The media industry's increasing complexity demands solutions that more fully drive results. In some cases, it is a strictly tactical solution, but in the case of IPG Mediabrands' KINESSO, it's a strategic combination of advanced technology and agency acumen. KINESSO's Global CEO, Jarrod Martin, explained that his is a "tech-driven performance agency that gives clients the clarity and confidence to make decisions to drive results." Essentially, that means that advanced tech, using AI, works seamlessly with three agency divisions, crossing human expertise with data. "That's what we're trying to achieve; a simpler organization that is a combination of media and data and technology that helps to drive results for our clients. Think of us as an intel ship," he affirmed.
According to Martin, "There's always a compromise between specialism and integration. We've created an agency that is more sustainable and future-focused to have complexity where it's needed and simplicity where it's not." KINESSO is an integration of three separate units that were operating in a coordinated but not in an integrated fashion. "We were building technology that wasn't necessarily being adopted at the scale needed to have the maximum impact. By bringing these groups together, there's less distance between the users of the technology and the people who develop the technology, between the people who have hands-on keyboards and are running programmatic search and social campaigns and the client," he added.
KINESSO, he explained, "offers a specific capability that exists within the agency's arsenal like a collection of specialists." This approach can serve clients of all types, from a scaled in-house model to an embedded contractor to a traditional approach, depending on how the client's business is structured. In this way, the agency can either build the infrastructure for a client that has their own systems and protocols in-house or embed as a contractor with certification access to function in a variety of services or performs as a traditional agency working as a team on behalf of the client. It is in the flexibility and the expansive range of service offerings that give KINESSO its competitive edge.
When implementing data solutions, privacy is paramount. "Just to be clear on this, we leverage first-party data, but Acxiom handles all of that first-party data on our behalf. Acxiom has the credentials, the processes to ensure that we don't make mistakes and do things incorrectly," Martin asserted. From there, "Acxiom might merge that with other data to turn that into audiences where we can then access." At this point, it is anonymized and can be used in a variety of ways, whether merging with other data sets or directly applying to processes like segmentations to better identify audiences." And then," he explained, "we activate those audiences in media. Acxiom and LiveRamp get involved to convert that data into something that connects to partners. So, we're really playing in a sandbox that's privacy-compliant to build those audiences to activate for our clients. We use our technologies to create better data that surrounds the client's first-party data and give them a full view of what that consumer looks like using multiple onboarding providers."
KINESSO has organized itself against four key product pillars -- audiences, planning and optimization activation, and finally, measurement. "The group or product family is used to build the audiences. Then the audience data flows into the planning and optimization module and then into the planning tool. That planning tool is able to calculate cross-channel reach and frequency based on the optimized channel mix to deliver an outcome. At that point, we go to the partner level where we figure out which partner will deliver on that channel mix, and then we activate," he stated and then admitted, "At the point of activation, things used to get a bit messy because you've got all these walled gardens that won't allow you to combine data. But we have a sense during the planning phase of what our expected outcome will be, whether reach, consideration, or some other performance outcome. Once it gets to the platforms, we optimize it within those platforms to get the best possible result." KINESSO also experiments along the way to "figure out how the results that occur within a platform reflect reality to find out what's the true impact of each platform in generating a sale."
When it comes to the use of AI and how it will impact jobs in the future, Martin is introspective. "AI can take a lot of the drudgery out of what we do so that we can focus on value, add tasks and build better relationships with clients. What has happened in the last few years with the rise of digital is that we get obsessed with the plumbing, getting the plumbing right and making sure that we don't make mistakes. That's taken the focus away from bigger and better ideas and client relationships. That's where the future is for humans inside this ecosystem with AI."
It is clear that KINESSO has created a synergistic and open approach to today's media world. "We've created a new positioning, mission, values, manifesto, visual identity, etc., etc., etc. Some people in our organization don't distinguish between the name and the brand. I would say the name is the same, but the brand is very different. Where we're looking to move is in a different direction with more simplicity, better integration, and being more agile in how we work," he concluded.
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The opinions expressed here are the author's views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillage.org/MyersBizNet.