What do cannabis, politics and financial services have in common?
Besides the fact that they can give you an awful headache, they’re also all regulated markets that face an array of rules and restrictions when it comes to advertising, and they need help to get it right.
Data and tech company Fyllo, which was founded in 2019, wants to make the compliance process less complex for brands. When it started, its focus was purely on cannabis advertisers.
But in 2022, Fyllo decided to expand its offering to also focus on more mainstream markets with its acquisition of Semasio’s contextual targeting tech. By 2024, Fyllo fully shifted its focus from supporting advertising in regulated markets to broader contextual targeting and sold Semasio to Samba TV.
Now, Fyllo is coming full circle. On Thursday, the company announced its relaunch as an advertising partner for regulated industries, including health care, finance, politics and, of course, cannabis.
Fyllo is also buying back its media solutions arm from Samba. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Playing by the rules
Fyllo’s business is primarily across programmatic channels, including display, CTV and digital out-of-home.
One reason why online ad compliance is so tricky is because regulated industries run on the same platforms as brands that operate in less regulated markets – but they’re subject to a larger and more stringent set of rules, which Fyllo keeps track of.
For example, alcohol ads are required to be a certain distance away from schools or rehab centers, and the Federal Election Commission mandates that political advertisements contain specific disclaimers, James Ramelli, partner at Fyllo, told AdExchanger.
Beyond complying with market regulations and state laws, Fyllo also tries to make sure that “publishers and platform owners are comfortable” with the ads running on their properties, Ramelli said, and that the ads don’t run afoul of their internal policies.
The creative standards Fyllo provides to brands are an amalgamation of regulations set by the law, the publisher and the platform.
Regulated markets, specifically ones selling age-restricted products, face unique creative restrictions. In the cannabis space, for example, there are rules against ads that could be perceived as appealing to children. Sometimes that’s easy to categorize: “If you have a little cartoon dog taking a bong rip,” said Ramelli, “that’s pretty straightforward.”
But cannabis brands also sell infused gummies – a snack that, when not infused with mood-altering substances, is often a childhood favorite. That’s where the line gets blurry.
One of Fyllo’s solutions is to emphasize “interactive creative,” Ramelli said, requiring a few extra clicks from the user, like having to expand the ad to see more information. This ensures that the engagement is more active and intentional and children don’t accidentally start begging their parents for weed gummies.
All in this together
But at least cannabis and political advertisers don’t have a Sword of Damocles hanging over their head.
Rumors have abounded for months about the Trump administration potentially cracking down and all but banning pharma advertising. While no major decisions have been made yet, Ramelli said that some clients are holding back on spend until they see how the situation plays out.
It’s unlikely that an entire advertising vertical will be fully eliminated, though, Ramelli said. Instead, pharma companies might reduce the number of platforms they’re marketing on or change the language used in their creative. “That might be another situation where it causes brands to hit pause for a little bit,” Ramelli said, and reevaluate their marketing strategy.
And, anyway, “all industries are kind of becoming regulated,” said Ramelli, following an uptick over the past several years in “incredibly strict consumer privacy rules.”
The term “regulated industries” might start to lose meaning, as more and more brands have to adhere to stricter regulations.
“It’s only going to become more complex,” Ramelli said, “regardless of the industry that you’re in.”
