Matt Pasternak moved from the research world to head sales at Klipmart Corporation. Executive Editor Brad Berens talks to him about the traits of this ad technique.
In August, Klipmart Corporation, a provider of online video delivery and management solutions, hired Matt Pasternak to be senior vice president, sales. Pasternak came from the advertising development and measurement practice of InsightExpress, where he was responsible for all strategic and tactical initiatives for the AdInsights Solutions Suite, which provides industry-leading products for integrated media development and analysis in both the online and offline advertising environments.
At Klipmart, Pasternak is responsible for all aspects of driving the company's established sales successes to new levels by leveraging his established relationships with agencies and publishers, and his deep experience in driving growing initiatives to market leadership. I talked with Pasternak to learn more about how his past experience will serve him in the future, and get his thoughts on the online video business.
Brad Berens: Sales people have the job of telling the story of a product to the rest of the industry. Given your experience in other parts of the industry, particularly with the kinds of research InsightExpress does, what kind of story do you hope to tell?
Matt Pasternak: Good question. Not surprisingly, research played a part in my deciding to join Klipmart in the online interactive video space. Since Klipmart was a client and research partner of mine at InsightExpress, I had a chance to get a deep look into the company's vision for online video and was very impressed with their dedication to clients and to developing products in response to industry needs and not by whim.
The research also paints a very compelling story. Based upon research conducted by Klipmart's Research Division and other studies we have commissioned here are some highlights:
- Online video ads are up to four times more impactful than other online formats, with the majority of viewers watching over 70 percent of the content provided.
- Viewers are over five times more engaged with video content with which they can interact.
- Online video is the second most favored ad format, only modestly surpassed by sponsored links.
- But most impressively, when comparing the same ad units run on TV and online, the online ads beat TV ads in boosting brand awareness and purchase intent.
The implications, impact, importance of online interactive advertising are extremely exciting and impressive for our business.
Berens: Although online video seems to be an increasing part of the advertiser's mix, it's still only a very small part of their overall spend. What will it take for brand advertisers to mainstream online video?
Pasternak: We've seen a huge shift among all the major traditional publishers over the last several months to make online video content plays: AOL, Yahoo!, CBS, New York Times, et cetera. All these major players recognize the importance and value of being able to provide content on demand. Advertising is the natural source of revenue to support these programming offerings, and online video is the logical ad vehicle to provide this revenue stream. In-banner, Expandable, Big Picture and Full Page units can now be complemented by true, player independent in-stream solutions that provide pre-roll advertising ahead of requested content.
More and more major advertisers and their agencies are migrating to online video as they realize they can come to video specialty shops such as Klipmart to provide them a turnkey solution to their online campaigns. They can get creative, technical and research solutions from a partner who understands the unique power of online video. As we make it easier and provide compelling solutions and results, more advertisers will recognize the power of online video and adopt the medium.
Berens: What advice do you have for advertisers in terms of what kind of online video works best? Is it repurposed TV spots, or video shot only for the internet?
Pasternak: This is not a one-size-fits-all environment. There are some really great 15- and 30-second spots out there that do a fine job repurposed to run in-banner or in-stream. A rapidly growing majority of our clients are now expanding the functionality and depth of their TV spots to add the DR, 'pull' component of interactivity. The possibilities are limitless. And, yes, we are seeing a steadily increasing number of creative clients shooting footage specifically for online whether it's using green-screen techniques, designing the original commercial shoot with an eye to online, or longer form formats with unique messaging and value propositions for viewers.
Berens: How is selling online video different from selling other kinds of interactive units?
Pasternak: Online video ad units add significant layers of richness and complexity to the final product with which the consumer or audience ultimately engages. Although a standard online unit will almost always have some interactivity associated with it, the enriching elements of sound and motion plus the much more emotional connection people make with video units in general make for a much more complex sell. Online video sales requires an understanding of both the traditional reach/frequency, and emotional impact model of TV/video advertising, plus the internet's direct response, engagement and measurability components.
For example, a simple banner ad promoting the release of a new feature film, that provides the ability to click to the movie's website or buy a ticket, is a fairly simple sales process. However, take the same banner, fill it with the film's emotionally charged, fast-paced video trailer, make it expandable to a Big Picture or Full Screen unit, AND combine that with some creative interactivity like original video, SMS, merchandising or other even more imaginative elements, and a much more evolved and customized sales process applies. The more creative our advertiser and agency partners become, the more exciting and challenging the sales process for online becomes.
Berens: Do you know anything about the demographics of who watches online video? It seems a youth-oriented unit, but I could be wrong.
Pasternak: Great question. Although we have not run these analyses to specifically analyze if any one particular age group has a tendency to watch more of the video, I can say that we run on average on about 180 sites catering to an age demographic across the board, with tremendous effectiveness. As the body of Klipmart research grows, segmenting and analyzing campaigns and categories in much deeper detail is in the wings. Don't click that mouse... !
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