Mark Walters

#podcast Zach Adams, Senior Specialist in Client Partnerships for Politics and Public Affairs at VDX.tv discusses the evolving landscape of political campaigns and importance of ongoing engagement with voters beyond election day. Candidates and campaigns often fail to maintain relationships with voters, except for requests for contributions. Data analytics is one path to effectively target messages to engage and motivate the base and attract new supporters. We talk about Why political ads need to be more emotionally evocative and strategically targeted to specific voter segments. #PoliticalAdvertising #PoliticalCampaigns #DigitalVoterOutreach #PoliticalEvangelists #VoterEngagement  VDX.tv https://lnkd.in/g4CadZJ5

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As brands and agencies brace for economic volatility, proactive steps are essential for ensuring media investments remain effective. From scenario planning and prioritizing transparency to competitive intelligence, it’s vital to prepare for varying economic conditions. Historical insights show that brands maintaining advertising spending fare better and recover faster. Marketing leaders must keep tone sensitivity in mind as consumers become more deliberate about spending. Adaptation is key. #MarketingStrategy #EconomicUncertainty #Advertising #BrandGrowth #MediaInvestments #Leadership #ScenarioPlanning

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With principle-based buying returning to the forefront, Brian Chap's recipe for agency accountability takes me back to Jon Mandel's explosive rebate disclosures back in March 2015. Jon's kimono-opening moment was undoubtedly the catalyst that woke us all up to the billions leaking from media budgets by way of non-transparent kickbacks and fees. The can of worms has yet to be closed. That's why principle-based buying doesn't sit well with me. It feels like we're rewinding the tape after making so much progress over the last decade. BUT ... if you're a client-side media buyer that chooses to engage with a principle-based agency, there are three of Brian's "BENCH" framework activities that I think should be prioritized to the top. These three are relatively simple to do and can dramatically increase transparency and accountability. 1 - Secure platform access to your ad server, your DSP and the major SSPs through whom you are buying. Ensure you know how to compare media costs at each step in the supply-chain. 2 - Conduct audits. Whether as Brian recommends or simply by contacting a handful of publishers where you buy media, you should be able to reconcile your cost input to your media value output. And while you're at it, you'll be strengthening your direct publisher relationships, which has many longer-term benefits both in terms of media cost and priority. 3 - Most definitely hold your agency accountable. This applies also to every adtech vendor in your media supply-chain. I am not a fan of principle-based media buying. But if you're going to try it out, you need to remember that this is far from a set-it-and-forget-it approach to advertising. https://lnkd.in/eDw-Z3w8

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A must-read for communications professionals everywhere! In today’s era of information overload, communicators must evolve from measuring mentions to mastering meaning. That’s the central insight from John Croll AM, Founder and CEO of Truescope, whose 40-year career has shaped the global media intelligence industry. John’s perspective underscores a vital truth for our industry: success isn’t about more data—it’s about smarter interpretation and deeper understanding. #CommPRO #Truescope #Communications #PR #MediaIntelligence #Leadership

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Today’s announcement from the Ad Context Protocol group marks a huge step forward in building the open infrastructure needed for AI-native advertising. The launch of AgenticAdvertising.org and the formalization of AdCP create the shared standards that will allow AI agents to operate seamlessly across the digital advertising ecosystem. This is really important because: 🔹 AI-driven buying will require shared protocols. AdCP gives all of us a common framework to communicate context, intent, and outcomes to AI agents. 🔹When partners can plug into the same standard, innovation accelerates. Data, inventory, and intelligence can flow more cleanly, creating greater value. 🔹 Open, standardized signals give partners a clearer view of value, quality, and performance. Yes, please. 🔹 The pace of change, innovation and learning is unprecedented. We need infrastructure that supports rapid, intelligent coordination across platforms—something no single company can build alone. It has been an honor and priviledge being on the front lines of this movement with friends and partners across every part of the industry. We're excited to help bring this next chapter to life! #AdTech #AI #AgenticAdvertising #OpenStandards #Scope3 #Partners #SustainableAdvertising

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RETHINKING TV REACH ESTIMATES As we do more runs using our new TV AD Cume facility, which estimates the reach/frequency of national TV ad campaigns based on the TV rating's "commercial minute viewing" numbers and, separately, on ad attentiveness, it is becoming painfully obvious that advertisers are not getting the coverage they think they are paying for, Despite rating fragmentation it is still possible to "reach" about 70% of a target group per month if you spend enough and use both linear TV and streaming. But when you factor in ad attentiveness---counting only those who see at least two seconds of any of your commercials, you are hard pressed to get to the 50% mark--except for older adults. And the same point applies to frequency. If you think that your target group reach is "seeing" 5-6 of your commercials per month think again--the real number is more like 2-3, not 5-6. Which raises another question--why monthly reach? Most ad campaigns for a given product positioning strategy last three years or longer--not 30 days. How did we decide that monthly reach was a meaningful time frame for evaluating reach or frequency? The answer may surprise some. Here it is. When advertisers and agencies first went to Nielsen and inquired about their total reach--not just the ratings of a particular telecast----Nielsen's panel had only 1,000 homes and to get a sample that reflected an extended time frame--a week or a month or longer, Nielsen needed a "unified" sample of homes that supplied data for every day in that period. As many homes dropped in and out due to the Audimeter's mechanical failings or, more commonly in those days, due to their one set blowing a tube, Nielsen settled on four weeks as the maximum duration as that would guarantee a sample of about 500 homes--beyond that it would have severe sample size issues. So four-week reach/frequency was established as the industry's media planning time frame but it had nothing to do with marketing or advertising, it was simply a dictate caused by Nielsen's then small panel size. But times have changed and maybe it's time for media planners to start showing clients what their proposed plans look like on a more dynamic basis--weekly, plus monthly,plus quarterly, and then yearly--not just an average month. That way the brand manager and CMO can see how their ad campaign really develops its reach across time. As for the numbers, themselves, isn't it also about time that they reflected ad attentiveness? If you ask the agencies about ad attentiveness most will claim that they "consider it" in devising their recommendations to clients, but how many media plans actually show clients what their ad attentiveness reach/frequencies might be and how many present reasonable alternatives for consideration based on these findings? The answer, I'm sorry to say is not many. Any thoughts about how we can change this, guys and gals?

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For years the industry has chased better targeting. But what if that’s not the real problem? Chalice AI SVP, Analytics & AI Tylynn Pettrey, argues the bigger challenge is translation—turning data, signals, and strategy into creative that actually resonates with humans. A timely perspective as AI, automation, and data scale faster than our storytelling. Read her POV in Advertising Week: https://lnkd.in/gTmWHs5H https://lnkd.in/gTmWHs5H

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Latest pod episode features Transunion's Matt Spiegel talking about the future of identity, the role of media agencies, and what AI platforms can't do (sponsored by Intent IQ)

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If you are a Performance/Growth Marketer testing or looking to test CTV, this article is a must read. CTV inventory is primarily non-clickable so the industry relies on Cross Device to connect the device visiting the website to the TV in which the ad was served (and vice versa). Here's the problem - most CTV vendors use IP Address (Wifi) as the sole source of truth for cross device tracking. This is both antiquated and heavily flawed, but they do it anyway and hey, it certainly doesn't hurt in-platform performance. Data validation provider Truthset conducted this study on behalf of CIMM (Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement) and Go Addressable to definitively understand the accuracy of IP Address for Cross Device tracking applications (CTV). "Truthset analyzed records from six major data vendors, including 1 billion email addresses, nearly 250 million IP addresses and 164 million postal addresses." Here are some key findings: > IP-to-Email matches: 16% accurate >IP-to-Postal matches: 13% accurate If you are a brand allocating ad dollars to a CTV campaign leveraging IP Address for cross device tracking/targeting, is this accuracy acceptable? “There’s this promise in the industry of completely accurate, deterministic data that matches sophisticated and vast advertising targets and attributes onto individuals and households,” Jon Watts, Managjng Director of Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement (CIMM) said. “This leads marketers to believe that when they buy against a particular target, they’re reaching that target – and, unsurprisingly, the truth is much more complicated than that.” IP Address Match Rates Are a Joke – And It’s No Laughing Matter https://lnkd.in/gwGa_iBt Keynes Digital #crossdevice #CTV #connectedtv

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The decline in traditional TV has local advertisers scrambling to reach potential customers. Albert Thompson, of Walton Isaacson, says changes are needed to capitalize on the opportunity. https://lnkd.in/gQRepqMw

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BuzzStream's take on Cision's 2024 vs 2025 data shows a small, but telling shift: journalists now value story exclusives more than before, while interest in original research is dropping. Press releases remain dominant, but journalists are signaling they want unique angles over generic data. https://lnkd.in/eBwDFwec

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"The real opportunity is to reimagine public media not as a centralized content producer, but as a networked, civic infrastructure that enables and supports community-rooted journalism."

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The economics of local services business working with marketing agencies are way out of whack. The amount that these businesses get charged for SEO and SEM help is super high. This isn't an indictment of the quality of the services provided by agencies - just a reality check on the fact that providing these services doesn't work at subscale (under 10k in budget per month). Its hard to see how agencies that have an embedded cost structure can provide help to businesses that need it without charging them too much.

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As brands demand clarity and media owners seek control, the rules of the digital supply chain are shifting. Teads' Heather R. explains how #SupplyPathOptimization is helping the industry build trust and transparency.

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While at #AdtechEconomicForumNYC, I had the pleasure of speaking with Matthew Scott Goldstein (msg) for an ADWEEK interview. We discussed the importance of #trust in today’s media ecosystem, along with the latest developments involving @Publicis and The Trade Desk. Curious what you think..:-)

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Texas has been at the forefront of complex legal proceedings against the tech behemoth. It’s critical that lawmakers not relent on adherence to the rule of law. At this moment, it is more important than ever to protect consumers and ensure quality, competition, and choice across products, services, and original sources of content.

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Allied tapped Magnite’s ClearLine to reach more voters more efficiently during the competitive 2024 election cycle by directly accessing premium CTV inventory. Discover how ClearLine helps drive smarter political advertising in this recent case study: https://magnite.smh.re/1MR

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Critique of Substack’s Approach to Email Delivery Enforcement The message from Substack Standards & Enforcement, while framed politely, reflects a concerning and overly punitive approach to handling email delivery metrics, particularly for publishers who rely on the platform to build and engage with their communities. First and foremost, disabling publishing abilities without prior warning or a transparent, data-driven explanation undermines the trust between creators and the platform. The vague reference to “poor email delivery indicators,” such as low open rates or spam complaints, is insufficient. Publishers deserve access to detailed analytics before such drastic action is taken. Without clarity or specific thresholds, the criteria appear arbitrary and opaque. Furthermore, placing the burden entirely on the creator to “prune” their list through a re-confirmation process penalizes legitimate audience-building efforts. Many imported lists consist of genuine followers collected from personal websites, events, or past platforms. Forcing re-verification not only risks losing engaged readers but also ignores the nuances of user behavior—open rates and spam complaints can vary due to numerous external factors, including email client algorithms or misleading spam filters. The enforcement email also lacks empathy and support for content creators, offering no collaborative solution or opportunity to appeal. A more constructive approach would involve education, tailored feedback, and system support (e.g., A/B testing subject lines or improved deliverability tips) rather than immediate suspension of core functionality. Lastly, it is contradictory for a platform built on creator empowerment and independence to impose such heavy-handed controls without due process or proportional response. Substack should rethink this policy and replace enforcement through disruption with engagement through support. Empowering creators to improve deliverability, rather than halting their work, would reflect a more ethical and sustainable strategy aligned with Substack’s supposed mission.

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