Posted by Episode #320 of Six Pixels of Separation – The Twist Image Podcast is now live and ready for you to listen to.
Banner advertising took hold in 1994. By 1998, I was deeply involved in the online advertising space. If you thought selling digital marketing through to the c-suite is hard in 2012, imagine what it was like back in 1998. It’s hard to believe that it was 14 years ago. While I was active in the digital marketing space prior to getting involved in online media, it was fascinating trying to sell those banner ads back in the day. I remember people like Bryan Eisenberg, Joseph Jaffe, Tom Hespos and Cory Treffiletti being active back then too. Cory is currently the SVP of Marketing at BlueKai and a weekly contributor to MediaPost. More recently, Cory published his first book, Internet Ad Pioneers: The Stories Of The Unsung People Behind The Birth And Growth Of The Internet Ad Industry (Volume 1). I was honored that he asked me to be a part of this business book, and it’s a great read for those of us who remember that time like it as yesterday. I was surprised that Cory hasn’t been on the podcast before, and I’m thrilled that he agreed to play along this time. Enjoy the conversation…
You can grab the latest episode of Six Pixels of Separation here (or feel free to subscribe via iTunes): Six Pixels of Separation – The Twist Image Podcast #320.
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Mitch: this was really terrific. Well done. Having been around this since the beginning (I created the first CPG site in history, for Unilever’s Ragu brand), I agree that things really *were* different at the outset. I also believe digital has not lived up to its promise for brand marketers and that we can — and must — do better. I’m not anti-digital, but I do believe digital is too important for brands not to get it right. Anyway, again: nice job on this one!
Mitch, as always fantastic conversation. A highlight of my week. Three thoughts.
1. I’m not a marketer. But I am interested in marketing because it crosses the line between technology, ideas and people. From my vantage point, you guys are sort of the philosopher kings of the tech world because you are asking questions out in the open. Don’t stop. And especially don’t stop looking for the human answer to digital questions.
2. About data. It shows behavior, what people are searching for, but not why. This requires a pretty sophisticated philosophy of human nature. I was doing my morning walk as I listened, and this is what came to mind: “Behavior shows core values and core questions. These reveal desire for both identity and change. That desire is for meaning, connection to people and a way to make a difference.” In the marketing world you need people who are good at interpreting the human side of the data.
3. Cory, I look forward to reading your book as I did Bill Moggridge’s Designing Interactions (http://www.amazon.com/Designing-Interactions-Bill-Moggridge/dp/0262134748/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1346326811&sr=1-1&keywords=designing+interactions) and Founders at Work (http://www.amazon.com/Founders-Work-Stories-Startups-Problem-Solution/dp/1430210788/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1346326750&sr=8-2&keywords=founders ). It is really important for us to retain the how of discovery as much as discovery itself. I can’t wait to get your book. It will go on the shelf (after reading it) with these two chronicles of the digital age.
Thanks very much.