right way without collecting too much or exploiting the information we have. We’ve very much designed our platform since day one with privacy in mind.

Ultimately, GDPR is privacy by design. If you bring out products built with privacy of both the end user and whoever is sharing content in mind, then this won’t be much of a system shock. As a company, we see GDPR as an opportunity to make sure we stand out as a platform in an increasingly competitive market.

What startups are you watching/keen on right now?

From the space we’re in, there is a lot of interesting things happening, and we’re paying a lot of attention to the “learning” part of the industry. We’re working with companies like MindTickle and Learncore, both of which are doing really interesting things when it comes to Sales Enablement and coaching reps with sales readiness.

Another interesting startup we recently discovered is Chorus.ai. Its technology analyzes conversations and can provide coaching and guidance in real-time, which is an exciting new capability to have for Salespeople. This can help when coaching Sales Teams on their performance, but also in surfacing the right information and pieces of content and getting keywords in the conversation.

What tools does your marketing stack consist of in 2017?

At Showpad, we use a variety of technologies to aid our marketing process. We employ CRM systems, Marketing Automation, and sales predictive software with companies like Salesforce and Clari. Additionally, we use the G-Suite and Workspace for a lot of internal collaboration. These technologies are essential for our platform to function and for our employees to feel confident in their work.

Would you tell us about your standout digital campaign?

Rather than a specific campaign, a standout digital strategy for us has been our shift from generic PPC advertising to an ABM approach. Our target audiences were Sales, Marketing, and Business Development leadership at Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) companies and we measured leads, sales opportunities, and revenue. Campaigns targeting our ICP have dramatically increased our Lead-To-Opportunity and Lead-To-Revenue ratio, which is our ultimate measure of success.

How do you prepare for an AI-centric world as a business leader?

We often overestimate what’s happening in the next five years, but underestimate what will happen in the next 10 years. It’s important to keep this in mind as AI becomes more prevalent so that businesses can start to build a foundation to support the evolution of this technology. For example, Showpad already utilizes Machine Learning to make content recommendations based on what’s worked previously in the context of closed business – things like industry, job title – whatever is relevant to that business. Continuously informing yourself on the state of the AI market by reading and speaking with tech leaders will go a long way in preparing for each stage of AI adoption.

One word that best describes how you work.

Focused.

What apps/software/tools can’t you live without?

WhatsApp is very important to me. I do a lot of calls internationally and need to be able to connect with people at Showpad wherever and whenever, and WhatsApp allows me to do that seamlessly and instantly. Additionally, Booking.com is a valuable tool. If I show up in a city or need to make a last minute business trip, Booking.com is a huge lifesaver.

And finally, I couldn’t live without Showpad. It goes without saying that I’m incredibly passionate about what we’ve built at Showpad, but from a technical standpoint, the solution has really helped our own business grow.

What’s your smartest work related shortcut or productivity hack?

Two years ago, I activated keyboard shortcuts in Gmail. This saves a ton of time, every day.

What are you currently reading? (What do you read, and how do you consume information?)

I tend to read two to three books at the same time. I like having a variety of professional and personal books for business and pleasure. I just finished up The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson, which pushes you to really focus on what’s truly important. Additionally, I just read Tools of Titans by Tim Ferris, which provides a lot of insight around productivity. When I’m looking for more of a personal read to escape from the business world, I also like to read Dan Brown’s books.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

The best advice I’ve ever been given was from my grandfather, and it was “listen more” and “keep it simple.” I’ve really taken these pieces of advice to heart. Listening is the best way to learn and to understand where other people are coming from to see another perspective, and leading a simple life means focusing on the things that really matter to you and that you need, which is incredibly valuable. I’ve applied these tenets to both my professional and personal life and have become a better leader and partner because of them

Tag the one person in the industry whose answers to these questions you would love to read:

At Showpad, we’re always trying to learn from our customers to get more insight on their challenges and what they think about the industry. Therefore, I’d love to hear the thoughts of Melissa Cohoon, the Senior Manager, Marketing and Digital Product at SunPower.

Thank you Pieterjan! That was fun and hope to see you back on MarTech Series soon.

[vc_tta_tabs][vc_tta_section title=”About Pieterjan” tab_id=”1501785390157-b58e162d-0ae25a4b-c27aca64-108e51b0-80edaf37-bd3d357a-6c46d0a7-db8f”]

SaaS Entrepreneur with a passion for team, product and customers. Likes building and growing companies fromscratch. Specialties: Getting things done.

[/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”About Showpad” tab_id=”1501785390320-2d44fa50-740c5a4b-c27aca64-108e51b0-80edaf37-bd3d357a-6c46d0a7-db8f”]

Showpad is the world’s most powerful sales enablement platform focused on helping sales teams deliver the best buyer experience through smarter and more relevant conversations with their customers and prospects. Founded in 2011, Showpad’s intuitive and robust platform allows marketers to maximize their impact on sales success while empowering sales teams to have more personalized and impactful interactions. With headquarters in Ghent and Chicago, and offices in San Francisco, Portland and London, Showpad has helped more than 1,000 companies around the world improve sales engagement, including Johnson & Johnson, Fujifilm, Audi, BASF, Dow Chemical and Kimberly-Clark.

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[mnky_heading title=”MarTech Interview Series” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fmartechseries-67ee47.ingress-bonde.easywp.com%2Fcategory%2Fmts-insights%2Finterviews%2F|||”]

The MTS Martech Interview Series is a fun Q&A style chat which we really enjoy doing with martech leaders. With inspiration from Lifehacker’s How I work interviews, the MarTech Series Interviews follows a two part format On Marketing Technology, and This Is How I Work. The format was chosen because when we decided to start an interview series with the biggest and brightest minds in martech – we wanted to get insight into two areas … one – their ideas on marketing tech and two – insights into the philosophy and methods that make these leaders tick.

Optimism for TV Advertising Is Still High, Says New Research by Videology And Advertiser Perceptions

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January 24, 2018

Optimism for TV Advertising Is Still High, Says New Research by Videology And Advertiser Perceptions

Nearly 1/3 of Advertisers plan to increase their Connected TV and Addressable TV budgets in 2018

Videology — a leading software provider for converged TV and video advertising—today released the results of a new survey commissioned through Advertiser Perceptions on the state of Linear TV advertising.

The survey, based on over 300 interviews with advertisers and agency professionals, showed optimism about the future of TV Advertising, including both traditional linear TV and the emerging platforms that use advanced TV data to reach strategic audiences.

According to the results, respondents are continuing to embrace
traditional Linear TV: 67% plan to maintain spending budgets from 2017,
and 12% plan to increase spend on Linear TV in 2018.

The greatest TV growth was seen around Advanced TV options. According to the results, 29% of respondents plan to increase their advertising spend of Connected TV in 2018, while 65% said they earmark funds to maintain their current spend—suggesting satisfaction with performance to date. Only 6% planned to decrease their Connected TV spend in the year ahead.

Also Read: Videology Unveils New ‘Knowledge Lab’ Inventory to Educate Industry about Connected TV

Following a similar growth trend, 24% of respondents said they planned to increase their Addressable TV spend, while 67% planned to keep their spending on par with 2017. Additionally, 22% plan to increase their Data-Enabled TV spend, and 73% plan to maintain their 2017 spending levels. It should be noted that DETV uses the same inventory source as traditional Linear TV, but a different planning strategy.

In the case of both Connected TV and Addressable TV, respondents from agencies were more bullish on growth than their advertiser-direct counterparts: 38% of agency respondents said they plan to increase their Connected TV spending, and 32% plan to increase their Addressable TV spending. These findings suggest that agencies may be more informed about the latest opportunities available through Advanced TV, and/or are more willing to test new technologies with the potential of driving improved performance.

“Despite predictions about cord-cutters making linear TV advertising less relevant, we are seeing the opposite. Advertisers are not eliminating screens, but rather trying to find the best mix of screens and data strategies that allow them to leverage the best of each. TV is still the ultimate channel for reach and awareness, and when TV advertising is brought to the next level with data and targeting, it’s unstoppable,” said Scott Ferber, founder and CEO, Videology.

Also Read: Sling TV Partners with comScore to Offer First Ever Cross-Platform Addressable Advertising Measurement

Today, over half (51%) of advertisers and agencies say that
traditional Linear TV is still “core” to their 2018 strategies.

Many also consider advanced forms of TV advertising – specifically Connected TV and Addressable TV – integral to their 2018 strategies:

31% say Connected TV is “core to their strategy.”
22% say Addressable TV is “core to their strategy.”
Another 39% and 43%, respectively, say that Connected TV and Addressable TV, though not considered “core” strategies, are currently being used.

Also Read: Videology Offers Advertisers and Agencies Free Access to DETVgo

The study also explored some difficulties facing TV advertisers and agencies today. When asked about the biggest challenges for their company or client in regard to TV and Video advertising, 51% of respondents cited consistent cross-screen measurement, while 44% said they were challenged with how to best leverage data. Revealing the need for greater education, over 1/3 said their biggest challenge was “Lack of clarity/understanding of what’s available and how to execute”.

As Advanced TV opportunities bring the power of digital advertising to TV, measurement is expected to follow suit. According to the study, over half (55%) of respondents predict that within the next three years, TV will be measured by the same performance metrics as digital.

Also Read: Tru Optik and NinthDecimal Partner to Power Over-The-Top Television Ad Targeting and Attribution

Ferber added, “The promise of digital, and the promise of data has always been a better measurement to drive better results. One of the most beneficial aspects of advanced data strategies is the ability to tie ad exposure to business outcomes. Bringing these capabilities to TV in a scalable way takes an already great medium, and makes it that much better.”

The study was conducted by Advertiser Perceptions in December 2017 and was based on interviews with over 300 Advertising and Agency decision-makers from among the top 200 Advertisers in the US.

TUNE Taps Brian Marcus as Vice President of Global Marketing

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January 24, 2018

TUNE Taps Brian Marcus as Vice President of Global Marketing

As a Digital Marketing Veteran, Brian Marcus Will Focus on Extending Tune’s Market-Leading Position Within the Fortune 1,000

TUNE, the global leaders in marketing and advertising measurement, announced the promotion of Brian Marcus to Vice President of Global Marketing.

Brian brings more than two decades of digital marketing leadership and expertise to the company, including 10 years building and managing high-performance teams at Google, eBay, and Teespring. In this new role, he will focus on extending TUNE’s market leading position within the Fortune 1,000, where TUNE’s suite of performance marketing solutions help companies find and win new customers at scale. In addition, Brian will oversee the global expansion of the TUNE brand, narrative, and go-to-market activities.

“Brian is an outstanding leader who knows the marketing world inside and out, and in fact helped create several of the largest and most successful performance marketing programs to date. He’s played a pivotal role in the creation, execution, and expansion of enterprise-focused marketing initiatives that enable us to drive new sales around the world. Not only is he a world-class marketer, but he’s also one of the most passionate competitors I’ve ever met. Brian is the perfect person to lead TUNE marketing efforts,” said Ryan Buma, Chief Commercial Officer at TUNE.

Also Read: TUNE Taps Top Industry Executives for Next Phase of Growth

Prior to TUNE, Brian served as Global Director of the eBay Partner Network, eBay’s largest paid acquisition channel at the time. At eBay, Brian and his team drove double-digit growth and marketing efficiency gains while simplifying the program for thousands of affiliate publishers. Prior to his work at eBay, Brian was a leader at Google, where his team launched Google’s first full-scale affiliate network, Google Affiliate Network (GAN). Under Brian’s leadership, GAN managed thousands of affiliate programs that ranged from the world’s largest retailers and credit card issuers to self-service advertisers and launched the original beta platform for what has evolved into Google’s Product Listing Ads. While at Google, his team helped grow top-line revenue more than 30 percent year over year and drove over $1B in online retail sales through the platform annually.

Also Read: TUNE Joins Forces With Google to Help Stop App Install Fraud

Most recently, Brian served as Vice President of Marketing and General Manager at Teespring, a venture-funded custom apparel company. While in this role he was responsible for building and marketing the industry’s best e-commerce platform to talented creators and performance marketers.

Talking about TUNE, Brian added, “Over the course of my career, I’ve had a chance to meet and work with many amazing people in the performance marketing space. I’ve always admired the TUNE team for its inventiveness and persistence in the creation of the first SaaS performance marketing and mobile attribution platform. As mobile and performance intersect to create new channels of revenue for CMOs and digital marketers, TUNE is poised to continue shaping the industry. I’m thrilled to play an important role in this mission.”

Lotame & Inscape Join Forces to Elevate Ad-Buying, Targeting & Measurement

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January 24, 2018