“We cannot continue to prop up a digital supply chain … which at times is little better than a swamp in terms of its transparency,” said Keith Weed, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Unilever, today at the IAB Annual Leadership Meeting where he delivered the Keynote. Weed’s remarks come one year after Mark Pritchard, Chief Brand Officer of rival P&G called digital a “crappy media supply chain” at the same event with a plead for transparency.
Weed, much like Pritchard, is making demands with consequences. Time will tell if Unilever will follow P&G’s lead by pulling money from digital in service of the quest for Transparency.
The digital ecosystem’s being renamed a swamp is not new news to those in the industry of “digital.” Media agency boss Scott Hagedorn, CEO Hearts & Science, noted at the 4As Data Summit that 19% of all retargeted campaigns measured are found to be bot driven, and then referred to the ecosystem as “the swamp.”
“Many have said this industry is ripe for consolidation at this point because of the myriad of offerings that are being created to build value for brands. However, I believe that this industry is ripe for disruption,” Mike Seiman, CEO and Founder, Digital Remedy said in response to Weed’s comments. He adds, “Which is why we have been focused for the last 17 years on building a transparent, consistent platform for brands and agencies alike, to easily take advantage of the technology that makes a difference in the digital supply chain.
Seiman added, “We welcome the substantial growth in partnerships as the industry continues to understand the sophisticated digital market in the same manner in which Weed displayed today.”
Press worthy is the threat of lost budgets. But it can miss the larger picture of what the industry has accomplished in the last three years to solve for this swamp. As the IAB ALM unfolds this week, we are excited to hear what the industry collective is teeing in support of further de-swamp-ifying. In the meantime, Digital Remedy counts brand safety, transparency, and accountability as one of its top priorities. Check out Digital Remedy’s Compliancy Statement (here).