Sure. Online advertising spending is going up, up, up. But I want to ensure that if we’re going to continue to ascend, that we excel as well.

I’ll no longer be writing for ClickZ — hey, I’m a busy guy — but I will ALWAYS be passionately blogging right here, and chances are, you’ll be hearing from me occasionally in some other publications here and there. Taking my spot at ClickZ will be someone I know and love, so stay tuned for his musings…

In the meantime, here’s an excerpt and a link to my final column on ClickZ:

This is my last column for ClickZ, and it’s been a great couple of years.

A lot has happened since my first column in June 2005. Video advertising continues to blossom, and rich media is a standard part of nearly every media plan. Online advertising spending continues its ascent, with nary a sign of letting up. Consumer habits are evolving, and social media is a daily part of their lives.

A rosy picture, isn’t it?

Not so fast.

This industry, including publishers, agencies, and marketers, is stunting its growth and limiting its potential. You wouldn’t know it by all the M&A activity surrounding these captains of industry, but, trust me, it’s a big problem. It’s like the interactive industry is an advanced second grader the school doesn’t know how to handle, so he’s placed in third grade for half the day. The student may be recognized as intelligent, but he’ll have a difficult time being socially accepted.

If we are to advance on our own merits, we must make some fundamental changes to the way we strategize, sell, buy, and provide online advertising. The following are but a few items we must address before we can be officially labeled “mature”…

Click here for the rest!

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In my latest column on ClickZ, I discuss the results of a Burst Media study, and come to my own conclusions.

No one can deny the strong revenue potential for online video. However, there are many schools of thought on how that revenue potential can be realized. Publishers and advertisers alike hope that realization happens soon.

Most consumers probably feel differently.

A new study from Burst Media says that consumers are turned off by in-stream ads, such as pre-roll. While advertisers and publishers don’t want to hear this, the study raises many issues that might make you question the study’s validity, second-guess its naysayers, and even determine whether or not you should take action to address its findings.

Read the rest by clicking here.

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As 2008 approaches, my latest column over at ClickZ, explores what you might want to be looking for out of online video in the next year.

Here’s an excerpt:

The year 2007 was a watershed year for online video. The market matured a bit more, and clear leaders in the space emerged. We got a new ad format, the video overlay, and media buyers and creatives became just a little savvier with how they utilize online video.

But what will 2008 bring? How will you be able to take advantage of it?

It’s possible, even likely, that next year people will have finally made sense of this medium and will fight for control over it because of its effectiveness, efficiency, and numerous advertising options.

Certain things must happen for all that to blossom, however. But here are some things to look out for and for you to make happen in 2008 that can help.

I’m such a tease. Read the rest by clicking here.

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Check out my latest article on ClickZ: Are Social Networks the New Networks?

Here’s a brief excerpt:

I vividly remember the first time I saw the boys from “South Park.” It wasn’t online. It wasn’t even on Comedy Central. It was on a VHS tape that a friend of a friend of a friend had given to me.

I also remember the first time I saw the crew now featured in the “Jackass” movies and TV series. They, too, were also on a VHS tape that eventually made it to me.

Since the VCR disappeared into irrelevancy, numerous new things have become part of our daily lives. One includes the emergence of social networking Web sites. Whether it’s MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, LinkedIn, Plaxo, or any of hundreds of others, these sites have become major forces in the battle for consumer attention spans and are changing the ways we communicate and connect.

Advertisers have taken notice, as they must. Any property that can boast over 50 million active users has to be taken seriously — and any property with a business model built on advertising revenue needs to take advertisers seriously. So both sides are rapidly trying to create and monetize ad inventory to reach those engaged consumers.

Read the rest by clicking here.

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Check out my latest ClickZ Column here.

Here’s a brief excerpt:

Lately, it seems every production company in Hollywood has launched an online content division. Talent agencies are even getting involved.

Is it any wonder? There’s something sexy about having the hottest new piece of content everyone’s talking about. Plus, online you can actually watch the comments — and views — add up in real time.

Unlike the content that winds up at your local theater, you’re not supposed to pay to see online video content. Instead, someone else is supposed to pay the content producer to make it available for free.

All these producers looking to make sexy content are forgetting one thing: advertisers don’t shell out money to be associated with just any content. They do so to be associated with the right content and to reach as many of those right people as possible.

Click here to read the rest of the column…

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The rate of innovation is blinding if you stop and look at it. The problem is, in the ad industry, we spend too much time catching up to consumer behavior rather than getting out ahead of it. In my latest column for ClickZ, I talk a bit about rates of innovation, and a couple of things you can do to really be innovative — not just say you are in a PowerPoint presentation.

Read it by clicking here.

Here’s an excerpt:

If you’re unfamiliar with Moore’s Law, get acquainted.

Moore’s Law states that the number of transistors that can be inexpensively placed on an integrated circuit increases exponentially, doubling approximately every two years.

How about Gilder’s Law?

Gilder’s Law, advanced by author George Gilder, states bandwidth grows at least three times faster than computer processing power. While computer processing power doubles approximately every two years (Moore’s Law), communications power (or at least its potential) doubles every six months.

Does your head hurt yet? If computer processing power increases at an exponential rate, and bandwidth potential increases even more exponentially, how do you ensure that your advertising sees what’s behind the technological corner before your consumers do?

Today, some large companies, mostly technology vendors, are reeling in Six Sigma practices and focusing more on innovation. While I wholeheartedly endorse measurement, optimization, tracking, and research practices for online advertising, nothing is as important in the long run as technology innovations.

Think of it this way. You didn’t know Facebook existed 18 months ago. The iPhone was just a rumor 12 months ago. Things change so fast, a 25-year-old and 16-year-old likely have dissimilar online behaviors.

So what are you going to do about that, Mr. Advertiser or Monsieur Agency? What are you doing about that right now?

Here are three rules of thumb to ensure that you’re not falling behind and not only succeeding today, but walking down the road ahead.

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