Clients saw an average of 21% improvement In commerce-marketing performance

Independently owned, global commerce marketing practice The Mars Agency this week unveiled the newest generation of its Marilyn^® Commerce Marketing Technology platform, which has been re-designed to give clients full visibility into the total business impact of their commerce-marketing activities.

The measurement methodologies available to commerce marketers have long been inconsistent in breadth, depth, and even taxonomy, making them woefully inadequate for optimizing investments across the retail landscape.

The upgraded Marilyn platform solves those issues by giving clients a clear, consistent view of  commerce marketing on brand growth, moving measurement beyond campaign-specific performance metrics like ROAS, or even ROI to evaluate the full financial contribution being made to the bottom line of their businesses.

The impact has been impressive: Companies using the Marilyn platform have leveraged the richer insights they gain to optimize investments and improve their commerce marketing performance by an average of 21% year-over-year.

"We've taken Marilyn's industry-leading capabilities to an even higher level with new solutions that not only provide a complete understanding of performance, but also make it easier for clients to access the information they need," said Jake Berry, EVP, General Manager of The Mars Agency and team lead of the Marilyn platform. "The results aren't just changing the go-to-market strategies of our clients — they're changing the perception of commerce marketing in their organizations."

The refreshed Marilyn platform is driving Total Business Impact through four key solutions:

• Data Management: Marilyn delivers the proverbial "single source of truth" for commerce-marketing performance by aggregating and normalizing data from all of a company's numerous sources. The platform has saved clients countless hours of work by putting all the necessary data at their fingertips while delivering the real-time transparency needed to make more informed, timelier decisions.
• Measurement & Intelligence: Marilyn's core offering is an unmatched ability to consistently pinpoint the incremental ROI and sales lift from commerce marketing by accurately segmenting out base sales, the effect of other marketing activities such as trade promotion and advertising, and other macroeconomic and environmental factors. The platform lets brands understand the Total Business Impact of their omnichannel programs at multiple levels, including retailer, program, and tactic.
• Planning Optimization: This unprecedented transparency into performance eliminates ineffective and inefficient spending, thereby improving productivity and accuracy and increasing profitability. Clients are able to maximize their investments by shifting dollars to the brands with the greatest growth potential and the retailers, programs, and tactics that are best able to drive that growth. 
• Insight & Analytics Hub: Marilyn's cutting-edge, user-friendly dashboards are designed to serve as "home base" for clients' complete commerce-marketing needs by providing a seamlessly integrated ecosystem for data analysis, media planning, and financial accounting that incorporates all required internal and external data sources.

"Brands can't afford to rely on inconsistent, vendor-reported data, and they can't be satisfied measuring their performance by ROAS," said Berry. "They need a single ecosystem that will help them standardize results, measure the Total Business Impact of their spend, and make smarter decisions. That's exactly what we've designed the new Marilyn platform to do."

Technology and services industry veteran joins leadership team

Coalfire, an industry-leading cybersecurity services and solutions company, today announced the appointment of Ashley Hart as chief marketing officer.

In her new role as chief marketing officer, Ashley Hart will lead Coalfire's brand management, communications, and marketing efforts. With a distinguished career in marketing products and services in the technology sector, Ashley has held key global leadership roles at such enterprise industry leaders as Oracle and Microsoft. Prior to her tenure at Oracle, she was the global chief marketing officer at Infor.

Tom McAndrew, chief executive officer of Coalfire, expressed his enthusiasm for this significant addition to the team, stating, "We are thrilled to welcome Ashley Hart to Coalfire. Ashley brings with her a track record of driving results and leading cross-functional teams in the technology and services sector, from scale-up to global enterprises. I am confident that her leadership and demand generation expertise will prove invaluable to Coalfire."

Ashley Hart also shared her excitement about joining Coalfire, saying, "Coalfire is an extraordinary opportunity, and it's at the forefront of the cybersecurity evolution. I am thrilled to join one of the most respected and trusted cybersecurity companies in the industry."

Groundbreaking AI-generated media detection platform closes round and adds Explainable AI, Real-Time Call Detection for clients.

Reality Defender, the premier deepfake and AI-generated media detection platform, today announced it has raised $15 Million in Series A funding. The round was led by DCVC, with participation from Comcast, ex/ante, Partnership Fund for New York City, Rackhouse Venture Capital, and Nat Friedman's AI Grant.

Founded in 2021, Reality Defender provides enterprises, content platforms, and governments with bleeding-edge solutions to proactively detect deepfake and AI-generated content across audio, video, images, and text. In just two years, the company has partnered with enterprises, governments, and platforms to detect millions of deepfakes, deflect state-sponsored attackers, stop disinformation, and prevent advanced voice fraud in real time.

"Our incredible team built the only platform capable of stopping the most advanced threats of our time," said Ben Colman, CEO and Co-Founder of Reality Defender. "Our new partners at DCVC not only believe in our platform and our team, but share our vision for growing Reality Defender to fully address the innumerable AI-enabled problems of tomorrow. We're thrilled to work in lockstep with a group so equally passionate about our mission of stopping dangerous deepfakes and GenAI content for good."

"While Generative AI has already created massive productivity boosts for products and companies, it has also significantly reduced the cost for bad actors to create fake news, media, voice, and even fake organizations to target individuals, institutions, banks and whole societies," said DCVC General Partner Ali Tamaseb. "In the face of this dire threat—a whole new cybersecurity category—Reality Defender's best-in-class technology is leading the delivery of an absolute civil necessity: the ability to distinguish between what's real and what isn't."

In addition to fundraising, Reality Defender has launched Explainable AI on the platform's web application. Available today for all clients using Text Detection, Explainable AI enables clients to scan a document and see color coded paragraphs of AI-generated text. Explainable AI for audio, video, and image detection will continue to roll out on the Reality Defender platform in the coming months. The company has also launched real-time voice deepfake detection to select clients, allowing call centers and anti-fraud teams to detect the use of manipulated or fabricated media as it happens.

Popular ChatCSV app provides intelligent insight into imported data

Flatfile, the pioneer of AI-assisted data exchange, today announced the acquisition of AI start-up Chatcsv Inc. With breakout growth in just a few months since its release, ChatCSV already has thousands of users. From global enterprises such as Procter & Gamble and McKinsey to technology companies such as Zapier, Quora and Vimeo, companies rely on ChatCSV for quick, contextual insight into CSV files and spreadsheets. The AI-powered app acts as a personal data analyst and allows users to "chat" with their CSV files, asking pointed questions to extract textual and visual insights from data, eliminating the tedious and error-prone process of navigating complex datasets manually.

The acquisition closely follows the recent release of the Flatfile Data Exchange Platform, an industry-first, extensible, API-driven platform for file-based data import. With the addition of ChatCSV's capabilities, Flatfile enriches its existing features and significantly strengthens its leadership in AI-assisted data exchange.

A Unifying Vision for AI-Enabled Data Interaction

"With the acquisition, Flatfile is doubling down on its AI capabilities to provide a unified, intuitive data import experience that does all the heavy lifting for the end user," said David Boskovic, founder and CEO of Flatfile.  "I was incredibly impressed with founder Sam Barrowclough, and am excited to have him join Flatfile to help us shape the future of AI-enabled data exchange, setting a new industry standard for what's possible."

Data is everywhere and often resides in files managed by individuals, vendors, customers, agents, remote offices, or partners. These files are highly variable in data quality, formats, and structure. It is imperative for every business that such data is available at the right time and is accurate, up-to-date, and secure. As companies race to build more intelligent and automated systems, machine learning and artificial intelligence are dramatically increasing the stakes of data accuracy and rapid availability.

Flatfile's robust API-driven platform coupled with ChatCSV's intuitive technology ensures that developers can provide an unparalleled data import experience for their users. ChatCSV aligns seamlessly with Flatfile's mission to simplify and accelerate the process of importing diverse data files from various sources.

The popular global instant messaging platform, imo, has set a new standard for privacy and security with its groundbreaking feature, Global Web Call. This innovative addition was launched worldwide on September 20, 2023, empowering users to communicate seamlessly across all messaging platforms while safeguarding their personal information through a universally accessible call link.

To harness the potential of this feature, users simply need to navigate to the Contacts tab and click 'Global Web Call.' Within moments, a unique, shareable link is generated, enabling anyone, user or not, to initiate a call. This transformative feature circumvents revealing personal information or phone numbers, making it a vital asset for individuals who prioritise their privacy.

This feature is an invaluable tool for travellers such as Hajj and Umrah pilgrims. It allows them to establish and maintain connections with new and old acquaintances and service providers without divulging personal social media information. 

Notably, this technology holds vast potential for business applications. It is poised to become the go-to communication solution for platforms like Careem and Noon, facilitating seamless interactions between users and businesses. Business owners can create dedicated call links for their enterprises, effectively segregating personal and professional conversations while ensuring customer privacy.

Global Web Call supports up to nine simultaneous callers per link, offering a user-friendly solution for friends to engage in cross-platform conversations. Real-time interactions have never been more straightforward, whether enjoying multiplayer games or simply catching up. imo will continue to enhance this feature, with a new video calling experience and support for over ten callers to be introduced.

Mehran Kabir, Business Director of imo, said, "In an era of numerous communication platforms, consolidating conversations and ensuring privacy can be challenging. Global Web Call simplifies this by enabling users to use one link for all their conversations while preserving privacy."

Study by ContentDetector.AI reveals that 51% of the top 100 consumer Generative AI applications are bootstrapped. Furthermore, while a significant number of these companies originate from the US, a substantial 42% hail from other parts of the world.

ContentDetector.AI has done a detailed study of the top 100 consumer AI applications and here are some interesting insights.

Key Highlights:

• 51% of the top 100 AI applications are bootstrapped
• 41% of the AI companies are not based in the U.S.
• 9% of the top 100 Consumer AI companies have women founders/co-founders. Only AskYourPDF boasts a black co-founder.
• Image Utility, Chatbots, and Art Generation emerge as the most popular Generative AI categories among consumers.
• 9 products have already been acquired.
• 7% of these Gen AI tools were flagged for NSFW content, indicating a need for robust content filters.
• AI websites pull in a median traffic of 4.97 million visits monthly, with an average of 29.02 million.

Rokt's AI technology to deliver more relevant experiences for consumers in Klarna app

Rokt, the leading ecommerce technology company using AI to make transactions more relevant to each shopper, today announced its partnership with Klarna, the AI powered global payments network and shopping assistant. Through the partnership, Klarna will leverage Rokt's advanced technology to unlock new marketing solutions for retailers and drive even more relevant experiences for consumers on Klarna's AI-powered shopping app.

Rokt's ecommerce solution enables companies to unlock additional revenues, acquire consumers at scale and deepen relationships with their existing ones. The company uses advanced machine learning to present highly relevant offers to each shopper in the final stages of an ecommerce transaction, when they are most likely to convert.

"We are thrilled to partner with Klarna, which has been such a trailblazer in payments and is well known for engaging consumers in a meaningful way," said Elizabeth Buchanan, Chief Commercial Officer of Rokt. "By delivering relevant offers to shoppers on Klarna's shopping app, Rokt will expand Klarna's marketing solutions across all categories, create deeper consumer connections and drive incremental profit."

Klarna and Rokt's partnership offers brands the ability to target consumer segments by demographic and location, ensuring ads shown are relevant and compelling to the shopper. This new offering also allows Klarna shoppers to access valuable and relevant offers from brands such as Hulu, HelloFresh and AdoreMe.

"We are dedicated to expanding Klarna's role as a growth partner for retailers and continuing to offer consumers tailored shopping experiences that meet their preferences," said Kristina Elkhazin, Head of North America, Klarna. "Rokt's technology will complement our own AI-powered shopping feed and create incremental value for both our retail partners and our shoppers."

Retailers and brands are leveraging Klarna's marketing and ad solutions to put their message in front of the company's US network of 37 million highly engaged and loyal shoppers. By partnering with Rokt, Klarna aims to offer retailers another opportunity to connect with their target audience and maximize conversion, while creating more curated shopping experiences for consumers.

Chatbots are the most popular AI-powered marketing tool today, but companies recognize the opportunity to do more — and are prioritizing data quality in order to get there

New research from Twilio, the customer engagement platform that drives real-time, personalized experiences for today’s leading brands, shows that AI automation has emerged as the primary means by which businesses are looking to grow revenues and operate efficiently.

Twilio Segment’s 2023 Growth Report, a study of 2,450 business leaders, found that 88% of businesses are already using some form of AI in their marketing efforts this year, and more than half (54%) expect to spend even more on AI-powered campaigns in the coming year. The findings show that leaders expect their AI investments to pay off, with nine out of ten leaders (90%) reporting that AI will deliver either time or cost savings for their business.

The rise of generative AI chatbots appears to be having an impact on marketing leaders, as chatbots are the most common way businesses expect to use AI. Among the survey’s respondents, 38% of businesses say they will be using AI chatbots in their marketing efforts.

Additionally, businesses are tapping into AI models using customer data to tailor their marketing, with 34% of leaders integrating predictive AI. For example, Cisco uses Twilio Segment to collect product analytics data, and is currently building an AI model to predict user’s propensity and readiness to buy or upgrade to a new product. Training AI models on real-time data creates a flywheel – as the models analyze more data, it gets smarter to understand, perceive, and activate on valuable customer insights stored in the Customer Data Platform (CDP).

Data quality and CDPs are critical enablers

The report also shines a light on the essential role of data quality: 40% of businesses are struggling with technology infrastructure or low-quality data, highlighting the pivotal role of relevant, timely data in unleashing the full power of AI. 71% of respondents say AI could be more useful with access to higher-quality data.

CDPs are having a positive effect in ensuring data quality: Companies using a CDP experienced a 32% growth rate in the past year, compared to a 21% growth rate at companies not using a CDP. Because CDPs unify customer data that is collected across the organization, it offers brands a single source of truth for their customers’ needs. These powerful tools are displacing the traditional customer relationship management (CRM) software — 24% of respondents say they plan to simplify, remove, or reduce their CRM spend in the coming 12 months. This shift points to the broader trend of businesses investing more in alternative technologies like data warehouses for customer data management that are powerfully interoperable with CDPs.

Consumer privacy concerns persist

On the topic of customer data, privacy remains paramount. While 66% of leaders feel that customers would appreciate AI-enhanced marketing if it leads to superior service, 28% express concerns about data privacy associated with AI adoption. Addressing these concerns, most businesses (85%) say it’s a priority to do a better job of capturing and leveraging first-party data in the coming year, marking a 14% increase from the 71% recorded in 2022.

“AI has taken the world by storm in 2023, and the data is clear that businesses have embraced the technology wholeheartedly as a means to attract, engage, and retain customers. The challenge now is ensuring that these AI efforts bear fruit,” said Katrina Wong, VP of Marketing at Twilio Segment. “Businesses have to prioritize data quality just as much, or even more, than they’re prioritizing AI. Otherwise, they’re leaving money on the table.”

AI to Take Center Stage at CDP Week 2023

For more about Twilio Segment’s 2023 Growth Report, and to discover how to more effectively deploy AI and use CDPs to solve data quality problems, tune into the virtual CDP Week, on October 24-26, 2023. Keynote speaker Sinead Bovell, a futurist and MIT-certified AI ethicist, will share her perspective on the future of work and life with advanced technologies. In addition, numerous speakers will offer sessions on increasing customer lifetime value (LTV), improving customer engagement, assessing your company’s data maturity, and more.