Media Malfeasance: Observations from the Front Lines - The Media Wailing Wall - Matthew Greene - MediaBizBloggers

Welcome Matt Greene our newest MediaBizBloggerHave you noticed the loud soulful lamentations emanating from the Presidents and CEOs of major media agencies lately whenever empanelled at an industry conference usually moderated by some highprofile media lord or ladyI39ve more than noticed and have been taking notes in order to synthesize what I think may be the Top 3 39global39 issues affecting and distressing this august groupRemember these are simply my observations and I will not presume to tender solutions to these issues Well maybe in my next postingamp8230Media Fragmentation Long the scourge of the media business I remember those glorious days in the 3980s when many agencies were practically paralyzedby the advent of cable TV and the intrusion of those weird programming blips called MTV ESPN Turner et al I bet many of us wish life was still that simpleNow we have 1200 broadcast and cable station options the Internet exchanges mobile digital radio and an unrelenting march towards technological innovation theoretically designed to enhance media planning and buying decision making while automating the actual executional process It39s clear to me at least that the old ways and methodologies which guided the media industry in the latter half of the 20th century can now comfortably be declared deadAd agencies don39t escape this fragmentation process either And they too are lamenting the state of media reminiscing about the 39good ol39 days39 and busily breaking up their companies into eversmaller silos Goodbye to the 39advertising agency39 as it was Hello to separate companies each focused exclusively on some aspect of what was the old agency potpourri branding traditional media with further silos for print broadcast etc digital media again with separate divisions for SEM SEO display social media etcAgencies should be making it easier for clients to deal with fragmentation by giving them one cohesive company and overall strategy to work with Now not only do clients have to deal with thousands of media options but also dozens of media companiesClients Don39t Care About UsNext on the list of ailments is the sentiment that clients are unsympathetic to the severe and escalating demands placed on agencies to uncover every new media opportunity and flavor This especially factors into the digital realm where time and energy must be spent devising test and analysis scenarios to assess productivity and impact of newer mediaWhat irks agencies apparently is that clients are unwilling to pay for the talents and time investments needed to swarm over the options In addition everyone agrees that even if clients were willing to pay for these services the talent to pursue these opportunities doesn39t existThere are so many emotional buttons inherent in this situation I don39t know how to start addressing these issues other than to say man up figure it out and get back to work After all haven39t clients always wanted more for lessWe39ve Now Had to Become a Technology CompanyEvery major media agency is building has built or is expanding upon its own mostly proprietary technology platforms to better serve the requirements of the entire traditional and digital media planning buying reporting optimizing and billing processSome sound really cool Others well sound confusing to even the most seasonedAn anecdote might work here I know a really smart seniorlevel person running marketing at a huge financial services company He has been presented with an array of agencies and respective technology solutions that have had a cumulative negative impact on the way he39s thinking about his business Which is to say he39s busy thinking about all the cool dials and reporting gizmos each solution provides sorting through the proscons of each rather than saying to each agency quotHow will this help my businessquotSeems to me that we all have front row seats to the impending big media agency technology wars and like the fastfood burger wars of the 399039s the consumer or in this case the client will likely be the winner by having a plethora of valuepriced solutions from which to choose Again this should be an opportunity for agencies to offer further value to their clientsamp8212not make their lives more difficultThere are definitely many challenges facing advertising agencies but the agencies that can view them as opportunities for innovation are the ones that will win out in the endMatthew Greene has over twentyfive years of strategic advertising and marketing experience working with bluechip companies Matt can be reached at matthewgreeneblueribbondigitalcomRead all Matthew39s MediaBizBloggers commentaries at Guest MediaBizBloggersFollow our Twitter updates MediaBizBlogger

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Media Malfeasance: Observations from the Front Lines - The Media Wailing Wall - Matthew Greene - MediaBizBloggers

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