TVOT Recap | Applicaster

Applicaster was recently a guest at the TV of Tomorrow Show last week. Both our CEO and CPO spoke on panels regarding several topics, including Reaching and Engaging Audiences OTT and The Future of Content Discovery and the TV UX. Additionally, they addressed numerous challenges the media industry is currently facing and solutions to those problems.

Applicaster's CEO, Jonathan Laor, speaking at TVOT SF 2018
Source: TVOT SF 2018
 
The media landscape is changing, and brands need to overcome a new set of challenges to succeed. Download our e-guide to learn more.

Main Challenges Media Brands Face in this Current Landscape

As technology is constantly changing, it imposes unthinkable workloads on technology departments that need to manage, change, and collaborate with other departments within the organization, frequently becoming the organization's bottleneck.

Non-Productive Use of Data

Numerous organizations in the media industry do not have the “know-how” when it comes to analyzing data and therefore do not utilize the power of data in their business. Nevertheless, the proper use of information is imperative in order for media brands to survive. Because competition is so fierce, the use of data must be incorporated on a deeper level.

Data collection alone will no longer suffice. Instead this information must be structured and analyzed in order to provide actionable insights. Only then can media brands drive personalization, which creates a more valuable experience for both the brand and the customer. For example when customers create user profiles, this data gives the brand valuable information about what content to develop, how different customers use the platform and which targeted ads to offer. Data also serves as feedback which in turn enables the media brand to constantly adapt the content and platform as needed for optimal performance. When data creates a personalized and insightful experience, audiences keep coming back for more and media companies can enjoy increased revenues.

During the show, CEO of Applicaster, Jonathan Laor, described the concept of “currency as convenience”, which essentially states that consumers are willing to pay for a catered experience. Creating a more personalized approach through insights from data can lead to higher profits.

Brand Displacement

It’s very difficult to build and retain an audience in the current media landscape as the competition is strong. Establishing a successful marketing strategy in-house can prove to be less efficient than using a third party distribution platform.

Despite the potential gains of immediate reach and revenues through outsourcing, the owner of the distribution channel has all the power when it comes to promoting and sharing your content. Without having a direct-to-consumer strategy, your brand and content are losing their identity. In the long run, they will not be recognized by viewers who would rather settle for what the owner of the distribution channel "serves" or "recommends" to them (which they do based on the data they collect from your content).

For example, many commercials are played on voice recognition home assistant systems and are controlled by Amazon, Google, or Apple. The greatest way to ensure you are generating a larger audience, and in turn, creating premium audience habits, is to create a media app that will connect your audience directly with your brand.

Outdated Structure

Devra Prywes, the Chief Product Officer at Applicaster, stated that a main challenge facing media brands is politics. Because media companies are driven by the fear of change, they accept the politics and turf wars at TV networks.

Having an outdated structure makes it hard to evolve and compete. For example, traditional broadcasters would have difficulty implementing personalization into their business strategy as they must abide by the rules of networks. Nevertheless, personalization is essential as it permits the ability to offer interest-driven content to your audience. In our current landscape, lacking tailored content can result in significant opportunity loss.

Building a media app using Applicaster’s platform could provide broadcasters the avenue to freely share their content in a personalized and consumer-centric way, as it would be equipped with an audience relationship management platform and data analytics.

The Solution

So what do media brands need to solve these problems?  Interoperable cross-platforms media apps .

direct-to-consumer media strategy guide

Building app's across platforms in a way that is interoperable provide you with a central location for collecting and analyzing data. It permits for a higher chance of discovery and caters to today’s viewers, as the majority of content viewed in our current society is through connected apps. Additionally, the concern of brand displacement is removed as you can establish a center for promoting your own content.

While you might have given up on creating an app in the past, your direct-to-consumer app is an integral part of your holistic multi-platform media strategy. Therefore, it’s important to not only build an app but invest in a platform that stems from the following components:  

Interoperable Intelligence

To be able to create something greater than the sum of its parts is the backbone of interoperable intelligence. Applicaster’s platform allows each team in your business to focus on what they do best.

Without having to flow all information through your CTO, your designers can focus on designing, your marketers can control the customer experience, and your IT department can pick the partners and determine the code IP.

Interoperable intelligence gives teams the ability to work both efficiently and effectively, and in our current world, that can become an extremely valuable competitive advantage.

Take on a Holistic Approach

Applicaster offers product features and APIs to TV networks, publishers, podcasters, and social standouts. The platform is equipped with a pluggable infrastructure, giving app creators the flexibility to add or change partners, access to monetization tools, and more.

Because of its uniqueness, the Applicaster’s platform provides transparency between you and your audience, allowing you to take a more holistic approach when it comes to content. By establishing a holistic relationship with your clients, you learn what they view, when they view, how they view, and where they view.

It’s no surprise that the complexity of personalization is a weakness for many media brands. But with a holistic approach, it becomes tremendously easier to personalize your customer’s experiences.

Unify siloes

While it’s important to offer your content on a variety of channels, you must remember that users will access your content the way they want to access it. You should not be afraid of losing viewers from one channel to your app as that decision is based on preference.  Therefore, it’s important to be where your audience wants to be.

In order to prevent silos from getting in the way of delivering your content, promote all your channels and platforms in a way that best creates a holistic and positive experience. This is especially true when developing OTT content, and why we suggest to think about your mobile and big screen TV strategies holistically and not separately.

Connect all the technology blocks

Applicaster’s cloud-based design establishes a framework of collaboration for your company. Having a centralized management system can simplify the logistics of managing an app. This is essential, as having full managerial control over your application grants you the ability to make feature and UI updates instantly and easily.

There are numerous forms of media available today, which is why an application must be  multi-platform. It also must be able to reach the market quickly.

Conclusion

Whether your media company is large or small, the avenues in which you share your content are regarded as your products. Your products are what motor your business. So, when you have an extraordinary cross-platform app and a team that interoperates, you create an adaptable, cost-effective platform that powers your brand and turns your audience into followers who can become your revenue drivers.

See what Applicaster can do for you.

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