On Wednesday Val Morgan held their 2020 Upfronts the company unveiled four new announcements for 2020:
• New programmatic out-of-home advertising (with the largest inventory of digital outdoor in Australia)
• The release of the most advance Cinema Audience Data platform – CineTAM Live
• A new group positioning – Australia’s Attention Destinations
• The launch of a publishing platform – The Latch
Below is a more in-depth look at these announcements:
VMO launches 12,000 screen programmatic platform
Val Morgan Outdoor (VMO) has announced it will formally introduce programmatic out-of-home advertising to Australia in early 2020. The launch will be underpinned by the largest inventory of digital outdoor in Australia.
“VMO is 100% digital with over 12,000 screens across Australia, making the business uniquely placed to pivot to a programmatic marketplace,” Paul Butler, Managing Director of VMO, said.
“Following 6 months of in-market beta-testing with selected clients, VMO has developed a robust platform designed specifically for programmatic trading, at scale, across all our outdoor assets.
“The market is at a tipping point and we expect programmatic trading to account for 5% of VMO revenue within 12 months and to grow rapidly from there.”
Additionally, VMO is working with independent verification partners to ensure every client campaign is 100% delivered. VMO believes this further strengthens its position as the most trusted and transparent out-of-home network in Australia.
“We will have a dedicated team in place to push the boundaries on programmatic campaign solutions in early 2020.
“Whilst the ability to better plan, buy and measure is a significant step forward for our industry, what is more exciting is the opportunity it opens for brands to deliver fresh, innovative creative campaigns.
“Digital out-of-home will become a genuinely dynamic creative opportunity. Take, for example, weather conditions, interest rate announcements or sports results that could trigger relevant brand messages or offers to specific audiences in targeted geographies, all in real time. This represents a quantum leap forward for the outdoor industry,” Mr Butler said.
More blockbusters to draw cinema audiences in 2020
• Blockbuster content will continue to grow audiences in 2020.
• New research proves Cinema is the most memorable AV format.
• Launch of the most advanced Cinema Audience Data platform – CineTAM Live.
• Move to transparent campaign delivery verification via Seedooh’s independent platform.
New releases of Fast & Furious 9, Top Gun: Maverick, Trolls World Tour, Wonder Woman 1984 and Minions: The Rise of Gru are just some of the blockbuster films set to attract more audiences to cinemas in 2020.
Val Morgan Managing Director, Guy Burbidge, said with cinemas delivering greater recall and resonance for audiences than any other AV channel, now is a better time than ever for marketers to invest in cinema advertising to build their brands.
“Cinema is known for attracting highly receptive and attentive audiences and recent findings from data and insights consultancy, Kantar, backs this up. In data aggregated from over 100 campaigns, cinema delivered greater top of mind awareness, or saliency, per dollar invested, than all 3 lead AV mediums; 2.6 times more than TV, 2.2 times more than video and 1.6 times more than social,” Mr Burbidge said.
“In 2019 we’ve seen significant box office audience growth, in particular the notoriously hard-to-reach under 30 demographic has grown at an impressive 10% YOY.
“With an incredible slate of content coming to the big screen in 2020, cinema is set to once again appeal to a wide range of demos. With Val Morgan’s audience-led solutions, brands will be well positioned to connect with the right audience, at the right time, whilst leveraging the greatest and most highly anticipated content in the world.”
In a further move into data, Val Morgan announced the expansion of its CineTAM audience measurement platform. When CineTAM launched in 2013, it broke new global ground and is still to this day, the most advanced cinema advertising measurement platform in the world.
Next year it will evolve into CineTAM Live, which will combine exhibitor ticket sales and de-personalised transactional data from a leading cinema loyalty programme, with insights from Roy Morgan’s Single Source database, to further enhance the platform.
“The update to CineTAM Live will provide our agency partners with easily accessible cinema audience data, including detailed demographic, product, attitudinal, helix and segmentation data in near real time. The benefits for campaign planning and optimisation will be significant.
“We will also be aligning ourselves closer to TV around audience delivery and TARP equivalents to enable easier cross-media comparisons and analysis, something brand owners have been crying out for,” Mr Burbidge said.
CineTAM Live will be made available for agency partners in 2020 through a variety of formats including a dashboard, an API feed, or a standalone Asteroid dataset.
Val Morgan will also make a move toward transparent campaign delivery reporting and third-party verification via Seedooh’s independent platform, from Q1 2020.
Val Morgan reveals new group positioning: Australia’s Attention Destinations
Val Morgan has launched its new positioning – Australia’s Attention Destinations.
“For 125 years, Val Morgan has delivered advertising messages, content and experiences into destinations where consumers actively choose to spend their time. Whether it be a cinematic experience, being entertained as they burn a few calories, while they shop and refuel, or binge on the latest fan inspired news, the Val Morgan network is uniquely placed to make advertising more engaging and more impactful – giving brands the attention, they deserve,” Paul MacGregor, Director of Strategy and Marketing of Val Morgan Group, said.
“With a network of over 2,000 cinema screens across metro and regional areas, Val Morgan offers advertisers unrivalled access to audiences who are primed to pay attention, with cinema proven to deliver greater top of mind awareness than all 3 lead AV mediums. Our new brand positioning is testament to Val Morgan’s ability to deliver campaigns that deliver strong memorability and drive brand growth,” Guy Burbidge, Managing Director of Val Morgan Cinema, said.
“The VMO network spans 12,000 screens across major shopping centres, health clubs and petro-convenience locations and is capable of reaching over half of the Australian population every week. The VMO network is 100% digital and is designed to maximise audience attention and minimise wastage for brands,” Paul Butler, Managing Director of Val Morgan Outdoor, said.
“I’m very excited to announce that Val Morgan will be launching a digital publishing network, ‘The Latch’, for older millennials, with a focus on entertainment, wellness and lifestyle content that’s gender-neutral, smart, expansive and informative. The Latch will give audiences an in-depth understanding of the topics they care about and will connect advertisers to high value audiences across the entire Val Morgan network,” Brian Florido, Managing Director of Val Morgan Digital, said.
Val Morgan launches publishing platform
• The Latch will be aimed at affluent over-thirties.
• Amanda Bardas will lead a team of writers and editors creating thought-provoking entertainment, lifestyle and wellness content for older millennials.
• Editorial and commercial content will be amplified across Val Morgan’s cinema and outdoor networks.
Val Morgan has announced that it will launch a new digital publishing platform, The Latch, in early 2020.
The Latch is set to provide entertainment, wellness and lifestyle content with a focus on audiences aged over 30.
“I’m very excited to announce Val Morgan will be launching The Latch next year. Val Morgan identified a gap for audiences over 30 and The Latch will allow us to speak directly to this increasingly important demographic,” Managing Director of Val Morgan Digital, Brian Florido, said.
Curating entertainment, lifestyle and wellness content, The Latch will give audiences an in-depth understanding of the topics they care about and will connect advertisers to high value audiences across the entire Val Morgan network.
“Whilst The Latch is primarily a digital publishing platform, our editorial and commercial partner content will be shared across Val Morgan’s cinema and outdoor networks, connecting brands to high value audiences where they watch, shop, train and refuel,” Mr Florido said.
Recently appointed Executive Editor of Val Morgan Digital, Amanda Bardas, will lead the team of writers and editors for The Latch, who will aim to build a following through witty, colourful and engaging content.
“The Latch will deliver thought-provoking content designed to unlock interesting conversations and educate without any fluff, click-bait or hyperbole,” Ms Bardas said.
In 2018, Val Morgan formed a cross-platform partnership with Fandom – the world’s largest pure entertainment platform* dedicated to fans of TV, movies and video games – which now reaches more than 1.4 million** 13-29 year old’s each month in Australia, with average online dwell times of over 12 minutes**.
“This new platform will extend the incredible campaign work we’ve been delivering with Fandom, enabling brands to have richer conversations with their consumers via relevant partnerships, branded content and more immersive experiences,” Mr Florido said.
The Latch will launch in January 2020 at: TheLatch.com.au