Q&A with Rick Erwin, Adstra's CEO, who speaks with Eyeota about the current industry trends, reshaping Adstra, and what he sees happening in 2021.
Can you introduce yourself, your role and responsibilities?
As CEO of Adstra, my primary responsibility is to drive the strategy, growth and profitability for Adstra’s industry-leading data and identity products and services. With over two decades in the data-driven marketing industry, I also serve as a leading voice in the field of omnichannel marketing and an outspoken advocate for the value of data in the global economy, having sat on the boards of leading industry associations like the IAB and former DMA. I also have the responsibility for shaping an organization and culture that reflects the values and expectations of today’s society. My goal is to bring innovation and new forms of value to both the industry and our organization. The world of data driven marketing has been held back by practices that were established 40 years ago and is ripe for a new ideal way to do things.
Adstra Data is described as a Data Bureau, can you share more information about your business?
As a “data bureau” — a new data orchestration platform that can ingest any form of identity, individual or household, assign a persistent ID connected to attribute data and then activate against any other media or form of identity, Adstra is central and instrumental in removing the friction of data transfer and federating the use of data in all aspects of marketing.
Why have you chosen to partner with Eyeota?
In addition to a seasoned team of data industry professionals who excel at client partnerships and customer service, Eyeota’s reach into international markets is second to none.
Adstra has recently begun making international audiences available in regions such as Australia and Canada, (with India and the UK coming soon). Partnering with Eyeota to support the distribution of these audiences is a natural fit.
How are Adstra audiences relevant for advertisers?
Adstra audiences can be broadly placed into two categories, and each category has a different value proposition for brands and advertisers.
Adstra’s Consumer Essentials is made up of very familiar demographic and psychographic attributes; attributes which every brand should be using unhindered in all aspects of marketing.
Adstra’s suite of Premium attributes represents high quality datasets which are in tremendous demand.
All Adstra attributes are highly deterministic and never over modeled, helping to ensure that advertisers reach the best audiences to improve campaign performance.
How should marketers best use Adstra audiences?
The true value of our audiences lies in both the consistency across media and the validity of the ascribed profiles. For modeled universes this includes the precision in the ranking that marketers can test against. At Adstra we believe that our audiences should be tested both on their standalone merits and in conjunction with campaigns that reach across media to assess the effective lift in performance that can be achieved.
What are your data predictions for 2021?
With the election (almost) behind us and a looming second wave of the pandemic ahead of us, we see a natural trend away from politics and travel and towards health & wellness and financial services.
With Eyeota, Adstra audiences are available in the US for omnichannel campaign activation on display, mobile and social channels including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest and Snapchat. For more information about Adstra, connect with an audience specialist today at datadesk@eyeota.com.
