Programmatic, Video and TV: Eric Fischer of GoDaddy -- The Jay Sears Interview

This is the third in a series of interviews with leading buyers titled “Programmatic, Video and TV .” The conversation will continue at DPAA Video Everywhere Summit in New York City on Tuesday, November 4, 2014. For more information, please go here.

Your Name: Eric Fischer

Your Company: GoDaddy

Your Title: Director of Brand Media

SEARS: Where do you read your daily news?

FISCHER: For general news it’s talk radio on the way to work, major news portals (Yahoo, MSN) and a few specialty sites (Seeking Alpha, Motley Fool, Deadspin) when I get into work. I tend to watch news/commentary programming (Fox News, MSNBC, Al Jazeera) when I have a moment after I’m home.

SEARS: Where do you interact with digital place based media?

FISCHER: Digital billboards on the way to/from work are the largest single source of DOOH consumption for me. Also at the gym on the weekends.

SEARS: Today on average in the United States -- out of each $1.00 spent on media (all media, not just digital) by one of your advertisers -- how much today is spent on automated or programmatic channels?

FISCHER: We’re spending $0.15 - $0.20 of every dollar in programmatic channels, whether that’s display, search, retargeting or testing advancements in linear TV targeting.

SEARS: What will this number be in 2016?

FISCHER: Probably closer to $0.30 of every dollar.

SEARS: When moving towards automation of planning and buying, what makes video -- in all its various formats -- distinct and different from display, audio and other formats?

FISCHER: Video will always be the centerpiece of consumer consumption, and as such, a focal point of marketers’ plans. The ability to merge sound and sight still makes the medium unsurpassed. At this point video consumption is engrained in most of our conscious lives, and we can’t imagine it not being at the center.

SEARS: Pick a single word to describe each of the following types of video:

Type of Video – Fischer’s Word

Television -- Behemoth
Pre-roll, Desktop -- Lengthy
Digital Placed Based Media -- Disruptive
Digital Out of Home -- Impactful
Pre-roll, Mobile -- Squinty
Full episodic player (ex. Hulu) desktop or mobile -- Captive
Addressable TV -- Complicated
Connected TV -- Intrusive
Linear TV -- Standard

SEARS: Pick one of the following baseball analogies to describe how far along we are bringing automation to each specific type of video:
1) Pre-game
2) State a specific inning 1st – 9th
3) Game over, fully automated

Type of Video -- Fischer’s Baseball Analogy

Television -- 5th inning
Pre-roll, Desktop -- 2nd inning
Digital Placed Based Media -- 3rd inning
Digital Out of Home -- 3rd inning
Pre-roll, Mobile -- 1st inning
Full episodic player -- 2nd inning
Addressable TV -- 2nd inning
Connected TV -- 1st inning
Linear TV -- 5th inning

SEARS: Related to the automation of video, what will be GoDaddy’s three biggest U.S. initiatives in 2015?

FISCHER:
1. How to best target various consumer segments.
2. How to take advantage of how different cultures around the world are consuming content through different devices.
3. How to measure cross-device.

SEARS: Can linear TV be automated, yes or no?

FISCHER: Yes, but it will need to integrate into vendor trafficking systems at some point. Most in this space have tech stacks focused on audience segmentation and not automated execution.

SEARS: Once linear TV is automated, will it be bought by TV buyers or digital buyers?

FISCHER: TV buyers, as 100% automation will not be the standard approach. Things like added value and contextuality will continue to play some type of role and that historically has been the domain of TV buyers, but they must get better educated on the digital landscape and advances that side of the equation is bringing to bear on a daily basis.

SEARS: Tell us a bit more about you.

SEARS: Money is not a concern. You no longer work in advertising or technology. What would you choose to do for work?

FISCHER: Captain the sunset catamaran cruise around Bora Bora.

SEARS: What is your favorite restaurant?

FISCHER: It w as Ben Benson’s in NYC. I was recently at Lakeside Seafood at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas and that was great.

Thanks, Eric!

Jay Sears is Senior Vice President, Marketplace Development for the Rubicon Project. Sears workswith leadership and business unit heads across the company to expand Rubicon Project’s potential market. Sears has also served as General Manager, REVV Buyer, where he was responsible for global relations with the buy side including ad holding companies, ad agencies, agency trading desks and demand side platforms headquartered in North America. Jay can be reached at jsears@rubiconproject.com.

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