As we wait to see the results of the United States Presidential election, we asked visitors from the Crowd Science network of sites who didn’t vote last time to tell us why. We hope these reasons don’t stop you this time. Your vote counts! Go vote!
9TO5Mac reports that Apple will be making an advertising identifier available in iOS6. This adds to the latest in the do-not-track discussion for online advertising.
iOS 6 introduces the Advertising Identifier, a non-permanent, non-personal, device identifier, that advertising networks will use to give you more control over advertisers’ ability to use tracking methods. If you choose to limit ad tracking, advertising networks using the Advertising Identifier may no longer gather information to serve you targeted ads. In the future all advertising networks will be required to use the Advertising Identifier. However, until advertising networks transition to using the Advertising Identifier you may still receive targeted ads from other networks.
@tommychavez of @kruxdigital discusses the role of first party data in a RTB environment. An objective of publishers is to increase revenue from programatic buying while preserving strategic data control. Tom discusses a phenomenon called ‘cookie-licking’ where buyers’ can gain access to free data by getting a seat on the various exchanges and monitoring the bid flow, thus having access to the data without taking the impression. This cookie-licking is a threat to the value publishers provide and devalues their inventory. As Tom states, “publishers are long on supply, short on revenue”, similarly we believe it is through the ability to harness and utilize first party data that publishers will be able to regain some of this lost value.
URLs and placement information was a nice start, but it’s not enough. Segment data (e.g., interest, engagement, propensity to purchase, demographic) needs to be put to work to improve the effectiveness and value of programmatic inventory. It needs to happen ideally via a mechanism that keeps the data safely in the hands of its first-party owners and available to designated partners only on terms, times, and conditions of their choosing.
Tom’s discussion is a worthwhile read for any publisher looking into RTB.
Yesterday Crowd Science ran it’s Webinar on Do Not Track “Are you Ready for Do Not Track. Demystifying + Preparing for DNT“. We received overwhelming response to this webinar and many have asked for our slide on the history of DNT. As a result we thought it would be useful to make it available here. It is interesting to see the progression of browser adoption, developments in the EU, UK and rise of the default status debate triggered by Microsoft’s default-on for Internet Explorer 10. The webinar was targeted at web publishers and anyone interested in DNT and online privacy and provided an outline of exactly what DNT is, it’s history, some interesting results from our JustAsk! research, and tips for addressing DNT.
This illustration outlines a few key milestones in the development and adoption of Do Not Track interwoven with a number of privacy, legislative and technological developments along the way.
Enjoy.
Are you ready for DNT?
Join Crowd Science for a free 30 minute webinar to find the latest on Do Not Track (DNT), and how to prepare your assets from its ramifications. Register for the webinar to find out:
- What is DNT
- History of DNT
- How DNT works
- JustAsk! Research on public’s attitudes towards DNT
- Five things publishers need to know about DNT
- How to prepare for DNT
- Crowd Science and DNT
Date: Tuesday, August 28
Time: 10:30 to 11 am Pacific, 1:30 to 2 pm Eastern
Who should attend: Online Publishers, Agencies, Brands, and the Super Geeky.
Register here
The market research organization ESOMAR recently released a compliance guide to help assist researchers navigate and comply with the EU e-Privacy Directive. The Practical Guide on Cookies addresses online panels, surveys and general online research conduct. Check out the legislative document but the ESOMAR guide is a much easier read for those interested in the implications for research.
The guide does a great job in defining and outlines some of the basic cookie concepts and goes as far as including an example cookie section for a privacy policy, as well as a practical guide for a cookie audit.
http://www.esomar.org/uploads/public/knowledge-and-standards/codes-and-guidelines/ESOMAR-Practical-Guide-on-Cookies_July-2012.pdf
Just in time for Father’s day, we have put together an infographic showcasing highlights of our recent study covering Dad’s online behavior and their attitudes towards technology. Enjoy!
The technology platform from Crowd Science is a game changer for publishers and the ad targeting industryCrowd Science today announced the first results from customers on [the performance of] CITRUS, the unique first party audience segmentation and targeting platform for online publishers and content networks. The announcement was made during Internet Week at the Conversational Marketing Summit in New York City. Federated Media Publishing is hosting the event. Since launching CITRUS last October, Crowd Science has acquired an impressive list of online publishing customers including Ziff-Davis, Federated Media Publishing, Huddler, ifood.tv and IndieClick.
Results confirm that CITRUSʼ first-party segmentation and targeting capabilities change the game for publishers by allowing them to differentiate themselves to advertisers and increase monetization from more of their online audience. The power of the platform comes from its combination of psychographic research and behavioral and contextual targeting, which is then overlaid with proprietary machine learning. The resulting output creates highly accurate audience segments across every pocket of a site or network of sites. This innovation drives a level of detail and clarity for online publishers that are not available using standard analytics or targeting solutions.
Ziff-Davis works with Crowd Science to supplement its powerful BuyerBase targeting system and offer new audience segments to attract advertisers. “CITRUS segments allow us to include precise targeted line items in our RFPs that attract our advertisers and win business,” Marcella Reginault, VP of Marketing & Sales Operations at Ziff Davis said. ”We incorporate Crowd Science audience segments to hone in on specific targets within our owned and operated sites.”
Federated Media Publishing (FMP) partners with Crowd Science to understand and segment its diverse audience across more than 350 sites. Last month, FMP began selling Crowd Science audience segments within its advertising portfolio. The first segments include “digital gadget sharers,” “recipe sharers” and “Twittering moms,” with dozens more in development. “We look forward to using this intelligence to inform FMPʼs ad products and boost the way our brand partners get their messages to the right audience,” said Michael Goodman, Director of Market Research at FMP.
ifood.tv recently joined forces with Crowd Science to help leverage their first party data to better define, segment, and target the niche audience theyʼve cultivated. “For example, a BBQ food product company can now reach just the BBQ enthusiasts they are seeking on ifood.tv and not have their ads blanketed blindly across the site,” states ifood.tv founder Vikrant Mathur. “Given the specificity with which consumers are now selecting their food, it is imperative that brands target the correct audience. “The technology Crowd Science provides helps us connect brands with the right audience, at scale.”
Huddler came to Crowd Science seeking new options for its ad sales team to offer advertisers. Traditionally focused on site-by-site sponsorships, CITRUS allowed them to uncover more of the valuable niche audience segments their advertisers wanted across their entire network. “There is no doubt that Crowd Science helped enable and differentiate our proposal and allowed us to win some big brand campaigns,” says Adam Ferren, Director of Sales and Revenue Operations. “We recently received a second RFP from a new sporting goods advertiser, and it’s because of Crowd Science that we were able to add a quality account like that to our client list.”
“Until now, publishers have had challenges in truly measuring and harnessing the unique attributes of their entire audience,” says Crowd Science CEO Corey Leibow. “We are thrilled with the results our customers are seeing with CITRUS, and the positive response we are receiving in the market.”
