Insider Interviews: Media and Marketing Pros

This is a special episode because I was in the hotseat. Recently, instead of hosting, I was a guest myself on the Marketing Club of New York’s podcast, “No Filter.” Alicia Wiedemann had me discuss my journey from audio to print to audio again, then television and my role as a marketer and writer crafting B2B content.  Yes, I’m just a tad passionate about that topic! Thanks to MCNY for giving me a pulpit. I, frankly, was happy to share how I see podcasting and multi-channel content helping brands “be everywhere,” humanize executives, and build trust. Yes, you’ll get my career journey from journalism to ad sales marketing and (spoiler alert!) my current role as a senior writer on Nielsen’s global marketing team. But that background will hopefully help you understand why I believe  storytelling is more important than ever amid data, ROI pressures, and AI. I quoted my own byline about Forrester research that 94% of B2B buyers use generative AI. So, “listen and learn” what I thinks creates differentiators. More spoiler alerts: if your brand is keen on cause marketing, spotlight it!  But properly. Authenticity is more than a buzzword. It’s essential to walk your talk today. Also I explain where I think social efforts should be focused, and why keeping humans in the loop with AI to preserve some “crackle” is key. Also, I quote past guests, like Lou Paskalis, who urges advertisers to support news media, and encourage students to learn all platforms, seek mentorship, and write well. Key Moments: 01:21 Meet E.B. Moss 01:40 From Journalism to Nielsen 03:02 Storytelling as Strategy 04:19 AI Era Needs Narrative 06:03 Values and Brand Trust 10:45 Cause Marketing Wins 14:22 Humanizing B2B Voices 17:01 Be Everywhere Content Plan 20:47 Social Media Focus 23:10 Synthetic Voice vs Authenticity 24:51 Balancing Personal and Brand 28:45 Fixing the Industry 30:19 Advice for New Marketers Links & Resources Connect with E.B. Moss and Insider Interviews: With Media & Marketing Experts            LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mossappeal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/insiderinterviews Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InsiderInterviewsPodcast/ Threads: https://www.threads.net/@insiderinterviews MORE of my POV: MossHysteria Substack And as promised, here’s a link to The Podcast Academy. ANYONE who has an interest in creating or advertising in or even hosting/guesting on a podcast should join this terrific organization. Say E.B. sent you! If you enjoyed this episode, follow Insider Interviews on @YouTube, @Apple or @Spotify …or your favorite app, AND please share with another smart business leader, and leave a comment, a like … or a tip in my jar!: https://buymeacoffee.com/mossappeal! 

Host E.B. Moss shares a personal scoop, and a re-scoop: a favorite episode with Rishad Tobaccowala, futurist and author of Rethinking Work, whose ideas just got a fresh round of buzz via a new Fortune Magazine interview. Rishad does everything big; he starts with two doppios (four espresso shots!) He also goes big in challenging the premise of everything we think we know about work. He's a voice of authority. named a top business leader by Business Week a top five marketing innovator by Time, and he's in the Advertising Hall of Fame. In "Rethinking Work" he's candid that companies are fixated on the wrong question ("How many days a week should people be in the office?") instead of the right one ("How do we rethink our strategy, our org design, and the difference between managing and leading?"). And that Bossing is bad. Influencing is good. Rishad breaks down how "bossing" needs to morph into mentoring, predicts the plus side of fractional employment, the rise of the "company of one," and why AI means more work but fewer traditional jobs. Yes, as he puts it, "Change sucks. But irrelevance is worse." Also in this episode: why storytelling is the whole point of the data age (not a casualty of it) And E.B. shares her own scoop about her new role telling stories for Nielsen's Global Brand Marketing team. Also mentioned in this episode: Rishad's Rethinking Work podcast, and his conversation with fellow Insider Interviews alum Lou Paskalis. Insider Interviews delivers the insider's scoop on the business of media, marketing, and advertising. Key Moments include: 10:30 – Why "return to office" is asking the wrong question entirely 11:40 – "Keyword bingo": future, agile, personalized, talent 14:00 – "Change sucks. But irrelevance is worse." 19:50 – Bossing bad, influencing good: the fractional employee model 28:00 – Boss vs. leader (and the musical interlude begins) 44:20 – AI + HI: why storytelling is "data with a soul" 47:50 – The playlist metaphor: the future of work, music, and marketing in one image Support this show at: buymeacoffee.com/mossappeal or find out more at mossappeal.com/podcasts. Theme music by John Clayton.

Host E.B. Moss brought on the new GM of Alembic, Hitesh Wadhwani, during the POSSIBLE Conference in Miami, as part of a mini-series for "Insider Interviews" called “POV: Possible.” Because, as Wadhwani explains, with causal AI it's now possible for marketers to prove what actually drove business results. Wadhwani arrived at Alembic from 12 years at Google, where he helped build measurement products including Google Meridian. He explains why having more marketing data does not necessarily create more confidence — and why traditional approaches still leave CMOs and CFOs asking the same question: what actually caused the outcome? Wadhwani makes the case that LLMs were designed to predict language, not deliver the kind of precision needed for multimillion-dollar budgeting and pricing decisions. Alembic's answer is causal AI: a real-time model of the business that connects marketing channels, pricing, promotions, inventory, and more to identify not just what happened, but what caused it. He shares a standout case study involving a major airline's Olympic campaign spend. Alembic's model identified, at moment-level granularity, that the placement of the brand's logo during the medal ceremony drove more flights to Paris than any other single moment in the campaign — the kind of insight that makes causal AI feel a lot less like a buzzword and a lot more like a business tool. One of the biggest ideas in the episode is how causal AI can help close the gap between marketing and finance. Instead of separate teams using separate metrics, Alembic puts brand, performance, and measurement into one framework that gives CMOs and CFOs a shared language for decision-making. That includes getting better vision in to how to exactly measure creator and influencer marketing. Learn how Alembic's model works, and what's next for the company with NVIDIA as a compute partner. Subscribe for more Insider Interviews and share this one with the measurement skeptic on your team.

What if the biggest problem in digital advertising isn’t whether ads are working… but whether anyone seeing them is actually human? Insider Interviews host E.B. Moss talks with Jay Benach, GM of Media Security at Human, about bots, fake traffic, AI crawlers, ad fraud, and the increasingly blurry line between human behavior and automated activity online. Human, formerly known as "Bot or Not" then "White Ops" (which explains a lot of what they do) helps brands distinguish between real people, useful bots, and malicious automation impacting their business. Benach explains how the company evolved from identifying fraudulent browser sessions to helping marketers understand a much more complicated ecosystem of humans, AI agents, shopping bots, scrapers, and crawlers. The conversation explores why “viewable” doesn’t necessarily mean “human,” how bots were engineered to satisfy traditional ad measurement standards, and why marketers now face a new challenge: determining not just whether traffic is automated, but who sent it and what it’s trying to accomplish. Benach also discusses: • Sniping bots that manipulate shopping cart and retargeting data • Competitor-driven click activity that drains paid search budgets • The explosion of LLM crawlers feeding AI systems • Why some bots may actually represent valuable purchase intent • How advertising inside LLM conversations could reshape digital marketing As Benach explains, the question is no longer simply “Is this a bot?” It’s “Who sent it, and what does it want?” If you're a marketer, learn how to answer that question in this episode, captured at #Possible2026. Key Moments: 0:00:59 — Jay Benach, GM of Media Security at Human: From Bot or Not to Human — the origin story behind the name 0:02:47 — Jay's gaming industry backstory — and the suspicious audiences that led him here 0:04:59 — How the conversation around bots has fundamentally shifted in 12 years 0:06:21 — Good bots, bad bots, and the marionette pulling the strings 0:09:23 — Why LLMs have caused an explosion of bot activity across the web 0:09:32 — Jay's take on advertising inside LLMs — and why it might be the most precise ad buy yet 0:12:01 — Pitch Me, Pinch Me: "Do you want to know if you're being robbed?" 0:13:16 — Viewable doesn't mean human: How bots learned to game the system 0:17:41 — When you filter out fraud, costs go up — and why that's actually good news 0:18:30 — Sniping bots, budget-draining clicks, and the threats hiding in your e-commerce metrics 0:22:30 — The Human Side: Serving the good bots — and the vertical learning curve for marketers

Jason Wiese, EVP of Insights and Measurement at the VAB, might make you rethink your entire approach to media planning, buckle your seatbelt around AI, and race to embrace premium video. Wiese produces 50 to 60 research and insight pieces a year, and does not, in his own words, "deal in NON-hard numbers." Consider yourself warned. And informed. Host E.B. Moss gets Wiese to dish in a fast and fact-filled conversation captured during #possible2026 for Insider Interviews on how ad-supported streaming has won and how to see through the Illusions of the Internet. Example: #DYK: 95% of CTV viewers see ads on their home screen before they even choose what to watch, and more than half of new streaming subscriptions are to ad-supported tiers?! Fifty-one percent of internet traffic is non-human. Thirty-seven percent is malicious bots. Global ad fraud hit $111 billion last year — about 22% of total digital ad spend — projected to reach $172 billion by 2028. BUT - the good news is real too. Premium video remains the industry's most transparent, brand-safe environment, and Wiese walks through the VAB's five-pillar definition to cut through how loosely the term gets used. On what separates a valuable impression from a wasted one: "A bad ad environment can devalue a brand. It's not even a flat-line thing. It devalues a brand." He rounds it out with a clear-eyed take on AI in media planning, being useful if planners understand its inherent bias toward digital platforms before trusting any AI-generated allocation. And, if you want to see how good ad environments hold up in practice, the recent Insider Interviews episode with Atmosphere has some eye-opening eye-tracking data worth a look. Share this with someone who's still flying blind on digital metrics. And subscribe so you don't miss the remaining POV: Possible episodes. Non-bot likes and comments are especially welcomed.

If you’ve ever felt like your marketing stack is more of a marketing pile, like siloed channels, disconnected metrics, and a different agency for every platform, this conversation with Zack Dugow is for you. At the fourth annual POSSIBLE Conference in Miami I built a mini-series of four Insider Interviews episodes I’m calling “POV: Possible,” kicking off with Zack , the founder and CEO of The Cool Company. (Yes, that’s the actual name. BUT, COOL is actually an acronym — more on that in the episode.) What is truly cool is that this company is based on four acquired ad tech companies, integrated into a single AI-powered platform: They build your ad creative, buy your media across every channel, and continuously optimize for business goals or outcomes. No siloes. One system, one goal, one cool company. And, Zack illustrates the how and why in my segment called, “Pitch Me. Pinch Me.” Spoiler alert (unless you were at Possible and saw it from SalientMG’s Innovation Stage!): Zack sharesa a compelling case study from National Veterinary Associates where his team ran a head-to-head test against a human media trading team.  Same budget, same time period. The result? 289% more phone calls and appointments. The reason? While a skilled human team might make 70 campaign changes in a week, theri CoolAI made over 8,600 in two weeks. As Zack put it: “What human is gonna log in, take 20 minutes to make a change that improves something one one-thousandth of a percent? But micro-gains compound fast.” More human side? You’ll learn about his dog, Barry (listen why he’s named that!), and Zack’s appreciation for Padel (pah-DEL?!) But, we also got into the measurement mess that’s plaguing the human industry right now. Zack’s universal advice? Always ask how your attribution is actually being calculated, and sanity-check it against your own internal numbers. “Ultimately, at the end of the day, you should be looking at your own internal business metrics. If you’re a restaurant, it’s like, how many entrees did I sell?” And when it comes to AI being overhyped? Zack, of course, doesn’t think so. But he does think we’re just now crossing from “faster and cheaper” into “actually better.” Proof point? He makes the case that the beauty of automation is its range: the same platform that optimizes campaigns for a national airline can do the same for a local car wash, with no ad expertise required. The playing field is leveling, and the implications for marketers at every scale are hard to ignore. Key Moments 0:01:25 — What the Cool Company actually does under one AI platform  0:03:49 — What COOL stands for: More than a name; a philosophy. 0:06:08 — The Proof Point: A case study that pit AI-driven campaign management against a human trading team 0:07:04 — Why micro-optimizations at AI scale compounds gains humans can’t replicate  0:09:00 — Attribution truth talk   0:10:19 — The Channel Budget Trap: Why siloing budgets by platform (TikTok, search, display) limits performance vs unified goal-setting 0:11:13— The Human Side: Meet Barry, Zack’s co-pilot, and the most Game of Thrones-named dog in ad tech 0:12:49 — Is AI Overhyped? Zack’s take on where AI is in its evolution  0:15:06 — AI and Jobs…and what roles will matter most. Connect with: The Cool Company Zack Dugow SalientMG Connect with E.B. Moss and Insider Interviews: With Media & Marketing Experts            LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mossappeal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/insiderinterviews Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InsiderInterviewsPodcast/ Threads: https://www.threads.net/@insiderinterviews If you enjoyed this episode, follow Insider Interviews on @YouTube, @Apple or @Spotify or your favorite app, AND please share with another smart business leader, and leave a comment, a like … or a tip in my jar!: https://buymeacoffee.com/mossappeal! 

You know those screens at a bar or gym that catch your eye and actually make you pay attention in a noisy environment? Chances are you’ve seen Atmosphere TV. So, I spoke with the company’s Chief Revenue Officer, Ryan Spicer, to find out how they’re managing to capture and confirm attention, and why it’s one of the most interesting ad-supported media plays happening right now. Ryan came up through Viacom and Turner, but his real origin story starts on a soccer pitch. (Yes, I asked him about going from the pitch to the TV pitch — and yes, he’s stealing that line.) But apropos to our conversation he walked away from established media for a startup bet on a simple but brilliant insight: nobody ever walked into a bar and asked them to put on a muted episode of Law & Order. Atmosphere was built to fix that. We get into the full value proposition of “TV for your eyes, not for your ears” that’s made in three-minute, visually arresting loops across 30 channels. He scored a win in my first “Pitch Me. Pinch Me.” segment, doing a great job explaining how they’re capturing 10 million viewers a night in their built for OFF-the-couch moments. His “pitch” was backed up by Media Science that did an eye-tracking study to deliver proof points. I was intrigued enough by that to put them in an article I wrote recently for MediaVillage. You’ll learn how their targeting capability can geo-fence an ad to within seven miles of a retail location, and why their timing. Hint: Ryan explains this era as The Great Reconnection, with people actively seeking out more in-person experiences after years of heads-down, hyper-personalized digital isolation. Ryan also gives brands some real, practical advice on creative — what works, what works better, and why the bucket debate (is this CTV? is this OOH?) is the wrong conversation entirely. It’s an upbeat 30-minutes that even explains Ryan’s appreciation for Turkish food. But another reason to listen? You might get the Insider’s scoop on their next strategic move. (Okay, it has to do with why Atmosphere is a natural fit within retail media networks since they’re reaching consumers who are already out and already deciding, not just browsing from the couch.) Key Moments: 00:00 – From the pitch to the TV pitch 00:27 – What is Atmosphere TV? CTV IRL explained 02:38 – 60,000 bars, restaurants, and gyms can’t be wrong 03:06 – Ryan’s origin story: from pro soccer to chasing a feeling 09:02 – Debut of the “Pitch Me. Pinch Me.” segment 10:06 – The founding insight: nobody asked a bar to show a muted Law & Order 12:00 – Geo-targeting within 7 miles of a retail location 12:57 – The Great Reconnection: why people are seeking out in-person experiences 15:00 – Channels built for off-the-couch environments 15:45 – Proof of concept: why distracted bar crowds are actually watching and MediaScience results 17:43 – Creative advice: what works and what works better 21:10 – Measurement: foot traffic, receipt data, ROAS and case studies 24:25 – The bucket debate: stop asking if it’s CTV or OOH 25:30 –Atmosphere’s next strategic move 29:29 – Best coaching advice for work or team work Connect with Ryan Spicer and Atmosphere TV LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-spicer-8189b43/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atmospheretv/ Connect with E.B. Moss and Insider Interviews: With Media & Marketing Experts            LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mossappeal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/insiderinterviews Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InsiderInterviewsPodcast/ Threads: https://www.threads.net/@insiderinterviews If you enjoyed this episode, follow Insider Interviews, share with another smart business leader, and leave a comment on @Apple or @Spotify… or a tip in my jar!: https://buymeacoffee.com/mossappeal! 

Podcasting got a seat at the grown-up’s table at South by SouthWest for the first time, smack in middle of Women’s History Month. So Insider Interviews captured content from three women also making strides in media, during Podcast Movement Evolutions. I spoke with these media powerhouses at The Podcast Academy / Sounds Profitable co-sponsored booth to talk about building: businesses, communities, the future of media itself…and building up women everywhere. Learn from: the co-founder of a startup modernizing how print and out-of-home are bought and sold, a global communications CEO who has built her career on making messaging move people, and one of the new forces behind podcasting’s growing presence itself. Mach on Modernizing “Premium” Media for a New Era Beth Mach, Co-Founder & COO of Spacely Media, introduces the first transactional marketplace for premium media — giving print, out-of-home, and venue advertising the digital infrastructure it’s never had. “Buying in those channels today still looks like it did 20 years ago — lots of PDFs, lots of phone calls. Spacely closes that gap.”   Their platform replaces friction with functionality, and dashboards instead of PDFs. Like Neil Vogel, in my recent episode with the People, Inc. CEO, Mach is bullish on magazines and makes the case for why brands are coming back to these channels. She also explains why credibility wins the room when you’re raising money. It shouldn’t be different as a female founder. But…  “Every founder meets skepticism. When you are female, it adds another layer — especially when the room has historically looked a little different.” — Beth Mach Lund on Messaging to and for Humans Wendy Lund, Global CEO of Allison Worldwide and returning Insider Interviews guest (exactly one year later!), reflects on her path from women’s health advocacy to leading a global agency — and what she’s building now. Her path ran from a master’s in women’s history to nonprofit marketing, to running a global agency. With her move to Global CEO of Allison Worldwide and Vice Chair of health at parent company Stagwell, Wendy described her enthusiasm for Allison’s strengths, across campaigns, media/influencer, and experiential. She reinforces the importance of listening, purpose-driven work, and addressing ongoing inequities in women’s health and mental health. “My favorite value has always been belonging. Do your customers feel like they’re part of something? To me, that is so sticky.”  Her advice for building brand love in a fragmented media world is deceptively simple: be real, and build belonging. She’s also clear-eyed about the disconnect between how much we talk about innovation — and how much attention women’s health actually gets: “AI is on the tip of everybody’s tongue — but at the end of the day, it’s also steeped in emotion. And we’re 51% of the population. That means we should get 51% of the attention.” — Wendy Lund DeMellier Sounds Like an Inspiration Molly DeMellier, Head of Communications at Sounds Profitable, gives an insider’s scoop on the organization helping shape podcasting’s growing presence at SXSW and beyond. She points to the combined strengths of the co-founders: Bryan Barletta’s (“terrifying”) encyclopedic industry brain and Tom Webster’s research engine, along with her own expanding role shaping panel strategy, supporting retainer clients, and helping partners amplify their stories. Molly describes Sounds Profitable place in podcasting as building community and connection through events, networking, research, and partner support, emphasizing that “Podcasting is really taking off and it’s the people that power it.” But, noting the industry’s representation gap, takes her role seriously when working on events like Podcast Movement, pondering “who do I put on stage that’s going to inspire that next person” to know they can see themselves podcasting. And she closes with something that sticks: her belief that women shouldn’t have to choose between a career and a family — and why she’s determined to make sure the next generation sees women in power. “A big fear I have is that women will leave professions not by choice, but by force. And my biggest fear is what about the children who see their mom who didn’t have a choice?” — Molly DeMellier This is Episode 50 in Season 2. I think it sounds like a milestone worth celebrating.   Key Moments & Time Codes 00:00 — How Podcast Movement Evolutions made its first-ever appearance at SXSW 00:53 — Beth Mach explains why Spacely calls it premium media — and why that reframe matters for the industry 04:50 — Beth explains how buying a print ad in 2025 still works the way it did 20 years ago — and how Spacely is finally changing that 09:40 — Why print titles that shut down years ago are quietly relaunching — and what that signals for brands 14:55 — On fundraising as a female founder: the extra layer of skepticism, and how clarity of purpose cuts through it 16:30 — Wendy Lund returns one year later as Global CEO of Allison Worldwide — what changed, and why she missed agency life 22:21 — What Wendy learned going in-house at Organon: the difference between talking at women and actually listening to them 23:16 — Women’s health today: the innovations gaining ground and the conditions still being undertreated 27:35 — How Sounds Profitable brought the podcast industry to SXSW — and why community-building is at the core of everything they do 30:57 — What Sounds Profitable partners get: industry counsel, audience research expertise, and Molly’s evangelism that helps all boats rise! 34:59 — Closing thought as a woman in business: rising childcare costs are pushing women out of the workforce not by choice, but by force. Connect with E.B. Moss and Insider Interviews: With Media & Marketing Experts            LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mossappeal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/insiderinterviews Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InsiderInterviewsPodcast/ Threads: https://www.threads.net/@insiderinterviews If you enjoyed this episode, follow Insider Interviews, share with another smart business leader, and leave a comment on @Apple or @Spotify… or a tip in my jar!: https://buymeacoffee.com/mossappeal! 

I found a smiling Buddha medallion on the sidewalk on my way to the Uber, and I believed it was a sign it would be a good trip. Then I got in the car and discovered my fellow passenger was Nir Eyal — behavioral designer, Stanford lecturer, and bestselling author with a new book to promote at SXSW: “Beyond Belief.”  We were both headed for the same flight. I, of course, invited him to record a podcast episode and he invited me into the United Club lounge record there! I believed in my good fortune, and belief systems turned out to be the focus of Nir’s work. “We like to say that you’ll believe it when you see it — but in fact, that’s not true. The opposite is true: you see it when you believe it.” — Nir Eyal What I captured in 20 minutes was a masterclass in consumer psychology from one of the most cited thinkers in behavioral design. And a lot of fun. Nir’s first book, “Hooked”, gave marketers and product builders a framework for engineering repeat engagement. Yup, he explains his four-step model that of why users keep returning to things like Facebook, Duolingo, Slack, and even my beloved Starbucks. His follow-up, “Indistractable,” tackled the flip side: how to protect your own focus in a world engineered to steal it. And his new third book makes the case that advertising’s most powerful function isn’t awareness or recall. It’s actually shaping what using a product feels like. Or tastes like. Nir backs this up citing a Stanford fMRI study where participants tasted the exact same wine twice — once labeled cheap, once labeled expensive. Of course they rated the “expensive” pour as tastier, and brain scans confirmed they were genuinely experiencing more pleasure.  The implication for marketers is significant: brand belief doesn’t just influence what consumers say about a product — it rewires how they perceive it in real time. As Nir puts it, “we are creating the experience, just as we’re creating the coffee and the cup.” We also get into distraction and focus ( — territory that’s directly relevant to anyone managing teams, creative output, or their own attention. Nir draws a clean line between traction (any action that moves you toward what you planned to do) and distraction (anything that doesn’t) — and gave me a HUGE a-ha understanding about the common assumption that multitasking is counterproductive. You’re going to want to learn about the distinction between single-channel and multi-channel multitasking.  It’s how high performers and even distracted performers like me, can structure their time.  (Nir shares his personal system for consuming long-form reading; it’s a practical tactic worth stealing.) This conversation was unplanned, unscripted, and recorded forty minutes before boarding a flight. That it delivered this much useful thinking on marketing, behavioral design, consumer psychology, and focus is a testament to how deeply Nir has thought about all of it — and, okay, maybe to the Buddha medallion. Key Moments: 00:00 How a serendipitous ride to the airport turns into an impromptu bonus episode with author Nir Eyal01:34 Nir’s background: behavioral designer, Stanford lecturer, and author of three books on habits, distraction, and belief02:16 The Hooked framework: the four-step model behind every habit-forming product — and how to apply it03:45 Beyond Belief: why advertising’s real job is shaping experience, not just building awareness06:07 The Stanford fMRI wine study: proof that brand belief changes consumer perception at a neurological level07:50 What marketers consistently underestimate: the experience loop of belief, anticipation, and confirmation08:15 Facts vs. beliefs: a distinction with major implications for messaging and brand strategy09:08 The one condition a product must meet before habit formation is even possible12:45 Traction vs. distraction: a framework for reclaiming focus — and why the difference isn’t the behavior14:11 Why planned downtime isn’t distraction — and how to stop moralizing screen time15:37 The multitasking reframe: single-channel vs. multi-channel, and when doing two things at once actually works17:04 Nir’s read-at-the-gym system: a practical productivity hack for high-volume information consumers18:38 How beliefs shape attitudes and perception — what we’re able to see19:33 Persuasion vs. coercion: the ethical and commercial case for “good” behavioral design Connect with Nir Eyal LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nireyal/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nireyal  Get his book Beyond Belief: geni.us/beyondbelief Connect with E.B. Moss and Insider Interviews: With Media & Marketing Experts            LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mossappeal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/insiderinterviews Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InsiderInterviewsPodcast/ Threads: https://www.threads.net/@insiderinterviews If you enjoyed this episode, follow Insider Interviews, share with another smart business leader, and leave a comment on @Apple or @Spotify… or a tip in my jar!: https://buymeacoffee.com/mossappeal! 

CTV advertising may come with its share of acronyms and moving parts, but about 70% of advertisers say they plan to increase their investment in it, according to the latest industry survey from Premion. Blake Hebert, Premion’s Sr Dir. of Publisher Operations, isn’t surprised by that momentum. But he also knows marketers still face challenges like complexity. In Ep. 49, he talks about where the medium stands today—and how Premion is helping simplify the path for local and mid-market advertisers. Blake, who just welcomed baby #2, returned to work to help introduce Premion’s baby #4 — that latest CTV survey done with Advertiser Perceptions. And no one’s crying about this one: only 1% of respondents said they expect to decrease their CTV budgets.  With a rare perspective from being hands on across the buy side and sell side, from agency life at RPA to roles at Hulu and SpotX/Magnite, Blake now has a front-row seat to what’s coming from publishers and platforms. He shares those insights back with internal teams and advertisers to make the CTV landscape easier to navigate. And with us in this conversation. What advertisers are learning, and what Blake explains particularly well, is that success in CTV isn’t just about shifting dollars into streaming. It’s about understanding how consumers actually watch content today. He was spot on: “Consumers don’t decide to watch linear or stream; they just watch…. And they’re not just in one place. I’ll watch Amazon Prime and then flip back over to my Hulu app.” So, advertisers have to be spot on everywhere, too, which is exactly why marketers are increasingly planning around “total TV” or converged video strategies instead of separating traditional television and streaming into different buckets. Of course, this new world can feel like a maze. Fragmentation, walled gardens, and measurement challenges are still very real issues. Blake walks us through how platforms like Premion try to simplify that complexity by aggregating inventory across multiple streaming partners and layering in data that helps advertisers reach audiences efficiently. They’re especially focused on supporting local and mid-market advertisers who can now enjoy similar strategies and tactics as the big holding company agencies. Another takeaway is about targeting. In digital advertising, the instinct is often to target audiences down to the smallest possible segment. But Blake makes the case that hyper-targeting can sometimes backfire, or just lose some efficiency, especially in smaller geographic markets. His advice? Balance precision with scale. If you pile on too many audience filters, you may end up shrinking your available audience more than you intended. We also spend time talking about a topic that seems unavoidable in every media conversation right now: AI. Blake’s view is pragmatic and optimistic, particularly for local advertisers who may not have access to large creative or analytics teams. So, he says: “The sooner you can embrace it and understand how to use it as a tool, the better you’ll be in the long run.” In fact, he sees #AI helping smaller businesses build creative, optimize campaigns, and generate insights in ways that used to require a lot more resources. But, like taking on CTV, the world has changed! We also touch on a few trends that may shape the next phase of CTV advertising, like the growing importance of live sports in streaming environments to new opportunities emerging around gaming and smart TV engagement. The good news for me? Blake called in from his hometown of Austin, which is the home of SXSW.  Pair that with his work as president of the local Austin chapter of the American Advertising Federation and I may be very well connected for the GSD&M party and more! I know people who know people. And now we all know a little more about CTV. To keep up with the fast-changing world of TV advertising, get the insider scoop in 30 minutes flat on what’s working in CTV right now and how Premion’s putting it to work. Key Moments 0:00 Changing Perceptions in CTV Advertising: Episode overview 0:41 Buy side to sell side: why Blake’s perspective on CTV is different 2:00 Premion’s edge: simplifying CTV for local advertisers 3:44 The headline stat: 70% growing CTV budgets — only 1% cutting 5:23 Why “linear vs. streaming” is the wrong question 7:26 Curation explained: smarter than the old ad-network model 12:02 Walled gardens don’t contain consumers — and that matters 15:00 AI as an equalizer for under-resourced local advertisers 18:00 The targeting trap: how over-targeting shrinks your audience 21:02 Live sports and more new opportunities 26:09 AAF Austin Shoutout Connect with Blake Hebert and Premion Download the Advertiser Perceptions 2026 Survey Connect with E.B. Moss and Insider Interviews: With Media & Marketing Experts            LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mossappeal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/insiderinterviews Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InsiderInterviewsPodcast/ Threads: https://www.threads.net/@insiderinterviews If you enjoyed this episode, follow Insider Interviews, share with another smart business leader, and leave a comment on @Apple or @Spotify… or a tip in my jar!: https://buymeacoffee.com/mossappeal!