Facebook Video Learning Curve; Targeting Connected Devices

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Can You Hear Me Now?

As Facebook ramps up its video ad efforts, marketers are learning how to develop content for the platform on the fly. But they have only a few seconds of soundless video with which to seize consumer attention. The WSJ quotes Adam Wohl, executive creative director at mcgarrybowen, who says, “You’ve got someone scrolling over the thing, and you’ve got to grab them by the throat quickly.” But as Facebook makes the rules, some agencies are looking to play along. SapientNitro, for example, is hosting internal classes on soundless video marketing. BuzzFeed Motion Pictures President Ze Frank weighs in too.

Connected CPGs

Ad Age reports that Evrythng, an IoT company, is partnering with digital ad firm Trueffect to help target ads in the world of connected devices. The firms have connected their platforms via an API integration to gather info on how consumers interact with products. According to Martin Smith, SVP of solutions and development for Trueffect, consumer privacy will be respected though a new set of permission processes. “The cost of being on the packaging is now getting to a point where it’s scalable,” he said.

Making Millennials Look Old

Jared Allgood, the co-founder of messaging app Jott, says the service doubled its user base to half a million users this year and is seeing that figure grow by a factor of 15,000 to 20,000 users per day. Jott is unique in that it requires no Wi-Fi connection or data plan, although messaging on the platform is limited to certain geographic areas. The result, according to TechCrunch, is that junior high and high schoolers are using the app to text at school without using data or Internet, and that “87 percent of teens text daily, compared to 61 percent of those who say they use Facebook, the next most popular choice.” For marketers looking to target teens, those numbers matter.

Apple Hits Play On Music Service

During Apple’s developer conference on Monday, Apple confirmed its long-rumored music service that will compete with Spotify, Pandora and others. Little information was shared about Apple’s ad plans on the platform, but it could mimic Spotify’s ad delivery to non-subscribers. “Apple is arriving late to the music streaming business,” Forrester analyst James McQuivey told The Verge. “But the writing is on the wall: digital downloads don’t make sense for consumers that are connected wherever they go.”

Netflix’s Ad Barrier

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Hold My Holdco; When Growth Goes Down

Netflix competitors such as Hulu and Amazon Prime have always featured lucrative ad revenue streams. Netflix didn’t integrate advertising early on, and CheatSheet reporter Nick Cannata-Bowman writes that may have been a mistake. “[Netflix] is stuck with their current offering; change now and they risk alienating an entire customer base that’s become accustomed to streaming free of ads,” he writes. Read more. Meanwhile, CEO Reed Hastings doesn’t seem concerned.

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