There are 3 parts to the attention formula: where, what, and who. Most adtech companies and agencies are getting the "where" wrong. In 2005, the traditional media dominated information distribution. If you wanted to know what was happening in advertising, you had to go to Ad Age or AdWeek. Of course, Ad Age and AdWeek are still important players in the advertising information ecosystem. But they're only one type of player. There are now three other players contributing to the ecosystem: social, email, and audio. In other words: LinkedIn and Twitter, newsletters, and podcasts. I read the trades. I also read LinkedIn and Twitter every day. I get newsletters from Ari Paparo, Eric Seufert, and Brian Morrissey. And I listen to Marketecture. My media diet is not the exception among advertising professionals, and these behaviors are not limited to adtech people. That is the misconception I hear all the time about social, newsletters, and podcasts: "It's just an adtech echo chamber." Where do you think agency people are getting their information? Do you think their media habits were frozen in 2005? They're just reading a paper copy of the Journal while smoking a pipe? Your customers are just individual consumers like each of us. They are absolutely scrolling social, reading newsletters, and listening to podcasts. And that is only going to get truer as millennials, who are now 27 to 44, age into decision-maker roles. The widespread failure to adapt is your opportunity. Most B2B organizations, at least in advertising, are still treating comms like it's 2005. Show up where your customers are consuming information, and you'll get the chance to define the industry narrative that shapes their buying decisions.
This is super relevant Joe Zappa - I actually discussed a component of “information seeking” with Carrie Kramer and Beau Davis of Futureproofd on an upcoming pod. Our industry has so much innovation, and talks incessantly about it, but the marketing side (painting with a broad stroked brush here) has been so hesitant to make change because of fear. There are multigenerational approaches; the savvy marketers (and operators/execs) are the ones that have multiple paint brushes and an arsenal of colors to paint with. It’s actually really fun being a sales leader/operator/entrepreneur (building multiple companies) speaking with marketing leads that are still driving people to webinars and white pages….those calls are really short and give me back a lot of time to make an impact for the ones that get it 😏 Giant kudos to Joe Zappa for being one of the few voices that’s shaking it up and calling it out
Joe Zappa Eric Franchi Jeremy Bloom 🌞 This is spot-on—the media habits of decision-makers have undeniably evolved, and meeting them where they are is a must. That said, I think there's a deeper conversation to be had about the quality of support and follow-through these channels often receive. Too often, I see companies dabble in podcasts, newsletters, or social campaigns with a "hit and run" approach: a single email, a social post, maybe a website post, and then they move on. a. How can we shift marketing teams away from a "check-the-box" mentality to fully leveraging these opportunities? b. Measure the ROI?
Insightful breakdown of the evolving attention formula! The emphasis on adapting to new media habits—social, newsletters, and podcasts—is spot on. As decision-makers increasingly rely on these channels, the opportunity to shape narratives and build meaningful connections is immense. A timely reminder to evolve with our audience!
The time it takes to get published in the trades makes what you read a bit more like the tonight show rather than the late show. A bit more generic and safer.
OhHello.ai Founder | Marketecture Media Co-Founder | Startup Builder w/ Pre IPO & Post Fortune 250 Acquisition Experience | Mentor to many, Dad & Husband to few | Authentic connector & curious listener
1dI started typing a whole diatribe about B2B attribution for niche categories and audiences… And during this LI commentary…I got distracted with external 2 external slack from marketers (partners), an email (2 days before Xmas) from a client looking to make a bigger impact in January than what they did in Q4, and 1 email from a partner planning out their CES Sweet Suite tour/interview with us (all within the past 30 mins) This post will get more 👀 during the slowest week of LI because of the engagement of several high profile execs that care and wanna give their two cents In essence…the hardest part to some is just being available to “show up”. From there, bridge connections and be authentic Speaking of, you both should be on OhHello.ai ☕️ when we fully launch in a month