Bonnier News' Head of Programmatic Lena Tehrani on the State of Programmatic
“I think our market is reaching a saturation point. This means that all small features and points of differentiation become potential opportunities.”
Lena Tehrani is Head of Programmatic at Bonnier News. We caught up with Lena to discuss the state of advertising in the Nordics, Google Chrome’s upcoming changes around 3rd party cookies and increasing demand around programmatic guaranteed:
Can you please give us a quick introduction to your company, and role, for those who don’t already know you?
Of course! I am head of programmatic at Bonnier News and have been with the company for six years. We are one of the biggest media houses in the Nordics with a huge product portfolio, ranging from news sites to gardening magazines. We are also very big in online news video and instream.
Where do you want your organisation to be in terms of display and video in a year from now?
Honestly, pretty much exactly where we are now. If you had asked me that two years ago, I would have said "at the forefront of the programmatic advertising industry" and that is where I think we stand.
Half of our digital ad revenue comes from programmatic today, which is a huge accomplishment for us. We are able to automate, create efficiency and give advertisers what they want without compromising what we stand for, which is quality content. It doesn't get better than that.
Google has announced the sunsetting of the 3rd party cookie within the next two years. Does it put publishers in a stronger or weaker position?
Publishers have one job when it comes to digital advertising - and that is making sure our clients get the best bang for every buck they put our way. We have a responsibility to give them the highest ROI we possibly can, and to make sure they are branded in a contextually safe environment. Not being able to work with cookies in the same way will not change our job, we just have to learn how to do it differently.
In one aspect, we will be in a stronger position, since our 1st party data will be more valuable to advertisers who want to reach specific segments. However, let's remember that this is something that we have been able to do for a long time and do almost every day already.
In another respect, it puts us in a weaker position - since programmatic has always been about data and data is, historically and usually, based on cookies. I think it might take some time for us as an industry to learn and understand how we are going to replace the cookie. Will it be a common identity? Other types of device IDs? During this time there is a risk we might lose momentum. But I hope that won't be the case.
When we look at programmatic guaranteed vs PMPs vs open market – what would you say are the strongest areas right now, and what kind of missing features could really make a difference in each?
We are definitely seeing a huge demand increase for programmatic guaranteed. I think it's simply because this is an easier way for advertisers to buy media compared with the traditional way. Also, advertisers get better control of what they are buying, are able to consolidate their buying and ultimately, they can get a higher ROI via guaranteed. I think it hasn't even reached close to its potential yet.
Where do you see most opportunity, and where are you most optimistic about publishing and advertising right now?
I think our market is reaching a saturation point. This means that all small features and points of differentiation become potential opportunities. As a publisher, I am very optimistic about programmatic native where I think we still have a lot to do. For advertisers, I think there is a huge opportunity in understanding PG and integrating it into their media plans.
What is your high-level view on the state of header bidding and Prebid, both now and where it might get to in future?
Prebid changed the whole media landscape for us. All of a sudden, we went from tags on site to competing on every single impression served. That was huge! Our advertisers were suddenly able to see more impressions and compete in a fair way.
Looking back at Bonnier’s journey over the last four years, I honestly don't think the programmatic results would be as great as they are now if it hadn't been for header bidding.
With those results came more possibilities. We went from a group of three to a group of ten people, working solely with programmatic. We support our sales teams, we educate, we automate, it's a wonderful place to be.
I don't think the future will look different. We will continue doing what we are doing and that's not too shabby.
What was the major decision factor that made you choose Demand Manager as your Prebid management tool?
The main factor was that we could finally have access to a tool that can give us an overview of how our platforms are performing. With header bidding came a huge increase in transactions across, the different exchanges, and we have had challenges with understanding exactly what is happening, where it is happening and when it is happening.
Now we have a tool that lets us follow every single exchange in a simple UI. That makes our lives much easier.
Also, we are not dependent on internal tech resources in order to try out new partners. We can simply manage things ourselves on site.
What is your main expectation from Demand Manager?
More revenue! Just kidding (not really).
We are excited about the in app and server-side solutions.
What sets Netric and Rubicon Project apart from other, similar firms you have worked with?
The level of service that the Netric and Rubicon-team provide is unlike any other.
We can always count on them to help us when we need it, to keep us updated on market trends and always do it with a smile.
They are also in the frontline when it comes to creativity and innovation. For example, with guaranteed solutions across several DSPs and vertical video.
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