Two of Advertising Age's "40 under forty" speak on how media roles are shaped

The first speakers of the Heart Visiting Professionals program, Lisa Ryan Howard and Suzy Deering, spoke today on how media deals are shaped and formed in the current media climate. The open lecture took place in the Drewry room and was followed by a reception with the speakers shortly after for graduate and senior level students. 

 

The pair of Howard and Deering attended The University of Georgia and graduated in 1992 with a degree from The Grady College of Journalism for Howard and one from the College of Family and Consumer Science for Deering. Coincidently they were both in the same advertising campaigns class during their undergraduate time at UGA. Their paths crossed again when they were seated across from each other in a business meeting some 15 to 17 years later.

 

Howard opened the lecture by attempting to show a cartoon on itunes from The New Yorker Animated Cartoon Series. While technical difficulties prevented audio from being played, Howard laughed the situation off and explained that like Bill Gates said, “If audio problems happened to him they can happen to anyone.”

 

As vice-president of digital and multimedia integration for Condé Nast Media Group, the bubbly and eager Howard explained it’s far from an easy job. One of the top monthly publishers of magazines and a leading creator of upscale lifestyle and business brands online, Condé Nast is determined to “connecting at the point of passion,” Howard said. She stressed the importance of creating content for all types of media outlets ranging from television, computers, phones, and to the latest trend: digital readers. “We create because we have to innovate,” she said.

 

One of the main themes of Howard’s presentation was the significance of becoming an in-house creative studio. According to her, with the presence of multiple technological devices influencing consumers, its imperative that a company be able to not only sell advertisements but sell solutions to the consumer’s problems as well. Become “multi-purpose marketers,” Howard said.

 

Two examples that were presented included Vanity Fair and The New Yorker magazines. These two publications were used to offer cutting-edge media specials to the public. Vanity Fair ‘s media site posted pictures of photography that didn’t make the magazines final cut or images the photographer himself enjoyed. The New Yorker’s focus was to take their brand to new places, Howard explained. She also told the audience that fear not, magazines are not dying and in fact the total magazine audience has grown despite the recent economic downturn. An “alpha” product Condé Nast has launched is a digital reader that gives the subscriber the opportunity to get a completely digital version of the magazine for only $49. Howard pointed out that one of the largest benefits to this product is the ability to email and share the articles or stories with numerous friends.  

 

A major partnership for Condé Nast is their work with Verizon Wireless. Executive director of sponsorships and media at Verizon, Deering oversees the media buying for $1.5 billion and searches for new ways to draw consumers toward their products. Verizon’s services include high-speed Internet, wireless connectivity, FiOS, and business solutions. Deering heavily enforced the concept that media buying needs to the front focus and companies need to truly know their consumer. “Technology has redefined the definition of entertainment,” Deering said. Research performed by Verizon has found that over 90 billion text messages were sent in the past quarter and the main types of phones sold are those containing a camera application. The main goal is connecting with the consumer and finding out what they want and how to get it to them, Deering said. “We can’t be content creators. We’ll leave that to the experts.”

 

Junior advertising major Anna Carr attended the lecture and found it highly interesting. While she went to the speaker because of a class requirement, she ended up learning more than she expected. “It was good to hear that magazines aren’t dying like people think. I can’t wait to see how advertising and the media combine even further in the future.” Carr said.

 

The duo of Deering and Howard presented the necessity of understanding media and all the fields that are associated with it. No longer should a company focus on one aspect of marketing or advertising, but become a well-rounded force that offers their client the solution to their problem. In the words of Deering, “never stop learning. I know it sounds like the mother in me but I couldn’t be more serious.”