While they may be heavily regulated, the health and pharma industries are keen to find ways to use data to better target their audiences on streaming. The key, says Britt Travis, Co-Lead of Video Investment at EVERSANA INTOUCH, is pushing to get full transparency from their partners about the sources of that data and how it is being used. 

ALAN WOLK (AW): Britt, can you tell us a bit about Eversana Intouch and your role within the company?

BRITT TRAVIS (BT): EVERSANA INTOUCH is full-service, global healthcare marketing agency that has grown to more than 1,800 team members in the past few years. We’re a part of EVERSANA, our parent company, that supports the commercialization of life science and pharmaceutical brands for clients. As an agency, we represent clients within health, wellness, and pharmaceutical brands, providing media specialties and other brand health services. As the co-lead of video investment, I help ideate and execute campaigns for our clients across the entire video realm, focusing on direct partnerships.

AW: What are some challenges you face in the health and pharma industry with regard to video advertising?

BT: While I don't like to call them challenges, the video ecosystem is continuously evolving. It's critical for us to lean in and understand the full capabilities of our partners. We need to know who is excelling in different advancements and explore various targeting, measurement, and brand safety solutions. Ultimately, we aim to ensure our partners are transparent and providing us with the data we need to make informed decisions.

AW: How important is HIPAA compliance in the health and pharma industry when it comes to video advertising?

BT: HIPAA is the crux of the industry. Compliance is paramount for us, our clients, and our partners. At every step of the way, we need to make sure we adhere to HIPAA requirements, whether it's with targeting, creative teams, or executing campaigns. We always err on the side of caution and ensure that we protect our consumers.

AW: There have been concerns around transparency and ad placement in the streaming environment. How does this affect your work in the health and pharma industry?

BT: It's true that transparency is a significant growth opportunity in the streaming environment. That is why we continue to push for more transparency and details about where our ads are running. While we understand that streaming is different from linear TV, receiving information in a post-log, for example, would be extremely helpful. Some partners are starting to share limited information, but there's still room for improvement.

AW: Do you think transparency can lead to better business decisions?

BT: Absolutely. Understanding where our target audience is watching allows us to make better decisions on ad placement and even other business decisions like choosing spokespeople or exploring sponsorship opportunities. The more insights and transparency we have, the better equipped we are to drive more volume and meet our clients' needs.

AW: What do you think about contextual targeting? Do you think it has a place in the advertising landscape, especially in terms of addressing privacy and transparency issues?

BT: I love the fact that we're returning to contextual targeting, which was popular before advanced targeting took over. At the end of the day, we curate our campaigns for every client, and what works for one might not work for another. Within the targeting space, we don't like to say one type of targeting is better than the other. It's about effectively reaching our clients' audiences in ways they'll be tuned into. Contextual targeting checks the privacy box, as it doesn't require going down the path of strategic or hyper-targeting. However, that doesn't mean those methods aren't valuable either. There's room for all of them; it just depends on the client and their needs.

AW: My understanding is that there's no reason you can't combine different targeting methods, such as demographics and contextual targeting. Is there an issue with obtaining the right video-level data for contextual targeting?

BT: New technology has emerged, which I like to call "strategic, hyper-contextual." The technology that exists now has significantly improved compared to 2016. Contextual targeting used to be quite limited, but now it can provide more relevant and in-depth data. We’d love to see more supply partners share video-level data so we can take advantage of this technology to make our campaigns more effective and better serve our clients' objectives.

AW: Is there anyone who is playing a significant role in enabling better contextual targeting?

BT: Absolutely. We've been exploring IRIS.TV's IRIS_ID and have been genuinely impressed with what we can target at the video level. They took us through their dashboard, and the level of granularity they provide is outstanding. We can really identify and create detailed consumer profiles through their data partners’ targeting segments. It's an exciting development in the world of contextual targeting, and we're looking forward to harnessing the power of the IRIS_ID to enhance our ad campaigns.