Why do you feel now is a good time for LinkedIn to enter the programmatic advertising space?
There a few reasons why it’s a good time for LinkedIn to enter the programmatic advertising space:
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Customer need: The demand has now increased to the point where majority of our advertisers now use programmatic as their preferred way to buy display ads. We are constantly listening to our customer needs and providing them ways to buy the way they want to buy.
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In the past programmatic real-time bidding has been a bit of the wild-west with very little control over how data is used. Programmatic technologies have since then advanced sufficiently so that we can now have control over how our data is targeted and ensure members aren’t being harmed. LinkedIn is a member-first platform so protecting our members and their experience on our site is imperative to us.
What are your biggest opportunities & challenges in digital advertising for next 1-2 years?
LinkedIn’s biggest opportunity when it comes to digital advertising is to continue to cement our leadership position in the B2B market. Our goal is to become the most effective platform for marketers to engage professionals. I feel that we are just scratching the surface when it comes to market opportunities and I am looking forward to seeing what we might be able to do.
Innovating as quickly as the market moves is the biggest challenge when it comes to digital advertising. The need to “keep up” is only becoming more crucial and companies will need to be constantly innovating to support how customers want to buy in the digital ad space.
What are some unmet needs in the display landscape?
Scaled safety, quality inventory, and viewable ads that you can trust as a marketer and even as a member on our site. LinkedIn has a lot to add here because our members have to be logged in to access our site. All of our display units are also placed above the fold which makes them far more viewable than other sites that offer programmatic inventory.
What technology or trend do you anticipate catalyzing change in LinkedIn’s advertising strategy within the next year?
Mobile continues to be an incredible force for change. It already represents more than half of LinkedIn traffic and engagement and more than 50% of our advertising revenues. It will only continue to become more critical to our ad business and LinkedIn as a whole.
–Russell Glass is Head of Products for LinkedIn Marketing Solutions
