Retailers and brands with very strong brands and brand positioning are doing well. And those that aren’t or are struggling to define why somebody should buy their products or goods are struggling.
Building a brand is expensive in the short run and cheap in the long run.
28% of listeners say they listen to “all of the ads” on podcasts, the highest percentage among all media channels tested.
In part because
they expect to hear ads
It’s an understood part of the ecosystem. Because they’ve been there since early on. Unlike platforms that scale user growth in order to monetize.
& some always good advice
just respect the listeners’ expectations
via podnews
Artificial Intelligence: A Definition
Walter Sinnott Armstrong with my favorite definition of Artificial Intelligence:
“It occurs whenever a machine learns something.”
Because learning involves intelligence.
Often, in AI systems, the machine is given a certain goal and it learns new and better means to achieve that goal. That’s when artificial intelligence occurs.
I like it because it’s hard to move the goal posts on (the old saw that “ai is anything computers can’t do yet” comes to mind).
& because it isn’t rooted in human-centric thinking. So much of AGI discourse is an ego trip.
This definition of intelligence can apply to any species or system.
It also leaves room for curiosity and consciousness as differentiators across species and silicon.
via Philosophy Bites
YouTube is taking its next step in the ongoing tug of war between ad tech and ad blockers.
The “server-side ad injection” approach bakes ads into the core video file itself, making them indistinguishable from content for client software and extensions that try to filter out advertising.
Feels like a page out of podcasting’s playbook, but I could be misunderstanding the tech.
Now we can all be Mr. Beast
YouTube is finally rolling out the ability for creators to test and compare how multiple video thumbnails perform
With the new tool, which YouTube calls “Thumbnail Test & Compare,” creators can test up to three thumbnails for a video.
via The Verge
On Brand: Authenticity & Personality
Blake Droesch on the type of brand that won’t be disrupted by AI And other technologies (~25:21):
The authentic brand is the one that is going to stand out. That was true yesterday, it’s true today, and it will be true in the years to come.
& Bill Fisher (~25:40):
Every brand’s going to have a core audience. And you need to speak to that audience in a relatable way. That’s what your brand personality is—or should be.
& Carina Perkins (~26:40):
Brands can’t really get away with false personalities anymore. Is that personality really reflecting their business and values? And everything they do, rather than just what they say?
Plus some solid branding advice from Dropout (formerly CollegeHumor):
It’s like I always say, if you’re going to use two brand names, just use one.
Costco has entered the chat.
Costco is building out an ad network built on its trove of loyalty membership data, using its 74.5 million household members’ shopping habits and past purchases to power targeted advertising on and off its website.
The slogan of the cookiepocalypse: let a million ad platforms bloom.
via Marketing Brew