AT&T is closing out a difficult year with a sentimental holiday campaign built around the message that “A Voice Can Change Everything.”

“In an AT&T survey, 76% of people said they have saved voicemails, videos or video messages from loved ones that are living and who have passed away for nostalgic reasons, cherishing the sound of their voice as a comforting memory,” the company wrote in a campaign announcement on its website.. “That’s why our new holiday ad focuses on the power of voice.”

According to AT&T, 89% of the saved voicemail messages were from immediate family members.

“A Voice Can Change Everything” opens from the perspective of a person lying in bed and petting their cat -- with bare, snow-capped trees outside their window. When they press play on their phone, a message from their parents begins. The scene then shifts to other people playing messages from loved ones on their phones, as the message “Sometimes, hearing a voice is the best gift” appears onscreen. In the last scene, an older voice intones “I would love to keep in touch a little more,” prompting its recipient to return the call.

The campaign debuted just ahead of Thanksgiving, Nov. 28, and will run through Jan. 8. AT&T worked with agency partners BBDO, Critical Mass, and Dieste on “A Voice Can Change Everything.” The ad  is running in its 30-second iteration on linear TV, and in 15 and 39-second versions across digital and streaming platforms, with further support across social platforms including TikTok, Meta, and Instagram.

The sentimental holiday campaign follows AT&T agreeing in September to pay a $13 million settlement to end a Federal Communications Commission investigation into its handling of a data breach last year. Issues around data security continued to plague the company this year, as well. In July, the company disclosed a data breach it claims to have learned about in April, which involved call and phone records for “nearly all” its cell customers. The company also faced a crisis in February when it experienced a nationwide outage which the FCC said blocked around 92 million voice calls -- including  some 25,000 attempts to reach 911.

 
Etsy's holiday ad campaign

Etsy is promoting Brad Minor to CMO and making other changes in the executive roster. Minor, who has been chief brand officer for the last two years, is replacing Raina Moskowitz, who is currently chief operations and marketing officer. Moskowitz is leaving to take the reins of the Knot Worldwide, where she will be CEO of the wedding-planning platform.

Etsy, based in Brooklyn, announced several shifts as well. Kruti Patel Goyal has been tapped as president and chief growth officer, a new position, from CEO of Etsy's fast-growing Depop subsidiary.

It has also hired Lanny Baker as CFO, from COO at Eventbrite, replacing the retiring Rachel Glaser. And Rachana Kumar, chief technology officer, is leaving but will remain as an advisor for several months.

Since 2022, Etsy says Minor has “led the evolution and execution of Etsy’s brand strategy, which amplifies the company’s commitment to keeping commerce human.”
That includes the brand’s first Super Bowl spot and the recent multichannel brand mission campaign.

Observers point out that while Etsy’s diverse offers make it stand out in the intensely competitive ecommerce landscape, that diversity also makes it harder to market effectively. Etsy’s “eponymous core marketplace is filled with artisanal crafts and customizable goods from predominately small, hobbyist sellers, with roughly 30% of products made to order,” writes Sean Dunlop, an analyst who follows Etsy for Morningstar, in a recent report. “While Etsy's unique inventory is a key differentiator and a point of strength, it has made marketing its fare broadly quite challenging.”

To address that, he notes that Etsy has worked on “marketing specific verticals like home decor through upper funnel marketing and website taxonomy changes; has encouraged mobile app downloads—a higher converting channel—with pop-ups targeting web users; and has rolled out a 'gift mode’ modality for surfacing gift ideas for various holidays.”

Dunlop is also optimistic about Etsy’s ongoing fine-tuning of Etsy Insider, the fledgling loyalty program, and the company’s moves to build trust with buyers and sellers. Those include increasing transparency with a Search Visibility tool and adding the Etsy Purchase Protection Program.

“Overall, we take a positive view of Etsy’s approach but note that its super-discretionary product suite leaves management with a limited assortment of levers to pull during a downturn in consumption spending,” he says. “That said, we believe that the current approach sets Etsy up extremely well to capture more than its fair share of growth when discretionary goods spending starts to recover in the fourth quarter of 2025.”

It might not surprise you that not everyone in our industry defines CTV the same way.

According to the Interactive Ad Bureau Digital Video Glossary: “Connected TV (CTV): A television set that is connected to the Internet via OTT devices, Blu-ray players, streaming box or stick, and gaming consoles, or has built-in internet capabilities (i.e., a Smart TV) and is able to access a variety of long-form and short-form web-based content.”

According to Amazon Ads: “Connected TV (CTV) refers to devices that are connected to the Internet and allow viewers to stream videos and music, and browse the web.”

According to eMarketer: “CTV advertising refers to digitally sold ads that appear on TV screens, including ads shown on smart TVs that have their own internal internet capabilities and external devices like Amazon Fire sticks, Blu-ray players, and gaming consoles. CTV ads may also appear on streaming devices and services, as well as traditional TV offshoots like YouTube TV and Hulu with Live TV. CTV does not extend to non-TV devices.”

According to The Trade Desk: “CTV refers to premium content streaming through apps on smart TVs or over-the-top (OTT) devices. Ads can be served before content or during traditional commercial breaks.”

According to Nielsen:  “Connected TV (CTV) — The method of streaming content or 'devices' that receive streamed content, which would include personal computers, tablets and mobile phones."

Does it matter that some only count TV ads in CTV, while others include any devices that streaming content is watched on? I think it does.

Conviva tells us that 23% of time spent viewing OTT content is on mobile, and its data has historically shown that about one-half of streaming video consumption in the U.S. was not on a TV, but on a PC, tablet or mobile phone.

Wow. That means if you were to compare Amazon and The Trade Desk’s CTV ad numbers for a similar campaign plan relative to the IAB and eMarketer, the impression numbers from the former would be twice as big as the numbers from companies that benchmark and set standards for ads. Nielsen, which measures ads, agrees with the sellers.

Is it a surprise that the companies with the doubled-up CTV numbers are ad sellers, and thus directly benefit from having streaming video ads on PCs, tablets and mobile devices counted as CTV ads? Don’t forget, CTV ads command a much higher price point than web video ads or mobile video ads -- and the more conservative definitions are from companies.

I’m not saying that Amazon or The Trade Desk are doing anything wrong. Maybe their definitions better fit what buyers might expect. Whether that's the case or not, I do think that our industry should get on the same page here. The gap between these definitions is enormous.

CTV ad buyers, do you know which definitions of CTV your suppliers operate under? It matters a lot.

This post was previously published in an earlier edition of Media Insider.

U.S. consumers this year spent about $3,275 on average on electronic media, including internet, TV, mobile streaming and mobile expenses, according to estimates by internet-review site Reviews.org.

The amount that consumers spent on these services fell 3% from a year earlier, defying the inflationary trends in other products and services, …

Reminder: You are seeing this premium content because you are a subscriber to MediaPost's Research Intelligencer and/or a member of the Center for Marketing & Media Research. This content cannot be viewed by non-subscribers/non-members.

Vodafone UK's new campaign celebrating

The creative, by Leo Burnett UK, highlights the importance of tech connections during the holidays.

The 40-second spot, featuring a variety of individual moments, illustrates how Vodafone kept families together during the past 40 years. It begins with a husband surprising his wife outside their house, holding one of the first mobile phones. In another, a grandmother discovers the gender of her newborn grandson.

The family-friendly campaign goes back in time to show how the U.K.'s first mobile company connected the nation, from flip phones to smartphones, text messages to video calls.

The Navy's latest recruitment campaign — "Strike Group" — is a multi-scenario, mobile mixed-readymobile mixed-reality experience that highlights the branch's technology and career options.

Developed by VML, a division of WPP, the work runs on America’s Navy YouTube channel. The creative is used by local Navy recruiters to promote upcoming Strike Group activations, noting the depths of Navy STEM careers — from nuclear engineering and aviation to special warfare and medicine. There is no paid media component.

Via virtual reality, the Strike Group provides users with a fully immersive, hands-on look into the technology and teamwork central to every Navy role.

The Strike Group comprises seven interactive challenges.

“Because Strike Group is modular, it can be presented as a nine-cube experience, or it can be broken into smaller groups, allowing Navy recruiters to annually activate at three-times more events than it currently does,” says Heidi LaRochelle, VML Group connections director, experiential. “The Strike Group can accommodate 450,000 participants a year, which is nine-times more than the Navy’s previous experiential activation.” 

Strike Group comprises seven distinctive, interactive challenges:

·All Hands

Players will test their skills on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier in a five-person virtual reality game. Participants will don a Meta Quest 3 headset and be transported out to the USS Gerald R. Ford where they will team up to launch an F-35C Lightning II jet.

·Support

The Navy conducts humanitarian missions around the globe through a variety of ship platforms and communities. Participants will navigate an interactive map of the world with a range of Navy ships and vehicles to explore the breadth and depth of these operations at strategic, geographic locations. 

·Fly

Players will experience Naval aviation. This full motion flight simulator will drop participants into the cockpit of an F-35C Lightning II, where they will launch from an aircraft carrier with their wingman on a training mission.

·Dive

Navy Underwater Construction Teams are on call if an undersea repair is needed. In this interactive virtual mission, participants will take on the role of a Navy diver, driving a boat to a location after a storm, then use their dive and welding skills to help repair a damaged pier. 

·Achieve

America’s Navy has hundreds of roles available in every field. To help participants see themselves in one of these careers, they can take a personality quiz that will pair them with a list of jobs best suited to them.

·Seek

To showcase the “Silent Service,” participants will undergo a real-life submarine mission — an Ice Exercise (ICEX) near the North Pole. Players will work together and use their skills in nuclear propulsion, sonar, and navigation to successfully break through the thick sea ice during the Arctic Ocean operation. 

·Train

Navy SEALs have a legacy of strenuous training and intense qualifications. In this experience, a Navy SEAL trainer will guide participants through a series of challenges that test their physical strength, mental fortitude and willpower.

Taboola, a global recommendation engine, has signed a new three-year deal with WeatherBug, a weather site and mobile app with over 20 million users. 

Under the agreement, WeatherBug will continue to use Taboola’s suite of tools across multiple touchpoints and its digital properties including its app (spanning iOS and Android devices) and web interface (on mobile and desktop), the firm says.  

WeatherBug will continue to provide readers with personalized, multi-format content recommendations via Taboola Feed.  

In addition, Weatherbug will soon incorporate video reel placements to drive higher user engagement while opening up new premium demand channels, Taboola says. 

“WeatherBug stands out for our commitment to delivering reliable weather information while leveraging advanced technology to create a seamless user experience, and Taboola has been an important partner in helping us stay true to this mission since 2019,” said Gundeep Hora, president and general manager at WeatherBug.

Future TV advertisers -- under the Trump Administration -- will need to have some new advertising copy when it comes to the all-important holiday shopping season.

Worried about 100% tariffs leading to high prices on products coming from China and elsewhere? Some new ad copy might be a good idea, to think ahead: “New holiday shopping deadline -- for the next four years -- coming January 20th!”

Hey, don’t worry. Just keep your 2017 car running just another 40,000 miles or so. That’s right -- no new Tesla for you!

No doubt this could warm the heart of Tesla founder Elon Musk and his goal for U.S. consumer, business, and governmental efficiency.

Well, perhaps it's not all bad. President-elect Donald Trump might just pick and choose those industries in certain countries that he favors (or is against) or where he or his friends have no vested interest. Or not.

A tariff is a tax that will be borne by consumers on imported goods, according to a wide range of economists. So the price for a mobile phone will almost assuredly rise, for example.

Think that will make you now buy a totally U.S.-manufactured mobile phone -- and not one from Apple, Samsung or Google, where devices are entirely or through parts produced overseas? Maybe -- if you can find one. And if so, tell us about that purchase -- in 2029.

Executives at retailer Best Buy now say tariffs could force the retailer to raise prices -- especially consumer electronics, which are virtually all imported. Best Buy executives say around 60% of all the products it sells comes from China.

How does that affect Best Buy? Possibly less TV marketing -- or at least more strategic marketing that goes to other media.

Other categories -- automotive, consumer mobile/broadband communications companies, and quick-service restaurants -- might also experience some issues.

If consumers drastically cut out some luxury products and services they do not need immediately due to high prices, what then?

Will brands keep advertising -- at least from an awareness level?

During recessionary times, media executives believe this type of marketing at a minimum needs to continue.

Perhaps engagement-oriented TV campaigns will tout more monthly payments -- with no interest attached.

Truly, under this administration, some new TV advertising copy might read: “Buy now. Pay later.”

PubMatic today announced an expansion of its partnership with Western Union to include commerce media.

This expanded partnership will leverage PubMatic’s sell-side platform (SSP) capabilities to improve onsite monetization while using the 173-year-old brand's extensive first-party data.

Putting it all into perspective, Western Union was founded in 1851, prior to the Civil War. Now it is using first-party data online to offset audience extensions via PubMatic's Convert, a self-service platform designed for commerce media networks to manage and monetize online advertising inventory across various formats like sponsored product listings, video, display and connected television (CTV).

Tim Rogers, vice president of commerce media at PubMatic, believes that by merging its top-tier media inventory and SSP technology with Western Union’s audience insights, the companies will create highly customized advertising opportunities to reach a diverse set of multicultural consumers online and offline through electronic media.

Chris Hammer, senior vice president of the Western Union Media Network, said the collaboration will enable brands to engage with the company’s diverse global customers in a more meaningful way. The company knowns digital is crucial to its ability to acquire and retain new customers and reflects the omnichannel experience provided to customers.

U.S. ad spend on financial media networks like Western Union Media Network is expected to more than quadruple during the next two years -- growing from $350 million in 2024 to $1.5 billion in 2026, according to Emarketer data.

Early in November, Western Union launched its media business to offer advertisers a link to diverse and unique multicultural audiences. It’s an interesting channel to advanced targeting options that gives brands this type of channel to personalize customer experiences and engagement through data and access to first-person transactional data and insights, multichannel digital engagement across websites, its mobile app, and a network of digital out-of-home (DOOH) screens.

From Western Union's earliest beginnings, the company has advanced technology to connect people -- always staying focused on bringing people closer to the places and loved ones that matter most, according to the company. As part of its ongoing commitment to serving customers’ evolving needs, it has focused on not only embracing digital services but accelerating its growth.