MarTech Interview with Benoit Grouchko, CEO and Founder at Teemo

Tell us a bit about Teemo? How and why did you found the company?

Teemo is a Performance Marketing company built for brands with a significant physical footprint. We deliver digital ads and measure real-world visits. My Co-Founders and I Founded the company in 2014. We realized there was a big need in the brick-and-mortar ecosystem to better leverage Digital Marketing. We wanted to build a bridge between the physical world and the digital world.

Why location data? What’s the benefit?

Despite the growth of eCommerce, brick-and-mortar accounts for nearly 90% of all retail sales by volume. Location data lets marketers measure in-store performance with similar accuracy as they would measure eCommerce performance.

How has location data impacted attribution?

Location data has positively impacted attribution models. It lets us tell a more complete attribution story and understand in-store performance, which, until now, was a matter of guessing or extrapolation.

What makes Teemo unique? Can you tell us more about the performance aspect of your solution?

From a data perspective, we have the ability to do user-level targeting. Most other companies are doing audience-level targeting, which isn’t as tailored or effective. We also use dynamic catchment areas to reach potential customers. So depending on geography, user actions, and visit history, we increase, decrease or change the shape of the targeting area for our ads. And it’s actually not simply a target radius, but rather a polygonal shape based on a lot of factors.

Regarding performance, the simplest way to think about it is this analogy. Imagine one of our drive-to-store campaigns as a custom-built airplane and our client as the passenger. We build the airplane, we service the airplane, and we fly the plane, too. We combine the best of both worlds from data/computers and human intuition to optimize performance, which gives us a leg up on programmatic buying models.

How does Teemo play with other AdTech/MarTech platform in a marketer’s stack? 

We understand that most companies with large physical presences are already using location data services in their stack. While we’re not a location data company, we do use location data for measurement, and also do work hand-in-hand with all the largest location data providers in the industry to increase performance.

Can you give us an example of how a retailer would use Teemo?

The biggest use-case we see is that retailers want to increase store visits and have a measurable understanding of that performance. Before we start any campaign with a retailer, we first map out all their locations and get a baseline understanding of their in-store performance. Then, we’ll define the KPIs and goals, set a start date, target geography, establish duration, and kick off the campaign. While it’s running, our developers are constantly optimizing for performance. Before the campaign has run its course, we’ll plan the next phase to scale it.

You’re a hero to many companies in your space given how influential you were in shaping parts of the GDPR framework. Can you tell us how that came about and how you’re helping companies navigate through this challenging time in the industry?

We were one of the first companies flagged for GDPR violations, which forced us to become compliant quickly. After making some significant changes to our product, we then became the first GDPR compliant company. Since then, we have taken a proactive stance (regarding data privacy and protection) of transparency and user choice.

What advice would you have for an advertiser looking to leverage location data/mobile advertising? 

Whether you typically buy your media programmatically or manually, through an agency, or in-house, if your ultimate goal is more store visits and revenue, prioritize performance over red tape.

What are your predictions for AdTech for 2020?

Expect policies around privacy regulations will become more commonplace in 2020, especially in the US. This will change the way we buy, sell, collect, and transfer data.

How do you inspire your people to work with technology? 

We have great product and technology leaders at Teemo, and ultimately technology is at the core of what we do. That being said, I don’t think technology is or should be considered as an objective. Technology is just a way to deliver a service. But what a way!

One word that best describes how you work.

Collaboratively.

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

Slack, Google Drive, and while not an app, my Bose noise-canceling headphones are certainly a tool that provides focus on long flights.

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

Organization is one. Having a well-maintained to-do list, and what I call inbox zero. At the end of the day, I go through my emails to determine which require a response, which have been answered and dispose of everything that’s been handled.

Focus is another. I always think about how every little thing I do fits in the bigger plan, the impact to expect, and ways to maximize it – in the minimum amount of time.

What are you currently reading?

Books are a great source of knowledge. I love reading novels as they provide a way to learn a lot about human psychology and to disconnect from the business – which is critical to maintain a good work/life balance. For instance, I’ve recently read Her Lover, I really enjoyed it.

I also sometimes read business-related books. They can teach you a lot. The Hard Thing About Hard Things, for instance, is a must-have.

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

Behind every challenge, there is an opportunity.

Something you do better than others – the secret of your success?

I trust the people in my organization to do what they do best.

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

@Eric Hadley.

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