IAB Engage: Moving Forward

After only working in the industry for one week, it gave me an insight into the mindset of the industry and where industry leaders see digital advertising going.Two common themes were highlighted throughout the day - the first being trust issues within the industry, and the second suggesting the industry needs to be ‘bolder’.GDPR was introduced on the 25th May and was a common theme throughout the day. John Stoneman, General Manager at Triplelift explored how the first two weeks of GDPR has impacted the top 100 publishers. Moreover, Stoneman stated premium European publishers have adapted to GDPR quicker than others and described it as ‘very positive’. Stoneman discussed GDPR in a light-hearted manor whilst highlighting how serious it is that the industry rebuilds the trust gap, which he suggested is happening and the future is looking bright for digital. In fact, speaker Claire Enders, founder of Enders Analysis stated that online advertising is a ‘great industry’ to get into, suggesting the UK as a ‘premier digital economy’.The day had a variety of speakers from HQ Trivia host Beric Livingstone and director Dylan Abruscato, to Brain O’Kelly, CEO at AppNexus. However, I found Lucy Jameson founder of Uncommon London particularly interesting. Jameson suggested the industry needs to be bolder and to look at problems as opportunities. Her ruthless attitude was very interesting, she suggested that the best businesses are created when there is a problem to be solved, leaving the audience by asking “what are you more scared of? Change; or what you’ll become if you don’t change?”. This end statement highlighted that online advertising cannot stagnate and the industry must try to keep up with technological advancements.Overall, the day covered a wide scope of current topics within the industry and made me very excited about what I can learn during my summer period here at Navigate Digital.Miles Branford, Marketing Intern