Here is your latest Matrix eNewsletter!
We are now just 73 days away from the Media Sales Symposium and registration spaces are filling up quickly, which has us quite excited, as the variety of participants simply attending the event will lead to robust networking opportunities for all. We've got a packed newsletter below, which includes news of our recent executive team expansion and our night out at the Tech 50 Awards, where we were nominated - check it out!
Media Sales Symposium
Have you seen who is speaking at the upcoming Media Sales Symposium? We're announcing a fourth speaker soon - so be on the look out for who that will be! But before we get all excited about our next announced speaker, let's recap the line-up so far - not only do we have our CEO, Mark Gorman, but we've got Borrell Associates' Gordon Borrell, and Birchmere Partners' Sean Ammirati.
Mark Gorman, CEO, Matrix Solutions
Mark will talk about the future of Media Ad Sales Technology and its impact on the industry. What technology should your organization look into? What kind of metrics and integrations are key for the modern sales organization? In addition, Mark will showcase the future of Matrix Solutions and talk about what a media ad platform looks like today and in the future.
Gordon Borrell, CEO, Borrell Associates
Gordon will talk about the modern media advertising trends and sales. Gordon’s rich history and access to analytics gives him insights and understandings unique to the industry. He is chairman of the Local Media Association and past president of the Newspaper Association of America’s New Media Federation. In Gordon’s session, you’ll hear about trends and forecasts to help you prepare your sales organization for 2017 and beyond.
Sean Ammirati, Partner, Birchmere Labs
At the Media Sales Symposium, Sean will lead a discussion on how to prepare your sales organization for digital and provide tips to help you build an efficient sales team. Sean has over 12 years of experience in founding, building and selling businesses in the media and software industries. Sean was the Chief Operating Officer of ReadWriteWeb and before that he was the co-founder / CEO of mSpoke which was acquired by LinkedIn. Over the years Sean has learned how to grow media companies and their sales teams.
If you haven't already, check out the agenda for the Symposium below:
Have questions or curiosities surrounding the Symposium? Contact your Success Manager! Or for general info and to get all the latest details on the Media Sales Symposium, click here.
Around Matrix
We are loving being in the new Nova Place space in the historic north end of Pittsburgh. We couldn't help but snap this pic from our offices recently of the Pittsburgh skyline on a sunny November day. Be sure you connect with us on social media where you can see more pictures from around the Matrix offices and while we're on the road. And please don't be shy, we would love to hear from you on Twitter or Facebook.
Matrix Attends the Pittsburgh Tech 50 Awards
On November 3rd, the Matrix Team had the honor of attending the Pittsburgh Tech 50 Awards, which gives credit to Southwestern Pennsylvania's fast-growing, tech-innovation sector. Technology companies spanning several industries are recognized, and Matrix was pleased to be nominated again this year. We were finalists in the Innovative Technology Solutions Provider of the Year category. Unfortunately, we didn't make it home with the top prize, but as they say - it was an honor being nominated. Check out photos from our big night out, and in the meantime, we have our eyes set on next year!
Tune in to TechVibe Radio
Next week we will be visiting TechVibe Radio to tape an interview about the latest at Matrix - especially the soon-to-launch Matrix Monarch. Our CEO, Mark Gorman, along with our newest members of the executive team (more on them below!), Dan Korhnak and Ryan Smaretsky, will sit down with Pittsburgh Tech Council CEO Audrey Russo and Director of Visibility Jonathan Kersting, the hosts of the show. Listen live on KDKA 1020AM at 7pm on Fridays for the TechVibe Radio Show, and keep your eyes out for notices of when our episode will air.
Industry Insights
The Terrifying Monster Called Digital Advertising
Here's one monster we -- marketers, advertisers and the media -- have created. It fits the description perfectly: It is huge, and its size is just reason why it is utterly terrifying. Just like the monster in “Stranger Things,” it appears unbeatable and it seems impossible to put it back in its place. How big is it? Well, here’s just one of its gigantic limbs: Google serves 30 billion impressions per day, amounting to 900 billion per month, or 10.8 trillion impressions per year. Facebook’s 2016 ad revenue is estimated at about $6 billion, so I imagine its numbers to be something similar. Read more.
Sign of a robust economy: Local advertising booms
Local advertising has long been considered a better gauge of the health of the media economy than national advertising. Many small businesses buy local ads. If they’re spending, it’s a sign the economy is strong. These businesses are the first to feel the pinch of a recession and the last to recover. With that in mind, it appears that the media economy is looking strong next year and beyond. A new forecast from BIA/Kelsey forecasts ad spending will grow 2.4 percent next year, to $148.8 billion. That growth would be even heftier, 3.9 percent, if you remove tough comparisons to this year’s political spending. Read more.
In the News, Podcasts, and More
Dan Korhnak
Ryan Smaretsky
Matrix Solutions Readies for Global Product Launch by Expanding Executive Team
Matrix Solutions announces the expansion of their executive team as they prepare to launch a new, global media ad sales platform. Ryan Smaretsky joins the team in an advanced role as Director of Strategy and Product Development, and Dan Korhnak has joined as Director of Software Development & Architecture. Both Smaretsky and Korhnak will play a pivotal role in successfully delivering Matrix Solutions’ global media ad sales platform, named Monarch, to market. Available for general release in Q1 of 2017, Monarch will feature an entirely new technology infrastructure and afford vertical customization dependent on the ad-specific workflow.
“At Matrix we aren’t seeking to reinvent what exists, but to develop beyond the current boundaries in our never-ending goal of creating more revenue and profit for our media clients,” shared Mark Gorman, CEO, Matrix Solutions. “Adding new, forward-thinking leaders like Dan and Ryan, who can successfully bring innovative strategies, thought, and effective leadership to our company, is imperative for our next phase of strategic growth.” Read more.
Matrix Solutions Announces Launch of Media Sales Symposium
Matrix Solutions announces the launch of their inaugural Media Sales Symposium. The symposium will serve as a forward-thinking venue for media sales professionals to discover new and proven sales strategies. The event will be held January 29-31, 2017 at the Loews Royal Pacific Resort in Orlando, Florida.
Embracing advertising sales’ digital frontier, the Matrix Media Sales Symposium will cover digital-specific techniques and best practices for maximizing cross-platform workflows. Additionally, it will detail how to build a consultative sales team, how to best leverage technology for maximum efficiency, and how to close deals faster. Read more.
Subscribe! Matrix Media Sales Podcasts
We spent a great deal of time at the Radio Show last month discussing the importance of the Podcast and what it means for media sales and specifically radio. In case you've missed it, we recently developed our own podcast about just that - media sales! Here are some of the latest podcasts available. Don't miss an episode - subscribe to the Matrix Media Sales Podcast on iTunes, here.
Episode 8: Sales Enablement for Modern Media Sales Organizations
In this episode of the Matrix Media Sales Podcast, we talk with Eileen Fredette, Director / Success Management, about what is most important for media sales organization. More importantly, we discuss how these organizations can use sales enablement techniques to improve sales. As the sales environment changes, media sales teams are forced to be consultants. They need to understand the advertising landscape and prescribe proper solutions to their clients. Also in this episode we talk about:
- How can a sales team embrace new technology and processes?
- How does sales enablement lead to a shorter sales cycle and more leads?
- How can a sales enablement tool surface the right data at the right time?
Stream it from SoundCloud now.
In Case You Missed It:
We recently released the 4 Reasons to Attend the very first Media Sales Symposium! Take a look, and then register if you haven’t yet!
