AD TECH AND MARTECH
Waymark | August 12, 2022
Waymark, a pioneer in using artificial intelligence to scale up video production, has launched a revolutionary AI-powered tool that allows users to create ads in minutes with no creative expertise required. Waymark AI Video Creator empowers local media companies to instantly create high-quality ads and get them to air quickly, shortening sales cycles and creating new opportunities for growth with local businesses.
Users input a few keywords into a web-based interface, and Waymark AI Video Creator automatically generates every element of the ad, from script to imagery to branding. At the heart of the product is an artificial intelligence engine that processes a local business’ online profile and translates it into a natural-sounding script, with relevant imagery and brand elements, to create professional-grade spots.
“AI-produced content is the future of advertising, and it gives companies that work with local businesses a huge competitive advantage,” says CEO Alex Persky-Stern.
“AI-produced content is the future of advertising, and it gives companies that work with local businesses a huge competitive advantage,” says CEO Alex Persky-Stern. “Waymark AI Video Creator makes it so fast and easy to create compelling commercials — with no experience required — that it’s now possible to show every potential client exactly how good their business could look with a professional spot. Users just choose from a wide selection of video templates, AI does all of the heavy lifting, and then customers can easily make edits, share previews, and download the approved files. It all takes just a few minutes and helps you shorten sales cycles and earn more business. It’s radically changing the economics of the creative process, and allows companies to get campaigns on the air literally in a matter of minutes, rather than weeks.”
About Waymark
Waymark is a creative AI company harnessing the power of breakthrough technology to make video production faster and easier than ever before. With a radically simple natural language interface, Waymark makes it possible for anyone to produce professional quality commercials for any platform — including TV and OTT — in a matter of minutes. The company is based in Michigan and is privately held.
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AD TECH AND MARTECH
Ad.net | August 08, 2022
Ad.net, the ad technology leader in engaging users at their moment of maximum intent, today announced the appointment of David Bell to the company’s board of directors. Bell brings his expertise in technology, media, marketing, and publishing, having spent his career advising the world’s largest advertisers and technology companies as they’ve scaled their businesses.
Bell has over 40 years of advertising industry experience, having led as CEO for the renowned Bozell Worldwide, True North Communications, and The Interpublic Group. He is Founder Chairman of Gyro, the largest independent global creative agency dedicated exclusively to business-to-business marketing, as an independent director of Madison Logic, the leader in account-based marketing, on the boards of dstillery, Creative Realities, and Kin and Carta plc. Notably, he served as senior advisor to AOL during its IPO, sale to Verizon and acquisition of Yahoo. Mr. Bell was inducted into the Advertising Hall of Fame in 2007.
“Our industry-leading advertising and ecommerce technology provides advertisers with a platform to exceed their customer acquisition goals while providing extraordinary value to our publishing partners,” said Ad.net CEO, Jon Waterman.
“Our industry-leading advertising and ecommerce technology provides advertisers with a platform to exceed their customer acquisition goals while providing extraordinary value to our publishing partners,” said Ad.net CEO, Jon Waterman. “With David’s leadership and guidance, we are supremely positioned to develop strategies to help advertisers hit their return on ad spend goals at scale, and publishers’ incremental monetization performance.”
“Ad.net operates at the intersection of intent and audience, an area that is becoming increasingly important to advertisers looking to build diversified customer acquisition strategies,” said Bell. “Ad.net is fulfilling an important need in the ad tech industry. I’m excited to be helping it scale.”
About Ad.net
Ad.net is the intent marketplace outside of Google and Bing where brands acquire new customers online. Ad.net provides a performance-driven approach to reaching the right customers throughout their purchase journeys. Founder led since 2001, the company is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.
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SOCIAL MEDIA ADVERTISING
Emplifi | August 05, 2022
Emplifi, the leading unified customer experience platform, revealed the findings of its Q2 2022 analysis of social media spend across thousands of brands worldwide.
The report findings highlight a rebound in median monthly global ad spend compared to the same period last year, a decrease in the median monthly click-through rate (CTR), a slight uptick in median monthly cost-per-click (CPC), and steady engagement on Facebook and Instagram. The data also shows a slight decrease in brands’ response rate to customers who ask questions on social media.
Brands increase investment in paid social media
After seeing a notable post-holiday drop in Q1 2022, median global monthly ad spend among brands rebounded by 18% in Q2 2022, climbing back above USD 4,200 – a figure close to the year-high level that was seen in Q4 2021. With this quarter's rebound, median monthly ad spend has increased 19% YoY, suggesting that brands are allocating more budget to reach their target audiences via paid social.
Click-through rate (CTR) continues to decline
Emplifi data shows that median monthly CTR has been steadily decreasing over time, dipping below the 1% mark in Q1 2022. This past quarter tells a similar story, with CTR lowering to 0.93%, signaling a 11% drop YoY. Despite this decrease, businesses can continue to depend on social media advertising to return value, as engagement remains fairly stable when consumers interact with paid social posts.
Median cost-per-click (CPC) remains stable
While CTR has steadily decreased, Emplifi data shows that CPC remains relatively stable despite some fluctuations in recent quarters, hitting $0.20 in Q2 2022. With average CPC rebounding this quarter after seeing a drop at the beginning of the year, it will be interesting to see whether this is a quarterly fluctuation or the start of an upward trend.
Instagram still dominant in engagement
After seeing a steady decrease since Q2 2021, median Facebook post interactions saw a slight bump quarter-over-quarter, reaching their highest level since Q3 2021. However, Q2 2022 levels remain notably lower than Q2 2021, with brands generating approximately 5.2 interactions per 1K impressions on Facebook, a 15% decrease year-over-year. When it comes to industries, the strongest performers for engagement on Facebook were brands in the Industrial (9.79) and Accommodation (9.04) sectors, while the lowest performers were Ecommerce (2.80), Retail (3.64), and Fashion (3.90).
Instagram continues to show much stronger engagement than Facebook, with about 32 interactions per 1K impressions in Q2 2022, which is on par with what has been seen across the past year. Brands in the Beverages (47.37), Alcohol (46.83), and Software (45.11) sectors saw the highest levels of engagement, with Retail (17.71), Telecom (21.58), and Ecommerce (22.81) brands lagging.
TikTok versus Instagram
In an analysis of sister TikTok and Instagram accounts across 330 brands from January-June 2022, Emplifi data shows that brands post more often on Instagram (68%) than on TikTok (32%) in relative posting frequency. While reach and interactions were higher on Instagram, video content had greater engagement on TikTok. Either way, both platforms have shown an upward trend over six months in terms of engagement rate, peaking in June 2022, reconfirming user interest for engaging video content.
“Brands need to connect with their audiences where they are and social media is an integral part of the marketing mix,” said Emplifi CMO, Zarnaz Arlia.
“Brands need to connect with their audiences where they are and social media is an integral part of the marketing mix,” said Emplifi CMO, Zarnaz Arlia. “It’s no secret that TikTok's surge in popularity is continuing – we’ve found that brands post more often on Instagram than TikTok, and video content has higher engagement on TikTok. It will be interesting to see how this trends in the months ahead. What is certain though is that in today’s world, having and maintaining a solid presence on both TikTok and Instagram is essential.”
Twitter shows the fastest response times to questions
Emplifi data shows that median response rates for brands answering questions on Facebook and Instagram decreased slightly in Q2 2022. On Twitter, after some mild fluctuations, response rates have returned to a similar level from the same time last year. When looking at engagement by industry, Beauty, FMCG Food, and Home & Living brands had comparatively higher response rates to user questions on social, while Automotive brands had lower response rates across all three social media platforms.
In terms of the time it took for brands to respond to questions, Instagram and Twitter saw slight bumps quarter-over-quarter, while Facebook saw a decrease for the second straight quarter. Examining the data by industry, some brands have the slowest response times on Facebook (alcohol, beauty, FMCG food, home & living, service), while for other brands, it's on Instagram (automotive, ecommerce, electronics, fashion, retail). However, except for one industry (FMCG food), Twitter typically sees the fastest response times among the three networks examined.
Methodology
Emplifi's analysis is based on Q2 2022 data and year-on-year comparisons downloaded at the beginning of July 2022.
About Emplifi
Emplifi is the leading unified CX platform that brings marketing, commerce, and care together to help businesses close the customer experience gap. More than 7,000 brands, including Delta Air Lines, Ford Motor Company, and McDonald's, rely on Emplifi to provide their customers with outstanding experiences at every touchpoint. For more information, visit www.emplifi.io.
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