Group Nine Media made one of centerpieces of its second Digital Content NewFronts an artificial intelligence offering called GIA, for front-end optimization of advertisers\u2019 campaign creative and distribution. It stands for Group Nine Insights Analyst, which takes \u201cmachine learning and artificial intelligence and applies it to how we are able to work with our brands today,\u201d says Group Nine President Christa Carone.<\/p>\n
The announcement comes less than two years after the launch of Group Nine, whose four vertical brands are NowThis (news), Thrillist (food, drink and travel), the Dodo (animal lovers) and Seeker (science and tech).<\/p>\n
Following its NewFronts<\/a> presentation, Carone tells Beet.TV about the company\u2019s mantra\u2014a \u201cmaniacal\u201d focus on its audiences\u2014and the progress it\u2019s making with brands across various product and service categories.<\/p>\n \u201cHow we prioritize our people, platforms and purpose in all of our storytelling. That was the through line to our whole presentation today,\u201d says Carone.<\/p>\n Group Nine\u2019s audience-first approach is backed by scale of reach the four brands achieve and the resulting insights. \u201cSo when we take a look at an aggregation of all of the content that we produce on a daily basis, we\u2019re able to draw some fascinating insights on what interests our audience.\u201d<\/p>\n Beyond reach, \u201cwe have some of the leading engagement metrics across digital media,\u201d Carone adds.<\/p>\n Group Nine<\/a> is flexible in how brands engage with its content and audiences. \u201cWe also have the ability to work with our advertisers\u2019 own advertising assets and contextualize those assets so they\u2019re in the tone of voice, they\u2019re in the format that our audience is used to seeing.\u201d<\/p>\n Carone says the company is \u201cdefinitely building a lot of momentum in the entertainment business, a lot more momentum in the CPG business, which I\u2019m so thrilled about, a fair amount in auto.\u201d<\/p>\n Group Nine also used its NewFronts presence to highlight work it has done with Samsung. Last year, it created about two dozen 360-degree videos on Facebook for the VR headset Samsung Gear 360, generating 161 million views in five months and becoming the most popular brand campaign on Facebook in 2017, as AdExchanger reports<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWith Seeker, we\u2019re working a lot more with BtoB companies in the technology space who are interested in being part of those conversations that are all about harnessing the curiosity that we have today,\u201d Carone says.<\/p>\n