A venture capitalist talks advertising. Starring Eric Parks.
Finally, we were honored to interview Eric Parks. He is a Venture Capitalist or more specifically an investor and also a mentor in startups with a specialization in Greece but also an active communications strategist. He is looking to find and assist amazing founders in supercharging their companies. He is the previous Director of Digital Strategy and Innovation at Tempo-OMD, and head of digital at Leo Burnett Athens and The Newton’s Laboratory. He has been managing large teams and he is very active in startup advising and consulting.
He has been also extensively involved in creating digital experiences, campaigns, and games from social to mobile and from inception to administering as a property and throughout the whole product life cycle. He has experience working remotely and internationally with clients ranging from local to multinational (P&G, Diageo, IKEA, Philip Morris, OTE). His perspective was also extremely useful and very different from all the rest of the experts interviewed. He sees things differently. He has an entrepreneurial mind and he only dedicates his time and expertise when it comes to services and products really worth it. At the end of the day, the right advertising and promotion of a product or service is something that concerns him deeply as well. He is also an Instructor of Ad & PR Lab teaching the subject “Creativity — The Art of Storytelling”.
Currently, he is also a Co-Founder & General Partner, of Velocity.Partners Venture Capital
Note: This interview was taken in 2019 in the context of a Bachelor thesis on Media Placement & Advertisement under the auspices of Panteion University. The participants had agreed for their names to be public in the qualitative part of the research.
Question No. 1: What are the criteria that an advertisement-advertising campaign is created today?
Everything is based on the company’s goals and what it wants to achieve through the campaign.
Question No. 2: What is it that a user requires from a medium, to be completely satisfied with it?
Media users want to be irritated and interrupted the least possible. Google at least has figured out an algorithm to present to each user an advertisement linked to their actual interests and search history. It is way better than having to watch completely random advertisements that are not linked to any of the viewer’s needs whatsoever. It is very useful that on the web you can now see advertisements linked to your interests. Of course, this has its withdrawals. Yes, people prefer to see advertisements related to their interests. But this is creating a feeling of lack of privacy. People start to feel that companies know way more about them than they should. So even if advertisements in new media seem a better and less irritable solution. It is very important to learn to use the available data wisely, carefully, and in a respectful manner. Hyper-targeting is not a solution for a better media experience that is for sure.
Question No. 3: What opinion do you believe that people have for traditional media?
Personally, I cannot stand them at all. On my television device, I will watch with my family Netflix, Amazon prime, and Nova. I haven’t consumed content from traditional television for a while. I do not believe that I am an exception. Many people are like me today. I believe that it is no coincidence that BBC radio rebranded itself and was renamed BBC Sounds. It now includes both podcasts and classic radio shows and music.
On-demand streaming is now ruling the world. People now want to consume content exactly when they want to. Traditional media do not have a lot of time left and everybody can see that. There are huge investments placed right now upon on-demand streaming. For now, there is a market for traditional television and there is some consumption. But, in 15 years I am not so sure that NBC will still exist, at least in the form we know it today. Traditional media impact cannot be ever the same in the future as it used to be.
Question No. 4: What opinion do you think that people have for new media?
People have embraced them. My son is a literal digital native and someone who belongs to the generation that succeeds the Millennials and is called Generation Z, a very interesting generation indeed. This generation has only known on-demand entertainment.
Question No. 5: What opinion do you have on integrated communication campaigns?
I believe that integrated communication campaigns are overestimated. Of course, it is important to produce something integrated and cohesive. You should not talk in two different ways as a brand. However, he is against the idea of creating a 360 campaign that includes every single touchpoint possible for every brand. This must be done only when it serves the goals set. Some companies abandoned the digital component completely and focused on offline campaigns. Companies must identify what works best for them. Sometimes, depending on your target group, it would be as simple as just advertising your brand on television. I agree with the tactic of integrated communication campaigns when it comes to producing a unified and solid message.
I do not believe that integrated communication campaigns are some type of “holy grail” and will bring the ultimate solutions to every issue. It should not be regarded as a goal in itself.
Question No. 6: Apart from the efficient media placement of an advertisement, what role does advertisement content play in advertising efficiency?
There is a notion, in general, that supports that it does not matter what you say but to have the right position and be in the right place to say it. I have heard of that, but it has no further extensions. Creativity plays a gigantic role and we all know that. If something stands out from everything else, it will bring perceptible results. We have to look at things strictly commercially:
If you do not think creatively you are leaving money on the table. So simple.
Question No. 7: Do you believe in the power of advertising content over efficient media placement?
I believe that both are important. What is needed is to not overestimate or underestimate one or another. A beautiful idea written on a piece of paper will not be known.
On the other hand, a great and strategic placement on a billboard in Manhattan with an indifferent message is also useless.
Media placement is extremely important but so is good content. Social hacking is a thing, but it is misjudged and not implemented the way it should. It should also not be the ultimate goal.
Question No. 8: When can an advertiser be sure that his/her idea is going to be efficient?
There are media and ways to promote something that enables a company to have everything under control. This means that you make a small investment of money and your idea has its limits. When you create advertisements for Facebook to sell shoes then things are quite measurable, and you can see how many people viewed what you have put out. If your budget is bigger you can conduct focus groups and many other things. But with strict communication rules marketers and advertisers can never know. What performance marketers and growth hackers do is a lean procedure of depending on Facebook advertisements. If we are talking about a big production that is going to be aired on television and will cost half a million, you cannot growth hack that. You cannot do anything beforehand to know if it is going to work.
