Data-Driven Thinking Archives

Is The IAB’s Trusted Server A Real Solution For Publisher Revenue Control?

Earlier this year, at a Signal Shift event in NYC, the IAB Tech Lab officially announced a new open-source initiative designed to shift more digital advertising operations server-side, “providing publishers on the open web with privacy-first control over their monetization that is independent of browser APIs and signal loss.” The unveiling of Trusted Server, an […]

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Data-Driven Thinking

Programmatic Reboot: Rebuilding Digital Advertising From The Ground Up

Ask a marketer where their last ad ran and why, and they’ll probably shrug or send a spreadsheet that answers nothing. Programmatic promised clarity: automation, efficiency and measurable outcomes. What we got instead is complexity dressed up as optimization: a stack of acronyms performing trust theater. DSPs, SSPs, exchanges, verifiers and data vendors now pile […]

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Data-Driven Thinking

Marketing To Machines: A New Performance Strategy In The Age Of AI Agents

The traditional marketing funnel is quickly being rewritten – not by a consumer trend but by a shift in how machines process and recommend information. As AI agents like OpenAI’s Operator, Google’s Gemini and Amazon’s Rufus begin to mediate everything from search to purchase, marketers are being forced to confront the reality that they must […]

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Data-Driven Thinking

Four Data Readiness Tips For Retail And Commerce Media

Retail media networks (RMNs) have grown rapidly, with spending representing a fifth of global advertising in 2024. Now, the rise of commerce media is shifting spend and further blurring lines between advertisers and publishers. With over 100 RMNs in the US alone, commerce media is expanding across verticals like travel, finance and health care. This […]

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Data-Driven Thinking

Google Is Keeping Cookies, So Advertisers Will Keep Buying Junk Data In Bulk

The rise of digital media offered the promise of paying for advertising based on definable, measurable impressions. Finally, decades of basing TV and radio advertising on limited survey models were coming to an end. While surveys left advertisers with no insight into who was actually seeing their ads, the new digital advertising environment allowed advertisers […]

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Data-Driven Thinking

After Xandr: Why The Open Internet’s Future Hinges On Integration, Not Fragmentation

Microsoft’s decision to shutter its Xandr DSP, formerly AppNexus, a pioneer in programmatic advertising, is reverberating throughout the ad tech industry. As Microsoft itself puts it: “Our commitment to more private and personalized advertising experiences for a conversational and agentic world is not achievable with the industry’s current DSP model and, therefore, it no longer […]

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Data-Driven Thinking

What Political Campaigns Can Teach Brands After Google’s Latest Cookie Reversal

The last thing most marketers want to think about right now is politics. However, in today’s media environment, where attention is fragmented and trust is fragile, they can learn a great deal from how political advertisers operate. Political campaigns have mastered persuasion, precision and performance under pressure. They have to move people who are skeptical, […]

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Data-Driven Thinking

Rethinking Brand Safety In The Age Of Compulsive Media Experiences

The reason why TikTok will likely never face a full ban is also the strongest argument for why it should: It’s simply too effective at capturing attention. Beyond issues of geopolitical surveillance and data privacy lies a deeper, less-discussed concern: the quality of the attention platforms like TikTok capture and the methods used to capture […]

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Data-Driven Thinking

Seeing Through The Smoke And Mirrors: Transparency In The AI Age

Transparency has become the currency of credibility in advertising. Larger holding companies and black box AI platforms must recognize that their opaque practices are no longer sustainable.

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Data-Driven Thinking

AI Is Everywhere, But Where Is It Really Adding Value?

Angelina Eng will be speaking at Programmatic IO in Las Vegas from May 19-21. Click here to register. AI has taken over the ad and media industry conversation. It’s in the room, the road map, the pitch, the QBR. If your company hasn’t mentioned AI in the last 48 hours, check for a pulse. But […]

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