Photo credit to @Crowdsight_!
The whirlwind that was the Code/Media conference has reached its conclusion for 2016. As always, the conference was top-notch: great speakers, great ideas and a great setting. Here’s what we took away from Dana Point, CA:
Video: Growing Channel, Growing Uses
If you’ve been on Facebook in the past several years, chances are you’ve seen a BuzzFeed video. They’re short and quirky, often expanding upon the listicle idea that the company has already championed.
Content mavens @alexmaccallum & @daozers share their experiences at @nytimes & @BuzzFeed, respectively. #codemedia pic.twitter.com/ZUTNIzPTrz
— ace callwood (@acecallwood) February 18, 2016
At the same time, you may or may not have seen a video from the New York Times. Surprisingly, the Times is doing just as well at video as Buzzfeed. The trick is that they have different goals. BuzzFeed goes for large-scale, while the Times balances view counts with how well they’re able to tell a story. This is a great reminder that you can’t see one medium work well for one company and assume it’ll work well for you in the same way. The key is to use a medium in a way that will fit your organization and your goals.
Digital Media and Cable Square Off
The take-home from Fox ad exec Joe Marchese is that “marketing and media buying doesn’t value human attention.” His point is that too many marketers are getting sucked into the trap of surface-level metrics. The rise of digital advertising has given advertisers a false sense of success based on metrics like impressions, that can produce huge numbers that may have little correlation to the success of the ad.
“Either advertising as a market fixes itself, or there will be no ads.” Fox’s @joemarchese #codemedia
— Re/code (@Recode) February 19, 2016
Hacked? Don’t Forget the Trusty Fax Machine!
Remember Sony’s huge security breach in 2014? It cost millions of dollars for the company, and jobs for several executives. It all came back to email.
Now? Sony CEO says his fax machine is getting a lot more use. The fax is back!
Sony CEO Lynton says he seriously faxes something at least once a day in wake of hack that divulged emails. Like with real paper #codemedia
— Jason Del Rey (@DelRey) February 18, 2016
Athletes Are Making (More) Money With Social Media
Athletes make absurd amounts of money competing in their sport. But lots are making more on advertising sponsorships. But as advertising channels become more and more fractured, will the importance of these sponsorships decrease?
Another worry for media cos: @caseywasserman is raiding brands’ media budgets. $ goes to athletes who distribute vids via social. #codemedia
— Daniel Roth (@danroth) February 18, 2016
Not according to Casey Wasserman, whose companies connects these superstars to the brands who want them. Instead, the advertising is moving to channels where the athletes are already connecting with their fans, like social media. Athletes stand to make a lot more money by effectively controlling and selling their own audiences to brands.
