Broadcast technology leaders join forces to enable news production teams to accelerate storytelling – from pitch to publish

Avid®, a global leader in media production software, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Wolftech Broadcast Solutions, a leader in cloud-based multiplatform news production planning and publishing solutions. This strategic acquisition underscores Avid's commitment to transforming news, sports, and live production workflows, providing a comprehensive solution that integrates both companies' strengths.

• Integration of Digital-First Workflows:
  By integrating Wolftech's story-centric workflow management with Avid's end-to-end media solutions, news organizations will be able to amplify stories across multiple platforms faster and more efficiently, improving remote collaboration.

• Focus on Openness and Flexibility:
  Wolftech, which already integrates with Avid MediaCentral, will continue to offer compatibility with a wide range of tools. This acquisition will allow for deeper integration with Avid’s solutions while maintaining an open approach, providing customers with the flexibility to use other industry-leading platforms.

• Enhanced Global Support:
  Existing Wolftech customers will benefit from Avid’s global support infrastructure and professional services, enhancing their experience and ensuring smooth operations worldwide.

How the Acquisition Will Transform News Production:

• Break Down Silos:
  Teams across digital, broadcast, and long-form content creation will work together seamlessly, unlocking creativity and operational efficiency.

• Increase Efficiency:
  Leveraging sophisticated planning and analytics tools will allow organizations to maximize resources and enhance decision-making.

• Focus on the Story:
  This unified suite of tools will help capture and engage audiences faster by simplifying multiplatform content delivery.

• Improve Team Collaboration:
  Newsrooms, field teams, and remote workers will interact seamlessly using centralized communication tools available via web and mobile applications.

• Adapt to Evolving Technologies:
  Avid and Wolftech’s integration engine, open API, and AI-powered framework will provide the flexibility to innovate workflows as technology evolves.

Executive Insights:
Wellford Dillard, CEO of Avid Technology, shared his excitement:
"We are thrilled to welcome Wolftech to the Avid family. This acquisition strengthens Avid's position in the news market and underscores our commitment to delivering best-in-class solutions that empower news organizations to thrive in today's fast-paced digital landscape."

Arne Berven, CEO of Wolftech, echoed this enthusiasm:
"Joining forces with Avid represents an exciting opportunity to revolutionize news production. By integrating our multiplatform planning, collaboration, and publishing capabilities with Avid’s leading solutions, we’ll enable news organizations to adapt to evolving audience demands more efficiently than ever before."

The acquisition of Wolftech Broadcast Solutions marks a significant milestone for Avid, as it looks to enhance news production workflows with innovative tools that improve efficiency, collaboration, and storytelling in today’s digital-first environment.

Source, amplify, convert, and optimize shopper, creator and community-generated content and manage campaigns, all from one place.

At GroceryShop today, Bazaarvoice, the leading platform for full-funnel user-generated content (UGC) and social commerce, announced Bazaarvoice Vibe—a revolutionary solution designed to source, amplify, convert, and optimize UGC and creator-generated content across multiple channels from one centralized platform. The global release is set for November 1.

• Unified Solution for UGC and Creator Campaigns:
  With AI-powered automations and one-click distribution features, Bazaarvoice Vibe simplifies managing UGC and creator campaigns from a single platform, streamlining workflows that previously required multiple tools.

• Comprehensive Content Strategy Management:
  Vibe integrates Creator Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Social Commerce, and Product Sampling into one platform, allowing brands to source and amplify compelling, community-driven content across all consumer touchpoints, driving both engagement and conversions.

• Real-time Analytics and Insights:
  Vibe provides real-time metrics for campaign performance, creator effectiveness, and revenue contribution, offering detailed insights for optimizing content strategies at every stage of the customer journey.

Executive Insights:
Colby Smith, Executive Vice President at Bazaarvoice, highlighted the platform’s impact:
"Bazaarvoice Vibe makes it easy for brands to power their UGC and creator campaigns from a single solution. With AI-powered automations and insights that optimize campaign spend, brands can bridge the gap between social engagement and e-commerce success."

Customer Success Story:
Dave Plowden, VP of Marketing at FITCRUNCH (Pervine Foods), shared how Vibe has transformed their business:
"With Bazaarvoice Vibe, it feels like we’ve gained the power of five essential tools in one, streamlining workflow, reducing costs, and enhancing efficiency. It’s a game-changer for our business."

Key Benefits of Bazaarvoice Vibe:

1. Accelerated Speed to Market:
   Vibe enables brands to execute and measure campaigns faster, helping them gain a competitive advantage by reducing time to market.

2. Real-time Data for Informed Decisions:
   With end-to-end reporting, brands can track real-time metrics throughout the customer funnel, making data-driven decisions that support measurable growth.

3. Scaling Business Objectives:
   Vibe helps brands deliver the right content at the right time across key channels, improving content performance and conversion metrics, and driving scalable growth.

4. Optimizing Omnichannel Strategies:
   Vibe streamlines content distribution across channels, ensuring that high-quality content reaches consumers wherever they are—be it on social media or product detail pages—maximizing both reach and revenue.

Industry Insight:
Ananda Chakravarty, VP of Research at IDC Retail Insights, commented on Vibe’s innovation:
"Bazaarvoice Vibe is a revolutionary shift in content management. Marketers can now access a vast network of influencers and communities, with clear results shifting from estimates to actual metrics."

Bazaarvoice Vibe marks a new era in UGC and social commerce, providing brands with a powerful tool to drive engagement, streamline workflows, and ultimately, increase revenue.

The company will also participate in a panel discussion with Orange Apron Media and Pentaleap at this year’s Advertising Week

Vantage, the orchestration layer for retail and commerce media, has announced that its comprehensive retail media platform, previously available in limited release, is now accessible to all retailers. This platform aims to enhance retail media businesses, unlocking high-margin revenue opportunities and driving growth in an evolving media landscape.

• Unified Orchestration Layer:
  Vantage serves as a central hub that integrates various teams across the retailer, simplifies workflows, and connects siloed technology systems. This unified approach addresses longstanding challenges in the retail media space, enabling efficient scaling and optimization of media operations.

• Real-time Insights and Analytics:
  The platform empowers brand and retail teams by providing real-time sales and market insights, facilitating better decision-making and action across multiple marketing channels, whether on-site, offsite, or in-store.

Executive Insights:
Aran Hamilton, CEO of Vantage, emphasized the transformative potential of retail media:
"Retail media is not just the latest fad in the industry; it's an opportunity to transform the relationship between retailers and their vendor partners. Vantage helps retailers launch and scale retail media networks to their full potential by integrating disjointed teams and technologies."

Collaboration with The Home Depot:
Vantage is powering the launch of Orange Access, the new analytics, insight, and advertising platform for The Home Depot’s retail media network, Orange Apron Media. This integration allows advertisers and Orange Apron Media associates to plan, activate, and optimize campaigns seamlessly through a single, intuitive interface.

Melanie Babcock, VP for Orange Apron Media and Monetization at The Home Depot, stated:
“Collaborating with Vantage has allowed us to be the first in the industry to streamline all of the work of all of our teams into one platform. Vantage empowers The Home Depot to scale our retail media business, meet advertiser needs, and deliver significant results.”

Strategic Leadership Appointment:
In a bid to bolster its growth, Vantage has appointed Drew Cashmore as Head of Strategy. Cashmore brings invaluable expertise, further reinforcing Vantage's leadership in the retail media industry.

Upcoming Participation at Advertising Week:
Vantage will participate in a panel discussion titled "Unlocking Best-in-Class Service, Scale, & Experience in Retail Media" at this year’s Advertising Week. Aran Hamilton will join Melanie Babcock and Andreas Reiffen of Pentaleap to explore how innovative partnerships are reshaping the retail media landscape. The panel is scheduled for Monday, October 7, at 4:10 pm ET at the Insights Stage.

With its comprehensive platform and strategic partnerships, Vantage is poised to redefine the retail media landscape, enabling retailers to optimize their operations and drive meaningful results.

GenAI search technology and expanded data sources power enhanced brand suitable, contextual solution for YouTube

Pixability, a leader in AI-driven contextual targeting, brand suitability, and performance on YouTube and connected TV (CTV), has announced the launch of GenAI Contextual Segments (GCS). This updated version of its YouTube ad inventory solution is powered by GenAI and leverages the company's extensive video-level data, encompassing over 3.6 billion YouTube videos, to create high-performing contextual segments tailored for brands and agencies.

The Need for Advanced Solutions
As Pixability's video data has exponentially increased, it has become crucial to utilize technology alongside human curation to identify videos that align with specific advertiser audiences. The GCS solution aims to pinpoint content types that particular personas have engaged with in the past, employing a GenAI-powered search tool to surface relevant content.

Executive Insights
David George, CEO of Pixability, commented:
“As YouTube’s CTV reach exceeds all other platforms, and its Shorts content continues to grow, advertisers have realized they need to optimize this critical ad platform. With the increasing volume of content, ensuring efficient audience targeting has become a challenge. Our GCS solution combines the power of GenAI with our industry-leading YouTube contextual data to drive next-level targeting and unlock more value for advertisers on YouTube.”

Key Features of GenAI Contextual Segments:

1. GenAI-Enhanced Search:

   • Utilizes semantic search and large language models (LLM) for precise identification of relevant YouTube video inventory.
   • Creates vectorized clusters of content based on Pixability’s enriched video-level dataset, allowing users to adjust the relevance of these clusters.

2. Persona Insights Engine:

   • Leverages proprietary data from previous YouTube campaigns to identify content types that specific personas engage with beyond their known interests.
   • For example, a quick-service restaurant (QSR) brand targeting GenX men might find that, in addition to sports content, their audience also engages with science and news content, allowing for a broader contextual focus to enhance performance.

3. GenAI Inventory Curation:

   • Combines Pixability’s extensive YouTube data with the largest pool of contextual data in the industry, including suitability data, IAB category data, language data, past ad performance data, and insights from the Inclusive Media Initiative.
   • The GCS solution has already demonstrated success, achieving a 49% increase in performance efficiency for a recent YouTube campaign.

Industry Perspectives:
Vlad Novikov, Director of Digital Standards at Publicis Media, remarked:
"Finding niche audiences at scale on YouTube is a significant challenge for many advertisers. Pixability's GenAI CS addresses this challenge by leveraging the largest relevant dataset to drive optimal outcomes on the largest video platform."

Jeremy Cobb, VP of Digital Platforms at H/L Agency, added:
“We are always seeking efficient ways to drive outcomes for brands on YouTube. Pixability’s proprietary access to YouTube data and its tech-driven approach have enabled us to do just that for our automotive and QSR clients. We’re excited about the potential of the GCS solution and expect it to significantly impact how advertisers derive value from their YouTube campaigns.”

Jeremy Cornfeldt, President of Tinuiti, concluded:
"Pixability has always focused on technology solutions that drive not just brand suitability but also performance outcomes on YouTube. Their new GenAI-powered inventory solution offers a precise way to curate content most relevant to an advertiser's audience, maximizing impact."

With the launch of GenAI Contextual Segments, Pixability aims to revolutionize YouTube advertising by providing advertisers with the tools necessary to efficiently target and engage audiences, ultimately driving better performance and value.

Advanced Analytics Harnesses the Power of Data to Improve Customer Experiences and Drive Revenue Growth

Broadvoice, a leading global customer experience (CX) technology provider, has announced the launch of enhanced reporting and journey management capabilities designed to improve the overall customer experience. With Advanced Analytics, organizations can optimize customer interactions, streamline operations, and boost agent productivity.

João Camarate, Chief Technology Officer at Broadvoice, highlighted the significance of this upgrade:
“Broadvoice’s Advanced Analytics simplifies the complexity of data, making it accessible and understandable for users of all levels. With actionable insights to make strategic, data-driven decisions, businesses can easily optimize people and processes, leading to improved service levels and revenue growth.”

What’s New with Broadvoice Advanced Analytics

Consolidated Customer Data
Advanced Analytics connects and consolidates customer data across Broadvoice’s CX ecosystem, merging information from both UCaaS (Unified Communications as a Service) and CCaaS (Contact Center as a Service) platforms into one user-friendly solution. Key functionalities include:

• Intuitive Dashboards: Access to real-time data and trend analysis.
• Customer Journey Mapping: Tracks the customer journey from start to finish, highlighting engagement opportunities and areas for improvement.
• Performance Insights: Identifies trends, anomalies, and performance gaps for real-time feedback and coaching.

Key Benefits of Advanced Analytics

1. Strategic Insights:

   • Empowers businesses to make informed decisions aligned with objectives and market dynamics.

2. Operational Excellence:

   • Drives efficiency by identifying areas for process optimization, reducing waste, and enhancing service delivery.

3. Proactive Problem Solving:

   • Leverages trend analysis to anticipate and address potential issues before they escalate, enhancing customer satisfaction.

4. Competitive Advantage:

   • Provides a deep understanding of customer interactions, fostering superior customer experiences and loyalty.

Transforming Customer Experience
Broadvoice is revolutionizing the customer experience landscape with its comprehensive CX solution, which integrates GoContact CCaaS and b-hive UCaaS platforms. These tools utilize AI, microservices, and omnichannel capabilities to deliver personalized customer experiences while improving contact center agility and ROI.

The Role of AI in Advanced Analytics

AI-Enhanced Reporting and Journey Mapping
The integration of Advanced Analytics and Broadvoice AI enhances the delivery of accurate, AI-powered experiences. Advanced Analytics provides critical data that the AI uses to visualize and analyze customer and agent behavior.

Earlier this year, Broadvoice introduced a new AI-powered workforce management solution that includes forecasting, scheduling, capacity planning, and staffing adjustments. Upcoming features, such as Post-call AI functionalities like Quality Automation, are expected to launch before the end of 2024.

“With Broadvoice, it’s never been easier or more accessible for mid-sized businesses to deploy and harness the power of AI, workforce management, and Advanced Analytics to improve Customer Experience,” said Camarate.

The new suite empowers marketers to maximize customer lifetime value with unmatched efficiency.

Resonate, a leader in predictive consumer intelligence, has announced the launch of a groundbreaking suite of AI-powered solutions designed to transform how brands understand and engage with their customers and prospects. These rAI-Enabled Solutions, built on Resonate’s proprietary AI infrastructure, offer unmatched precision, predictive modeling capabilities, and real-time insights. This empowers marketers, analysts, and data scientists to make faster and smarter decisions, ultimately enhancing customer experiences and driving business growth.

1. Predictive Modeling
The Predictive Modeling solution revolutionizes the traditional approach that often involves hiring specialized teams and making significant investments. By integrating Resonate’s proprietary behavioral data with AI models, this solution identifies critical customer behaviors, such as:

• Churn Risk Detection: Understanding when customers are likely to leave.
• High-Value Customer Identification: Targeting customers with the greatest potential for profitability.

This capability enables brands to improve targeting, manage customer lifecycles effectively, and drive revenue growth.

2. Data Install for Website Personalization
Resonate’s rAI-Powered Data Install enhances engagement and conversions by delivering continuously updated consumer data. This solution allows brands to provide real-time personalization for website visitors from their first interaction, leading to:

• Improved Conversion Rates: Higher likelihood of turning visitors into customers.
• Deeper Customer Connections: Enhanced relationships with customers through personalized experiences.

3. Resonate Embeddings
This feature offers a secure, privacy-compliant 90-day digital footprint of U.S. consumers. Brands can leverage this data to:

• Enhance Customer Acquisition and Retention: Predicting future behaviors accurately.
• Integrate into Existing Models: Allowing brands to better anticipate customer needs, preferences, and behaviors.

Expert Insights

Bryan Gernert, CEO of Resonate, emphasized the significance of this launch:
"The launch of these rAI Enabled Solutions is a defining moment for the market. We’re transforming how marketers understand, model, and engage consumers by leveraging our proprietary AI infrastructure and unmatched data to provide a comprehensive, dynamic view of consumer behavior — delivering results within 72 hours. This goes beyond data and insights; it’s about precision, accuracy, and speed to action that empowers clients to anticipate and respond to consumer needs in real time. For a fraction of the time and cost of current solutions, our tools offer an unparalleled ability to predict and act on future behavior, keeping our clients one step ahead."

Resonate’s rAI-Enabled Solutions are set to redefine customer engagement strategies, allowing brands to maximize customer lifetime value and drive sustainable growth in a competitive landscape. With these tools, businesses can expect a significant boost in their marketing effectiveness and customer connection.

The leading landing page platform introduces its newest features, adding robust capabilities to its impressive roster of lead generation & optimization benefits

Instapage, a cutting-edge software solution designed to empower marketers in creating, optimizing, and personalizing landing pages without the need for coding or design skills, has announced the launch of its new Form Builder and Form Library. These features enable users to quickly build custom lead-generating forms, streamlining their workflow and enhancing campaign performance.

1. Quick Form Creation
The new Form Builder allows users to create forms in seconds, making it easier than ever to generate leads directly from landing pages. Key functionalities include:

• Drag-and-Drop Functionality: Users can create forms effortlessly with drag-and-drop fields, eliminating the need for coding.
• Customization Options: A rich menu of field and style settings enables users to tailor forms to their brand’s identity.

2. Form Library for Easy Access
All newly created forms will be stored in the Form Library, accessible from users' workspaces and landing pages. This feature offers:

• Reusability: Users can easily reuse forms across different campaigns, speeding up the launch process.
• Efficient Management: The centralized library simplifies the management of multiple forms, enhancing operational efficiency.

3. Comprehensive Landing Page Solution
Instapage's new features complement its existing offerings, which include:

• Intuitive Landing Page Builder: A user-friendly drag-and-drop interface that makes designing landing pages simple.
• Conversion-Optimized Templates: Hundreds of ready-to-use templates tailored for high conversions.
• A/B Testing Capabilities: Users can test different landing page variations and utilize AI to direct traffic to the best-performing pages.
• Analytics Dashboard: Robust insights to track campaign performance and user engagement.

Empowering Marketers

Instapage aims to eliminate the complexity of juggling multiple tools or dealing with form embed codes, providing marketers with a comprehensive solution to build high-performing landing pages and maximize ROI.

Saranya Babu, General Manager of Instapage, commented,
“Instapage can be the marketer's best friend in today’s cost-conscious and profit-focused environment. By arming them with all the tools they need to launch their campaigns and generate leads, without depending on technical experts, Instapage makes marketers self-sufficient and able to operate successfully with lean teams and low budgets.”

Industry Impact

Acquired by airSlate, a leading provider of business productivity and automation solutions, in 2023, Instapage continues to support businesses in maximizing their digital advertising performance. The platform has assisted numerous clients, including industry giants like Verizon and innovative companies like Lattice, in building stunning, high-converting landing pages tailored for their campaigns.

The introduction of the Form Builder and Form Library reinforces Instapage’s commitment to providing marketers with the tools they need to succeed. Whether aiming to save time, consolidate their marketing stack, or boost conversions, Instapage is positioned as a comprehensive solution for today’s marketers.

Brands can incorporate AI-driven personalization and seamless multi-channel campaigns with ready-to-launch campaigns and recipes for faster ROI

Blueshift, a leading Customer Data Platform (CDP) and cross-channel marketing platform, is excited to announce its new Shopify App Integration. This integration is designed to help e-commerce brands fully leverage their customer data by seamlessly synchronizing customer information, shopping behavior, and transactional data with Blueshift’s AI-powered platform, enabling personalized and automated marketing campaigns.

1. Effortless Setup
Shopify users can quickly connect their stores with Blueshift in just a few clicks, eliminating the need for advanced technical knowledge. This integration allows businesses to manage customer data efficiently without the complexity often associated with data management.

2. Real-Time Data Synchronization
With the Shopify integration, customer data, product catalogs, and behavioral events are automatically synced in real time. This capability enables marketers to create hyper-personalized campaigns that foster deeper engagement and drive increased revenue.

3. AI-Powered Personalization
Blueshift’s integration enhances marketing strategies by leveraging AI-driven personalization to optimize interactions across various channels, including email, SMS, web, and mobile. This ensures that customers receive the right message at the right time.

Introducing the e-Commerce Accelerator Plan

Alongside the Shopify integration, Blueshift is launching the e-Commerce Accelerator Plan—a powerful bundle of marketing tools designed to accelerate time-to-value for Shopify users and other e-commerce brands. This solution allows businesses to go live in just 30 days with nine pre-built automated campaigns aimed at boosting conversions, driving revenue, and enhancing customer engagement.

Key Features of the e-Commerce Accelerator Plan:

• 9 Pre-Built Automated Campaigns: Including essential strategies like abandoned cart recovery, post-purchase follow-ups, and personalized product recommendations based on rich customer profiles.
• AI-Driven Recommendations: Each campaign is tailored with nine pre-defined AI-powered recommendations that adapt to customer behaviors in real time.
• Seamless Shopify Integration: The integration ensures that product catalogs and customer data are consistently updated, allowing for optimal campaign performance.
• Increased Efficiency: Marketers can launch campaigns quickly and focus on strategic planning rather than technical setup, maximizing their productivity.

Revolutionizing E-Commerce Marketing

Vijay Chittoor, CEO at Blueshift, stated,
“Shopify users now have access to a powerful marketing tool that simplifies customer engagement while driving results. By integrating Blueshift’s CDP, AI-driven personalization, and multi-channel orchestration capabilities, Shopify merchants can optimize every interaction.”

Blueshift’s Shopify App Integration and e-Commerce Accelerator Plan provide a comprehensive solution for e-commerce brands looking to drive fast, measurable results. By harnessing the power of AI and real-time data activation, marketers can focus on strategy and engagement, ensuring success in today’s competitive landscape.