Why ‘open’ partnership matters in the marketing business
Henry Tajer
The industry has been in a fast-paced evolution for the last decade, and this itself has created innovations – Henry Tajer, Global CEO, IPG Mediabrands observed this as a panel of global leaders put the spotlight on innovations at the ongoing dmexco forum in Cologne. From trust in partnerships to working with an open architecture, the experts shared experiences that are spelling success for many stakeholders in the business.
Troy Ruhanen
“Everyone needs some force to go up against. When the client forces to progress, and pushes for it, being more innovative realises new dreams and aspirations. In our business, there is nothing new about partnerships and we need to work closely with them. I would say the biggest thing we can do is create trust,” stated Troy Ruhanen, CEO & President, TBWA Worldwide while advocating an open architecture approach.
Babs Rangaiah, Vice President Global Media Innovation & Ventures, Unilever voiced the Unilever way of working here that was being on a constant lookout for the next big partnerships, basing that on what the next big trends of the industry were.
Data points the way
While the panel agreed that players in the business were becoming more open, at the heart of the conversation was the role of technology and the impact of data and digital. Paul Caine, CRO, Bloomberg Media pointed out the leverage that data gives while creating solutions for marketers.
Paul Caine
Mr Ruhanen made a significant point about the evolution of TBWA\ into what he termed to be a knowledge company. “The industry needs a combination of creative touch with technology. That is what shifted our focus. The knowledge we need today has to be instant in the way it can be interpreted and whether it can be used tactically. You need knowledge for the creative swagger,” he explained.
“Data gives a good sense of what is a good story and what is not. We are pushing for unity and motivation so we can use every aspect of what we are doing for the benefit of the clients,” added Mr Tajer.
The flip side of the ‘data world’ is seen in the lack in measurement.
Babs Rangaiah
Mr Rangaiah observed that if anything at all, metrics are only getting worst. Mr Caine’s suggestion to the situation was to create a portfolio of metrics that a marketer is trying to achieve and understand that for a few things measurement was absolutely important, the idea should not to be to try and measure everything.
Focus on messaging
Some advice from the panel to marketers and other industry stakeholders was to go back to focussing on the messaging. “Some bridges should be burnt. We should begin with burning the absolute focus on dashboards and instead focus on the story,” said Mr Caine. Mr Tajer advised to move away from static marketing and being a lot more open to fluid relationships based planning and thinking. “People watching TV today are doing a lot more things other than watching TV. They are multitasking and the changes we are yet to prepare for are already happening. We have to burn the idea of chasing every new shiny object and differentiate the revolutionary that will create dramatic shifts,” concluded Mr Rangaiah.
