Categories
TAB in Review - Hot and Helpful!
August 17, 2010 | 4:26pm
It’s always a pleasure to visit Austin for the Texas Association of Broadcasters (TAB) annual convention. August in Austin is always the same – hot! (I don’t know how those Longhorn football players handle it, but that’s a topic for another day.) I have attended the TAB show for a number of years now and I’m always impressed that no matter the format - TV, radio, digital concerns – the TAB handles it all, offering what’s billed as the largest state convention in the country.
Under the Lights at Bloomberg TV
July 27, 2010 | 3:58pm
By now whether it was through our website, the Washington Post, YouTube or even live, many of you have watched my interview that was on Bloomberg TV. It was an interesting experience to be a guest on the In Business program. I’ll get more into that in a second. The main reason we were on the program was to talk to about our latest survey (www.gotostrata.com/news). Since we started doing these surveys at the end of 2008, we have noticed some interesting trends. Digital advertising has taken a big leap forward, TV remains tops, and agencies have gone from shedding employees to returning to a hiring process. We use this valuable information in many different ways. One, it helps us get a gauge of what our clients are going through – their struggles and successes. Two…
Social Media is Changing Advertising
June 30, 2010 | 3:42pm
Many media buyers that we hear from say that their clients are more and more interested in putting dollars into social media advertising. According to a recent Nielsen report, the world now spends over 110 billion minutes on social networks and blog sites. It also pointed out that consumers spent more than five and a half hours on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter in December 2009. That is an increase of 82% from the same time a year earlier.
Great Job STRATA Runners/Walkers
June 04, 2010 | 4:36pm
STRATA proudly sponsored a team of runners/walkers for the recent J.P. Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge. The JPMCC is a huge run in Chicago that saw nearly 20,000 people run and walk 3.5 miles near the shores of Lake Michigan not far from our offices at STRATA. The theme this year was “Working Together for a Greener Tomorrow”.
Social Media: Is it Measurable?
May 20, 2010 | 10:26am
I attended The Cable Show recently in Los Angeles. Among the many great points discussed at the conference were Social Media and its impact on advertising. We use various forms of social media here at STRATA in our marketing efforts, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn just to name a few. We aren’t alone either, hundreds of thousands of businesses use social media to connect to their clients, customers and prospects.
Olympics or No Olympics… a Ratings Tale
March 26, 2010 | 11:33am
The much-anticipated Nielsen February ratings started rolling out this week. For the majority of Nielsen clients that’s one of the four report cards most stations look forward to getting. I say most stations because this release presents a quadrennial set of challenges for TV stations and their buyers. The Vancouver Olympics may be just a memory now, but they’ve left quite a legacy in the short-term for broadcasters. The February 2010 survey period was influenced by impressive Olympic numbers for most NBC affiliates, which in turn made this rating period anything but normal. For familiar primetime “hits”, well, some of them took a big hit running against the Olympics! So what’s a station to do?
Political Advertising Affects Everyone
March 12, 2010 | 12:10pm
If you have one shot at keeping your job what do you do? For many politicians, they launch a television campaign. Television commercials are still the avenue of choice for politicians and this is a huge election year for senate, house and gubernatorial races. You couple that with the recent Supreme Court decision to open campaign finance limits, and the floodgates are wide open for political advertising and lobbying groups like healthcare, energy providers and many more.
35,000 feet up – and worlds away from good customer service
February 24, 2010 | 3:48pm
Good customer service is essential. When it isn’t a priority, you notice and it can negatively influence the way you feel about a company. I was a victim of bad customer service recently. Imagine this – you are 35,000 feet in the sky, belted to your seat and the service you received makes you want to grab a parachute and jump. Ok, it wasn’t quite that bad, but it did leave a negative impression on me. I was on an airline (that shall remain nameless) flying back from New York. I travel quite a bit, so I redeemed some frequent flyer miles for a first class seat. What I received there was less than first class and even less than my luggage in the hull…
Predictions… Results… Changing Landscape
January 26, 2010 | 3:02pm
Electronic channels have definitely changed the advertising industry and are shaping the future of this space. According to a recent article by Jennifer Seidel of the 4A’s, “Advertising has undergone dramatic changes…Digital technologies have transformed the way we do business.” Here at STRATA we see that change every day. We had over 2.6 million electronic orders and invoices flowing through our systems in 2009. We expect that number to climb higher this year.
2009 Ended with a Rush to Advertise
January 05, 2010 | 5:46pm
Quality is quality. And when it comes to advertising everyone showed up in the 4th quarter buying quality media. Most media sellers reported surprisingly strong fourth quarter business. Surprising - because there were virtually no pre-sales.
Advertisers waited until the last minute, risking a sell out. And most of them were able to get their ads placed, this year.
Advertising Feast or Famine this Holiday Season?
December 04, 2009 | 10:37am
HDTV’s are cheap! There are also plenty of jewelry specials to be had. If you watched any television, listened to the radio or read any newspapers so far this holiday season, you have been inundated with advertisements. If you have ventured out shopping, you can tell that the advertising is working because the stores are packed. In a study by BDO Seidman, LLP, 19% of retailers have increased their advertising budgets…
Media Buying Agencies Hiring Soon?
November 16, 2009 | 10:45am
One thing we noticed in our third quarter survey of media buying agencies was that while the economy shows signs of improving, hiring by media buying agencies remains stagnant. Of those polled, 82.5% said they plan on keeping their staffing the same for the rest of the year. One interesting thing was that for the first time in a year, less than 10% in our survey said they will add staff. That is a 56% decrease from a year ago. With fewer employees, many agencies are purchasing advertising that is easier to produce and purchase. That’s one of many explanations to the strength of Radio and Internet advertising in our latest poll.
Are We at a "V" or a "W", and Where Does Advertising Fit?
November 02, 2009 | 6:14pm
We are at a point in the recession where everyone is wondering: Are things better? In the economic cycle, are we going to have a “V” recovery or are we partway through a “W”? There are different parts of a recession – we just need to figure out which part we are in right now.
Easy to Use and Packed with Info
October 20, 2009 | 7:01am
Our new website can help you get the information you need along with details on products and services that can serve you and your company best. Whether you need to learn about upgrades to our products, new product offerings, trends in the industry or find out our latest FAQ’s - the new website is the place for you. Think of it as your one-stop-shop for all things media buying and selling.
The New STRATA Logo
October 16, 2009 | 7:55pm
25 years have passed since STRATA started as a small software company. Now, we are in virtually every corner of the media buying and selling business with over 12,000 users. We have definitely evolved and we knew we needed a new brandmark that describes what we are today and into the future.
25 years of experience and poised for many more…..
October 08, 2009 | 7:44pm
The STRATA Blog is where you will find the latest news at STRATA and the industry – from product and service updates to marketplace trends. The STRATA Blog will provide insight into the media buying and selling industry from not only me, but also our experienced team of executives including Joy Baer, David Prager, Paul Levy and many more.
What is going on in the media buying/selling industries?
July 23, 2009 | 9:35pm
What is going on in the media buying/selling industries? What is the future of Advanced Advertising? How has television advertising changed and what will it look like tomorrow? How has STRATA pushed e-Business forward in our industry and what does that mean for you and your company?
STRATA President/CEO John R. Shelton has his opinions. Click on STRATA’s Blog regularly to find out the answers to these and other items in the news today!
