Q&A with Pierre Babineau, Director of Digital Strategy at Reprise Digital

Pierre Babineau, Director of Digital Strategy at Reprise Digital has been developing and implementing client-acquisition funnels and marketing strategies for SMBs, large corporations and nonprofits from various industries over the last 7+ years. Earlier in his career, Pierre ran his own agency out of Moncton, NB where he delivered digital deployment strategies for small businesses and tourism organizations, leveraging owned, paid and earned media across all marketing channels. Having a background in strategic planning has allowed Pierre to develop a very analytical, critical thinking approach when faced with problems and opportunities.

Media 7: What do you consider as your strengths?
Pierre Barbineau:
What I consider to be my strengths depends upon context, as strengths can be interpreted differently through various aspects of life. My passion around all things leadership is what gets me up in the morning. I enjoy working with my team, coaching them, and seeing them grow. With my somewhat strange and particular background, I strongly believe that leaning on my past learnings and experiences in order to help someone else grow is such a blessing! When it comes to everything digital marketing, I’m mostly self-trained. I know that my professional life would have been easier with a mentor, so I strive to always be available to anyone who wants to learn - whether they report to me or not.

In terms of my own personal strength, my curiosity has certainly allowed me to reach far beyond what I would have expected. I’m constantly hungry to learn and understand new things. I cannot simply accept something for what it is; I need to understand what makes it tick. This is so important in understanding a fully integrated, consumer-first marketing strategy, as there are a multitude of tools, platforms, behaviours and challenges to explore.

Here is a recent example: my latest obsession is understanding the space-time continuum. If I read about it before bed, I won’t be able to sleep for hours, as I simply can’t stop thinking about the “how. I want to understand it on a deeper level – rather than simply accepting it for what it is. My curiosity truly is a blessing and a curse!
From a professional perspective in my everyday marketing life, I’d say I’ve been able to break through from the crowded space of marketers by being analytical and also being capable of understanding the story that data is telling me. My analytical mind is constantly asking “how” or “why” which helps me digest insights and dig to a deeper level than most. Many can go on a platform and build campaigns, or read reports and reviews, but the ability to identify key insights and understand how to act on these data points is crucial to growing as a marketer.


"For someone to be able to show up at work and contribute the best work they possibly can, they need to be in a peaceful headspace."

M7: Could you tell us something about Reprise Digital and your role there?
PB:
Reprise Digital is a performance agency that embodies the values of what it means to push boundaries. We have a tremendous culture where learning and innovation is strongly supported across all teams. We thrive to deliver award-winning work across all crafts.

Speaking of crafts, Reprise Digital has a variety of performance marketing expertise integrated under one roof (SEM, Paid Social, Mobile, eCommerce, SEO, etc.)
As the Director of Strategy, I work with a team of Strategists who help drive integrated marketing strategies that bridges any gaps between the varying crafts. Such gaps could include: managing influencer programs, performance content development or organic social strategy and execution. We also work on more macro business challenges such as audience mapping and strategy, brand purpose, and leading market intelligence across multiple accounts.

M7: What do you think is the next emerging major trend in digital marketing considering today’s market?
PB:
Third-party cookie-less future! There will be a big push into deeper understanding of next-level AI contextual targeting, looking at cohorts or groups of individuals with strong similarities versus one-to-one conversation and personalization. It will completely change how marketers leverage audience data for targeting. Be on the lookout for new tech coming out to support marketing agencies in this space!


"There’s something missing and that something is taking the time to truly understand the business problem by asking the right questions and finding creative solutions."

M7: What do you consider as the limitations of digital marketing and how can marketers address it?
PB:
I believe the largest limitation in digital marketing is not having a proper full journey MTA (multi touch attribution) model, where the data accuracy allows brands and agencies to trust the output at 100%. There are simply too many holes in the different solutions, from limited view-through data to simply not all sources properly being tracked and scored, as well as pixel firing issues.

Agencies often piece together what they can and the result can be great work. One of Reprise Digital’s strengths is understanding how qualitative data can fill in where quantitative data lacks. We have access to robust databases which enables us to gain additional perspective on the consumer journey by allowing us to understand deeper-rooted preferences that help in activating effectively.

M7: How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected your work - what day to day processes have you had to re-tool to be able to pull them off remotely?
PB:
The biggest COVID-related challenge I face isn’t marketing-related, but people-related. Mental health is very important for so many reasons. At the end of the day, for someone to be able to show up at work and contribute the best work they possibly can, they need to be in a peaceful headspace. We have been working hard on trying to mimic “water cooler” talk with morning team coffee chats (no work talk allowed) and 1:1 meeting check-ins where we chat about a bit of everything.

Identifying signs of mental health issues can be tricky, especially when working remotely. First and foremost, we do our best to create a sense of security for all staff by intentionally focusing our discussions around people rather than just work. At the end of the day, we’re only as good as our people!


"Third-party cookie-less future! There will be a big push into deeper understanding of next-level AI contextual targeting, looking at cohorts or groups of individuals with strong similarities versus one-to-one conversation and personalization."

M7: What have you learned from your experiences so far?
PB:
My background is very particular, which allows me to bring a broader set of skills and understanding to my position than a typical marketer otherwise would.
From being an entrepreneur with two startups (the first being a failed publishing business; the second - a fairly successful boutique marketing agency), to being integrated with wonderful mentors in a strategic planning role at NuFocus Strategic Group, and now working in such a great agency, the learnings are endless. To this day, the opportunity to work in strategic planning has had the largest impact on my career and life.

Firstly, the mentorship was priceless. Secondly, that type of work changes how your mind approaches problem solving.The opportunity of having worked in strategic planning really challenged me to look at problems from an analytical position. We are often taught to fix problems. But in strategic planning, you don’t necessarily find solutions. You ask specific questions in order to help your clients identify potential solutions. Bringing this mindset to marketing certainly has its advantages!

When things become too busy and we need to get work done quickly, I never feel fulfilled or proud of the deliverable. There’s something missing and that something is taking the time to truly understand the business problem by asking the right questions and finding creative solutions. Too often, marketers take pride in the volume of work.
There needs to be a mindset shift in order to become a strategic business partner. Then we will be able to support the brand’s activities and future growth.

ABOUT REPRISE DIGITAL

About Reprise Digital- As the global performance marketing agency of Mediabrands, we are obsessed with Customer Flow which is defined as the continuous movement of customers along the path to purchase. Our purpose is to help you build and accelerate Customer Flow, and we offer deep expertise in digital crafts required to move customers along that journey. We do this by unifying our craft experts which include search, social media, SEO, eCommerce, content creation and strategy under a single operating system

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Through strategic integrations, zazen Water automated its business and customer service operations to streamline high-order volume processing. Notably, during its Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2023 campaign, zazen Water managed a significant order peak, accomplishing its same-day dispatch promise, which, prior to automation and integration projects, would have required 16 employees. Customer of the Year Breakthrough Award (EMEA) – FAMO GmbH & Co. KG, a German wholesaler of electrical and plumbing products, is recognized for its collaboration with Sugar partner Insignio to deploy SugarCRM for advanced customer data management and opportunity nurturing, the Sugar mobile app with enterprise resource planning (ERP) data integration for field sales support, and Sugar Market for automated newsletters and targeted communications. Customer of the Year Breakthrough Award (Latin America) – Mac Construtora e Incorporadora (MAC), a leader in construction and development in São Paulo, is recognized for the creative use of SugarCRM in the dynamic real estate market. Technology adoption significantly improved lead management and customer engagement, enhancing marketing approaches and project sales, resulting in a substantial increase in sales, ranging from 50 to 94 percent of its real estate agency. This has led to MAC substantially reducing its dependence on partnering with other real estate agencies. Customer of the Year Breakthrough Award (North America) – Alto-Shaam, providing foodservice equipment solutions to more than 90 countries globally, is recognized for use of SugarCRM to significantly enhance opportunity close rates by 61 percent while achieving up to 600 hours of time savings in marketing and sales efforts to forecast customer needs. The integration of Sugar Sell with Sugar Market has streamlined key processes, improved lead management, and enhanced operational efficiency and global communication. ISV Technology Partnership Breakthrough Award – FSIoffice, a leading independent office supply company, together with sales-i, are recognized for transforming FSIoffice’s CRM strategy from data repository to sales powerhouse, with 40 percent improved sales efficiency. Supported by Sugar partner CRM International, FSIoffice is driving remarkable revenue growth and enhancing customer engagement with Sugar Sell Premier and sales-i for predictive business-to-business sales intelligence. Reseller Technology Partnership Breakthrough Award – The Joint Corp., the nation’s largest provider of chiropractic care through The Joint Chiropractic® network, in partnership with Sugar partner Faye, are recognized for driving significant improvements in healthcare operations after transitioning to SugarCRM and Amazon Web Services, with a 40 percent increase in web transaction speed. This transformation allowed The Joint to focus on integrating AI to elevate SugarCRM from a functional tool to a strategic platform for competitive differentiation in the chiropractic care sector. Judges’ Choice Award – RTCR, the public transit provider in La Rochelle, France, operating under the Yélo brand, is recognized for significantly enhancing customer service with Sugar Serve, with implementation support by Sugar partner Synolia. The deployment has led to a minimum three percent increase in customer satisfaction and streamlined complaint management, saving agents’ time by 50 percent through improved response structuring. “We’re pleased to announce the winners of the 2024 SugarCRM Customer Breakthrough Awards,” said Chris Pennington, Chief Customer Officer, SugarCRM. “These customers and partners are recognized for excellence and innovation in letting Sugar’s AI-driven CRM platform do the work to make the hard things easier for sales, marketing and service professionals, and for driving breakthrough success and exceptional customer experiences.” About SugarCRM SugarCRM is a CRM software that helps marketing, sales, and service teams reach peak efficiency through better automation, data, and intelligence so they can achieve a real-time, reliable view of each customer. Sugar’s platform provides leading technology in the sales automation, marketing automation, and customer service fields with one goal in mind: to make the hard things easier. Thousands of companies in over 120 countries rely on Sugar by letting the platform do the work. Headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, Sugar is backed by Accel-KKR.

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MyTradeZone.com Joins Certified Trade Mission to Hong Kong to Explore Business Expansion Opportunities in Asia

MyTradeZone | November 28, 2023

MyTradeZone.com, a trade and Social Networking for businesses, is pleased to announce its upcoming visit to Hong Kong from December 4th to 8th, 2023. Bachir Kassir, founder of MyTradeZone, will join a delegation of American companies to Hong Kong as part of a U.S. Department of Commerce Certified Trade Mission organized by IBS Global Consulting with the support of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council and the U.S. Commercial Service. The delegation, comprising a diverse group of American companies, aims to foster cross-border partnerships, explore export opportunities, and deepen economic ties between the United States and Hong Kong. The visit to Hong Kong presents an exciting opportunity for MyTradeZone.com to expand its global reach, tap into new markets, and establish key connections with Hong Kong's dynamic business community and trade associations. With Hong Kong's strategic location as a gateway to the Asia-Pacific region, robust financial services sector, and reputation as a major international trade hub, this visit holds immense promise for American enterprises looking to navigate the Asian market. Led by Tonya McNeal-Weary, Managing Director at IBS Global Consulting, the delegation will engage in a series of high-level meetings, networking events, and industry-specific forums during the five-day visit. These activities are designed to facilitate mutually beneficial partnerships between U.S. and Hong Kong businesses across various sectors. [MyTradeZone.com] is a disruptive business networking platform, and is like an always open trade show: • Businesses: Add company profile page. Showcase products & services. Network locally and around the world • Event Organizers, Trade Associations, & Networking Groups: Provide value-added offering to members & sponsors in a public or private setting • Creators & Group owners: Monetize your creations via peer-to-peer payment enablement • Advertisers and Marketers: MyTradeZone's B2B search engine offers highly targeted and cost-effective advertisements to both buyers and sellers • Business Professionals: Grow your professional network, chat, connect, follow, takes notes, share and collaborate As an official member of the delegation, MyTradeZone will have the opportunity to gain firsthand insights into Hong Kong's business landscape, explore regulatory frameworks, exchange best practices, and forge lasting relationships with key stakeholders. Additionally, the itinerary includes tailored site visits to cutting-edge facilities and industrial parks, showcasing Hong Kong's commitment to innovation and entrepreneurship. The visit to Hong Kong aims to enhance trade cooperation and seeks to highlight the enduring friendship between the United States and Hong Kong. As both economies continue to recover from the challenges posed by the global pandemic, this visit becomes even more crucial in reinvigorating trade ties and promoting long-term economic growth. About MyTradeZone.com MyTradeZone is a social networking platform for businesses. We are working on the next thing to disrupt business networking. MyTradeZone is a forward-thinking B2B media technology company reshaping how businesses connect and network. MyTradeZone's B2B search engine offers highly targeted and cost-effective advertisements to both buyers and sellers. MyTradeZone is also a perfect companion offering to trade show organizers and networking groups offering value added benefits to both members and sponsors.

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Brand Marketing, Advertiser Platforms

Gupshup brings Vertex AI-powered AI chatbots into RCS conversations

PR Newswire | February 26, 2024

Gupshup, the world's leading Conversation Cloud platform today announced that brands on its platform can now offer AI chatbots for RCS conversations, opening up a whole new advanced and interactive experience for their users. Gupshup's Conversational AI product suite, spanning Auto Bot Builder and ACE LLM, are now using Google Cloud's Vertex AI platform to bring the benefits of Google's large language models (LLMs) to Gupshup's customers globally. The integration will enable businesses to deliver more precise and human-like interactions with speed and scale and offer a more personalized and responsive experience. Further, AI assistants on RCS will be able to intelligently respond to unstructured queries, assisting customers across various stages–from product discovery, lead generation to troubleshooting and customer support. "Generative AI is transforming the RCS industry, and we're thrilled that Gupshup is utilizing our latest LLMs on Vertex AI to further personalize and enhance how businesses engage with customers through AI-driven conversations," said Warren Barkley, Senior Director of Product Management, Vertex AI at Google Cloud. "Vertex AI provides partners like Gupshup with a unified AI platform to leverage state-of-the-art foundational models, and we look forward to seeing the ways Gupshup continues to innovate with this technology." "We've always leveraged the latest cutting-edge AI technologies to offer a superior customer engagement platform to our brands. With our Auto Bot Builder and domain-specific ACE LLM now leveraging Google's LLMs, business messages on RCS are set to get a massive facelift, leading to better ROI for enterprises. We are excited to work with Google Cloud to help our brands bring intelligent conversations on RCS that will redefine customer engagement," said Beerud Sheth, Founder and CEO, Gupshup. Gupshup is a pioneer in leveraging domain-specific, fine-tuned large language models (LLMs) to automate the creation of enterprise-grade chatbots with appropriate guardrails. In January 2023, it launched Auto Bot Builder, a tool that leverages LLMs to automatically and effortlessly build advanced chatbots for enterprises. Gupshup's Conversational AI solutions are already live with several clients in India and abroad. The advanced chatbot for Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) - Dubai's largest utility, is powered by Gupshup. In India, several brands such as Tata Capital and Chaayos are using it for brand engagement, product discovery, employee training, and consultative selling.

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