Publicis Adds CRM To Agency Stack; The Google Search Retargeting Lobby; New User Data Leakage Study

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Publicis Adds CRM

“Look at you, agency model. Getting into the CRM Business, are you? Verrry interesting.” Publicis digital agency, Digitas, announced that it’s plunging into the world of customer relationship marketing with its new CRM365 agency. Digitas CEO and VivaKi exec Laura Lang said in a release, “We have seen significant demand for CRM expertise that delivers a strategic and streamlined solution to the Big Data opportunity. The CRM365 Intelligence Platform will enable our clients to drive even stronger returns from their customer marketing investments.” Read more. Agencies are moving full steam ahead into the systems integration business. Digitas will be plugging all those customer interactions on behalf of the client to provide insights and … make the client some coin.

The Search Retargeting Lobby

Data-driven advertising proponents are evidently lobbying for organic search retargeting capabilities for the advertiser within Google says ClickZ’s Zach Rodgers. He writes, “These staffers have expressed frustration that they can’t leverage Google users’ search queries to create customized ads outside the search environment. Use of such data would result in more personalized offers, better ad performance, and ultimately more revenue for Google.” Yes, leveraging that sweet, bottom-of-the-funnel search intent would be intoxicating, wouldn’t it, data-driven maven? But, privacy concerns lurk. Read more.

User Data Leakage

Jonathan Mayer of Stanford’s Center for Internet and Society has posted findings from a new study showing 84 websites (45%) out of 185 were “leaking” a username or user ID. Mayer says that this personally-identifiable information was then used outside of the website where the data originated and without a user’s consent. Read the results. The Wall Street Journal’s Julia Angwin quotes Mayer, “The web is suffused with identity. And it’s a fact of life that that identity will get sent to third parties at some point.” Read it (subscription). The WSJ also takes looks at “privacy notices” businesses such as Evidon. Read it here (subscription).

Segmenting For Publishers

Crowd Science is taking the wraps off of its sell-side platform known as CITRUS. According to Brand Channel’s Sheila Shayon, “CITRUS aggregates the data in a single closed-loop, first-party solution that leverages a publisher’s own data and converts low-value run-of-site ad inventory into premium-branded segments.” Read a bit more. CITRUS appears to have an impressive client list including Scripps Networks, the National Hockey League, Cox Media Group, InvestingChannel and Martini Media.

IBM’s CMO Strategy

Research’s Brian Terran looks at how IBM is addressing the Chief Marketing Officer through recent acquisitions such as Unica and Coremetrics. He writes, “These acquisitions are designed to meet the needs of CMOs who feel that they are unprepared for the deluge of data that flows from social media and the huge growth in the number of communications channels.” IBM wants to be the CMO’s bid data brother. Read it. Ad Age offers its take on the CMO’s big data challenge, too. Meanwhile, IBM bought a platform computing company yesterday. Read it.

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Anthropic’s Vending Machine Goes Rogue; OpenAI Won’t Take Its Medicine

Google $$$ Preview

Google is reporting earnings after the market closes on Thursday. Citi Wall Street analyst Mark Mahaney says the company’s fortunes are in a “Show me” stage and offers: “The return on GOOG’s prior investments (Mobile, Display) have been very good, but the return on GOOG’s new investments (Local, Social, Commerce, and with the Motorola deal…Mobile in a BIG way) are uncertain; 2) GOOG’s cost structure is still not convincingly under control; 3) The not inconsistent loss of senior management talent is a concern; 4) Google faces significant regulatory risk, which at some level limits strategic options; 5) At some level, we view Facebook as a material competitive issue for Google; and 6) We believe the pending Motorola deal is likely to serve as an overhang.” Google’s webcast on Thursday will be accessible here.

Xaxis Announces Video DSP

WPP Group’s Xaxis unit issued a press release announcing its audience buying solution for online video advertising – effectively, its video demand-side platform (DSP). But, Xaxis isn’t just emphasizing video targeting and extending TV buys with the new product offering. The company claims this about cross-channel buying, too: “Additionally, advertisers can seamlessly coordinate these video buys with other audience buying activity across display, social and mobile channels.” Global, cross-channel frequency capping, too, says Xaxis. Bold words – no one else is saying this in the market – as apparently Xaxis is leveraging its own tech and tech partners including WPP’s The MIG to offer this capability. Read what video ad units are offered.

Infographic Wednesday

Clearspring has put together an infographic infused by sharing data from its AddThis button embedded in publisher pages across the web. Most users click 2 minutes after content is shared. See it now.

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