“I’ve been having a lot of conversations about what you want from the NewFronts, and I’ve learned that you’re looking for premium content – but not another MCN or aggregator of talent,” said Jeff Browning, Senior Vice President of Sales, Endemol Beyond, to the agency execs in the room. “You want talent both in front and behind the camera, and Endemol Beyond is perfect for that.”

Endemol celebs such as Phan, Ann Le, Jamie Greenberg, Charis Lincoln, American Idol and Glee talent Jessica Sanchez all made appearances to promote their wares, as did digital notables Brittany Furlan and Andy Milonakis.

“I love the raw, oddball, weird comedy that exists on YouTube  I like to put it online and get instant feedback,” Milonakis told the crowd. “When you have a show on TV, and that show gets cancelled, those fans sort of disappear. If you grow an online presence, you have fans with you, no matter what.”

Endemol will premiere nets Looksy and Smasher, two original series from Pitbull, a scripted series called Neurotica and the unscripted True Internet Tales.

Vivi Zigler, President of Digital, Brand & Audience Development, Endemol Shine North America shared her company’s NewFronts plan.

The Pitch
Last year we held a cocktail party and intimate dinner; this is the first time we have done an official presentation. It showcases Endemol as a global entity and we also want to talk about the verticals the U.S. has so far.

How is your strategy different now than a year ago?
It’s about the notion of being a premium content network. We’re not going for tonnage; we are looking to create quality drama. ICON is a great example of that, and Michelle Phan’s ability to work with us to develop new voices that she’s curating is much more exciting to us than tons of curators.

What will drive success for Endemol?
Clarity is more important as this space grows. We want to demonstrate that it’s about the fans and the audience, to be authentic from both the publisher and the creator’s standpoints.

Joining Forces
We’re excited about the Endemol Shine North America and Endemol Beyond merger, because we’re all extremely focused on the content, whether that content starts on TV or online, is non-scripted or scripted. We have Pitbull doing stuff for Endemol Beyond, but why can’t he also go to TV? That’s the big promise of Endemol Shine.

The Afterparty
Guests filed back into the room overlooking the river and docked boats where they sipped on ICON sparkle cocktails and ate a lunch buffet of pot stickers, crab wontons, freshly tossed pastas, pizza, sliced steak and an array of salads. 

For Screenvision’s NewFront at the Skylight at Moynihan, guests were able to star in their own movies. We grabbed one of the cinema advertiser’s leading ladies, Katy Loria, EVP, National Advertising Sales, to tell us all about Screenvision’s plans.

The Pitch
The ante for making an impact with your target audience has never been higher in today’s cluttered and fragmented marketplace. Cinema has the ultimate environment to deliver maximum impact every week, and Screenvision continues to add even more impact this year on both targeting and content.

We’re introducing a big data and insights initiative to enhance audience targeting dubbed Project Lynx. This will integrate behavioral data yielding new insights to create a powerful ad-targeting tool. We have started working with Kantar’s Shopcom product to develop solutions using consumer purchase data about moviegoers that goes far beyond age and gender. In addition, we have an alliance with Sito Mobile, which will collect information on moviegoers through state-of-the-art geo-fencing technology.

For content, we’re unveiling a strategy called Front & Center ON, which creates a platform for upfront advertisers to showcase their own branded content within Screenvision’s preshow. Advertisers will be integrated as programming partners, with category exclusivity rights within the preshow, flexibility for placement and length, as well as opportunities for targeting, research, and reaching moviegoers outside the theater.

New Ad Categories You Want to Break
This year we hope to continue to extend the number of advertisers within entertainment/Media, technology, automotive and health & beauty. “We are the one place where advertisers think we can make a real impact,” adds CEO Travis Reid. “Q2 pacing is 30% ahead of where we were a year ago.”

How You stand out from Your Competitors
We pride ourselves on being solution-oriented, flexible and committed to delivering superior creativity.Our in-house creative team, 40 Foot Solutions, has raised the bar on what we can unlock on-screen.

What Your Clients Want
Impact- ways to ignite their consumers to take action. They want to find more of the right audience in the right environment and alleviate concerns around fragmentation and viewability. We believe cinema and our audiences are the accelerant. Agencies and advertisers have been talking to us before their TV conversations so that they know what we have to offer. That’s what we had been hoping for.

What Defines Success for You This Upfront Season:
Increased upfront commitments for sure, but we are really focused on providing high impact programs for our clients.

FOOD
Movie favorites, as well as Pizza, Nachos, Stromboli, Sliders, Meatballs, Paninis and Mac ‘n Cheese cones

SIGNATURE COCKTAILS
Drinks tied to the movie sets:Blue Galaxy (Vodka, Blue Curacao, Pineapple Juice), Green Machine (Gin, Green Pepper Juice and Lime Juice), Flame Thrower (Gin, Green Pepper Juice, Lime Juice), and Posse Punch (Whiskey, Ginger juice and Lime)

What’s in the Goody Bag?
Movie tickets, of course! Guests also received the movie clip they took part in while on set.

When watching a movie, are you all about the popcorn? Or candy?
Popcorn with M&M’s and Reese’s Pieces sprinkled in. And I don’t share.

What movie star would you like to trade places with if you could?
Jennifer Lawrence… why not? She seems to be doing well and having fun.. just like the Screenvision team!

What’s DISH serving up this Upfront season? A heaping helping of data. Adam Gaynor, Vice President of DISH Media Sales, steps up to the plate to explain.

The Pitch
In the past few years we’ve worked really hard to be apart of the upfront. But as we have matured and grown, we’ve realized that it isn’t just about selling spots and dots. It’s really more about utilizing our data. Data is becoming increasingly more necessary for clients to hit their intended targets.

We offer smarter solutions by taking the success of addressable and implementing the learnings throughout our entire wheelhouse of products to better serve our clients. We can now execute clients’ campaigns across multiple screens with the recent launch of Sling TV and other products that are coming up shortly.

What categories do you hope to break?
As we continue to evolve and use data on the front end as well as the back end,we look to do more with QSRs. For example, if we know our households frequent, say, Taco Bell or McDonalds 2-3 times a week, that’s pretty useful information for other advertisers looking to reach the same consumers.We can use that data to deliver a brand’s ad to the ideal target.

We also would love to work more closely with the movie studios. We look at the studios in the same way we look attune-in advertisers. Networks have programs. Studios have movies. Both are driving awareness to view the content in front of a screen. We can really hone in on where to target the ad and translate that into helping our studio partners sell more tickets.

How do you stand out from your competitors?
First and foremost, I work for one of the most forward thinking companies in the media landscape. The innovation that happens at DISH translates to DISH Media Sales, which in turn-lands in the laps of our clients. We stand out because we have 14million households nationwide that are DISH subscribers, not just anonymous viewers. We have the ability with our technology to deliver a message directly to a brand’s target consumer. We also stand out because we have access to 100+ networks, the ability to combine the engagement of interactive TV with the precise targeting of addressable and now we add Sling TV to our mix, giving us a true cross screen advertising solution.
 
What are clients saying?
Clients want to be apart of the future and the future is about utilizing data to be smarter and more effective in building, executing, and delivering media campaigns. It’s not just an index play. It means a luxury car company, for instance, can deliver an ad to an intended consumer, an existing consumer, a competitive consumer, or even an aspirational consumer. More importantly, it means the ad won’t be delivered to someone who might never buy the car.

They are also talking about data as they are tasked with reaching the right consumers and maximizing every single media dollar. Data helps reduce wasteful spending. We are big believers that brands need to work with networks and need to do sponsorships, integrations and be associated with big shows and sporting events. But we also believe that a part of every media mix should include the precise targeting and measurement tools that are now available in the marketplace.

Quote of the day
The clients want more for less, and I don’t blame them. As a consumer, I always want more for less.  Adam Gaynor

Plus: which network describes itself as “bold and a bit rebellious”? We’ll let you know.

Cynopsis Ad Sales: Mike Farina | VP, Sales | 203-218-6480

Copyright Cynopsis 2015