clip_image002On Tuesday 10th May at The Festival of Media Global 2011, I had the pleasure of hosting the first in a series of discussions under the banner of the “Microsoft Advertising Ad Vision Series”. “Navigating the digital possibilities” – the theme of the session – is a challenging subject that the advertising industry is currently facing.

I was delighted to be joined by Ian James, Chief Digital Officer for EMEA at Starcom MediaVest, Steve Parker, Managing Director at Mediavest UK, and Stewart Easterbrook, CEO London Centre of Excellence at SMG. As a group, we discussed and debated how the nature of the consumer’s digital journey is changing and the challenges this represents for the digital advertising industry, and I am very grateful to each of them for sharing their exciting views and ideas.

During our 25 minute session, we covered a lot of ground, musing on questions like how will advertising adapt as mobile and social become ever more mainstream? Is mobile the next wave of revolution in computing? How do advertisers adapt? How have consumer expectations of brands changed in terms of how they interact with them? And with gaming – social, casual or console-based - opening up demographically, in-game advertising is the key growth channel?

‘Breaking down silos’ as Ian described it, was an important focus throughout the conversation. For agencies, the challenge is to become more integrated across the component parts of a campaign - creative, data and social media for example – to help agencies better navigate this digital terrain. Similarly Steve described working in partnership to deliver better solutions for clients as ‘critical’ to navigating the changing digital landscape.

Steve also outlined his belief that we are only ‘small steps away’ from successfully broadening the appeal of advertising to incorporate mobile and gaming, which are ‘the next big things’. Ian picked up on this theme, emphasizing that mobile will increasingly make up an important part of any creative campaign. The panel also agreed the changing perception of gaming – now something that is, more than ever, open to and enjoyed by everyone – is a big opportunity for advertisers.

If you’re interested in seeing the session for yourself, a recording of this panel will soon be available along with a number of interviews - such as Mel Carson’s interview with Dave Sable - on the Community blog. To keep track of our Ad Vision Series keep an eye on the Community Site for the latest updates on interviews in the lead up to Cannes, and follow us on Twitter (@MSAdvertising) or Facebook.  

Best wishes,

Laurent Delaporte (VP EMEA, Microsoft Advertising)