placements.io

Placements.io messaging. 

Background and a recap of the brief 
Jobs to be done

Beneath is helping Placements.io to refresh and refine its brand both verbally and visually. This will involve work on the visual identity (logo, colours, fonts, web designs, etc) and the website (improved structure and content).

But our first, foundational task is the verbal side of the brand, i.e. the positioning and messaging Placements.io uses – at a number of levels:

Company positioning and story – how we position Placements.io as a brand, and the overarching story we tell.
Review of OMS positioning and messaging – how we position the main product, and messaging that flexes for its audiences.
Review of Campfire positioning and messaging – how we position the demand-side product, and messaging on that side.
[Marketplace positioning and messaging – how we position the marketplace play, and the end-to-end credibility this gives the overall company story.]
[Further brand additions – like new product and services.]

Our initial focus in on the first item – or rather, an overarching narrative at the brand level that also encompasses the OMS and Campfire products and sets us up for the end-to-end element that the marketplace will provide. Any work we do now at the brand level has to accommodate products and services within it.


Work done so far

The great news is we’re not starting from scratch. Lots of work has been done already: 

Ed tells a strong and passionate story about his own journey and the Placements.io mission. 
Andy has done excellent work (with the wider team) on the positioning and messaging for the company and for the OMS product.   
Some more work needs to be done on the Campfire side, but Pete has been honing the story there. 


What’s missing?

Now we need to refine this work further, capture it in a brand narrative that can act as the overarching story for Placements.io and its products, and bring it to life with some creative executions. 

That means:

Weaving some of the higher-level, mission-based narrative into the company positioning and messaging
Finalising the messaging work that Andy and team have been developing for OMS
Exploring some creative executions, to help us test concepts and tone of voice
Planning the website as a primary channel for presenting the Placements.io story and content

Website refresh

As our most prominent brand real estate, the website will be a critical piece of the puzzle. 

We can think of it as both medium and message: it’s where we’ll tell our story but it will also play a big part in how we tell it. 

How should we structure the site? By products? By audience? By pain points? By capabilities?

A combination of all of these?

Thinking about the structure and hierarchy of the site now, in tandem with the brand work, will help us to tell the Placements.io story better when the time comes to refresh the website. 


The big challenge: one story to rule them all

We have the elements of a company story that needs to be told at different altitudes and with different focus points, depending on the context. For example, on the homepage of the website, in prospect pitch decks, for investors, or for recruitment purposes. 

Our overarching story must also flex for the different products that fall within the brand.

And we have different audiences with various needs. Some of these needs can be seen as competing. And sometimes one audience can be a prospect for more than one product.

In other words, there are many variables we have to control. Our story must be robust enough to accommodate all situations, and flexible enough to be effective in each context.

How we approach positionings, and some definitions

Some of the keywords we use in this space can mean different things to different people, so it’s useful to quickly define a few terms, and to outline how we approach these kind of brand projects at Beneath.

Positioning – To create a positioning is to attempt to control how a company or product is viewed in the mind of the buyer. In particular, it’s about how we make sure we communicate our difference. At Beneath, we do this by helping brands answer six key questions (which Andy and team have answered for OMS in the detailed messaging doc):

Why must your story be told now?
What market category do you want to be in? 
What defines your ideal customer? 
What do you help them achieve?
What are your competitive alternatives?
What makes you better than the alternatives? 

Narrative – We then take the elements of our positioning and use them to create a written narrative, which is sometimes shared publicly as a manifesto or kept internal as a kind of master story to inform what we say in our external copy. 

Messaging – Simply defined, messaging is what we want to communicate; and copy is how we say it in our marketing materials. The narrative is a form of messaging (and sometimes shared in drafted copy like a manifesto), and we may have various messaging frameworks for different products and audiences (like Andy and team have developed for OMS).

The high-level Placements.io story
The Stripe model: what we do / why we do it

Stripe is a great case study in positioning and messaging. The secret to their product’s success is that there is no secret: they just made internet payments better. But they communicate what they do – and why they do it – in a clear and compelling way. Here’s what they say on their home page, and then more of an ‘About us’ message: 

A Placements.io equivalent


 
Home (What we do/are/enable)
About (Why we do it/mission/manifesto)
Keywords
	•	Trust
	•	Transparency
	•	Productivity
	•	Value creation

Tagline ideas
	•	The operating system for ad sales
	•	The operating system for digital advertising
	•	The leading operating system for advertising sales
	•	The #1 supply chain management software for media
	•	The monetization infrastructure for companies that buy and sell media
	•	Advertising infrastructure for the internet
	•	Advertising infrastructure for a better internet
	•	The new digital advertising infrastructure 
	•	Consolidate data, automate processes, and align teams
	•	Plan, book, and bill…
Keywords
	•	Creepy
	•	Shadowy
	•	Complexity and fragmentation
	•	Commoditization

Tagline ideas
	•	Our mission is to fight for a better web
	•	To make the web less creepy
	•	To support the growth and profitability of Retail Media, Publishers, Brands, and Agencies who buy and sell advertising
	•	To help you profitably scale your advertising business
	•	To improve ROAS

The “creepy” story

To quote Ed, the internet is creepy. Specifically, the way companies across the whole digital advertising ecosystem gather, use and monetize individuals’ data is creepy (bordering on criminal). So one version of our mission is “To make the internet less creepy.” 

It’s provocative and impactful, but going down the “creepy” route could be problematic:

	•	Will it alienate some of our customers?
	•	Do we tarnish ourselves by association? We’re improving things, but by how much? Are we complicit?
	•	Is it specific enough? There are other injustices and broken processes in our sights.
	•	Are we speaking directly to the needs of our customers, the companies buying and selling media?

Creepiness is an important part of out story, but for our brand narrative can we flip it into an even bigger, more positive vision – while staying as impactful, emotive, and relevant to our audience(s) as possible? Eg, like we saw on the previous slide: “Our mission is to fight for a better web.”

Here are some thought starters…
What kind of internet (advertising) are we helping to build?


Less creepy 
Better 
Fairer
Safer
More private
Trusted 
Transparent
Efficient
Disintermediated
Direct
Less arbitraged
Profitable
Controllable
Manageable
Scalable
Simple


The answer may be “all of the above” but we must prioritize our messaging for our high-level story, and ensure we’re catering to the needs of each audience at the right time.

A brand as a movement

Remember when Salesforce launched a campaign against traditional software?


What would the equivalent movement look like for Placements.io? Who is the villain we’re against?

	•	We're against 'black box' digital advertising where value goes to die
	•	We're against a lack of transparency that inhibits brands
	•	We're against fragmentation and complexity that kills productivity
	•	We're against the status quo siphoning value from buyers and sellers
	•	We’re against adtech killing advertisers’ businesses.
	•	We’re against leaky infrastructure where about half of ad spend is lost to intermediary fees – and 15% vanishes without attribution!
	•	We’re against the erosion of data privacy.

A world in which Placements.io is the hero

Building our brand is about building a world in which our customers need Placements.io. We’re the hero.

We can communicate this in our narrative and messaging. We can also demonstrate it by becoming a helpful resource for our audiences. (The best marketing usually isn’t really ‘marketing. It’s just a company doing what it does so well, and sharing its expertise so generously, that people take notice.)

So, once the main brand work has progressed, Placements.io may want to begin building its ‘content brand’, i.e. create a content marketing strategy (covering blog, social, video, Substack, etc.) that will help establish the brand as a trusted authority. And then start making some fun, genuinely informative stuff for people. 


Tone of voice

Some thoughts on tone of voice, which we can test out in later slides with some creative exploration.

Bold
No-nonsense
Playful (but not too playful)

The Placements.io positioning headline & brand narrative (WIP)


2 options for our headline, ie for homepage:

The operating system for ad sales.
Placements makes digital advertising more efficient, transparent, and profitable – for buyers and sellers.
/
Advertising infrastructure for a better internet.
By making digital advertising more efficient, transparent, and profitable – for buyers and sellers – we’re making the internet better for everyone.

Placements.io brand narrative: WIP draft

Digital advertising is broken. For years it’s been a fragmented space where complexity and commoditization mean publishers don’t get the revenue they deserve and brands and agencies struggle to achieve sufficient return on their investment.

It’s also made the internet a creepy place for consumers. Ultimately, every single one of us who uses the internet has paid the price with our data and our privacy.

Now, with tightening privacy regulations, antitrust legislation, and the loss of the tracking mechanisms that have so far propped up this broken ecosystem, things are going to change. Are walled gardens the answer? Will the open web ever offer a solution that's fair for advertisers, publishers and consumers?

The future of digital advertising is highly uncertain. Placements.io exists to help businesses thrive whatever comes next. By making digital advertising more efficient, transparent, and profitable – for buyers and sellers – we’re making the internet better for everyone.

Placements.io provides solutions to streamline complex advertising businesses. On a single platform, you can consolidate your data, automate your workflows, and get all your teams on the same page – across sales, operations, and finance. No more friction. No more waste. Publishers and advertisers can now manage inventory, traffic campaigns, recognize revenue, and get paid faster. Our platform leverages deep, bi-directional ecosystem integrations to consolidate data, and AI to drive better business outcomes.

Leading publishers, retail networks, brands, and agencies use Placements.io to gain productivity and transparency across their operations. You can optimize yield, bill accurately and efficiently, and scale revenue without scaling headcount. We empower you with software that eliminates chaos and complexity, so you can focus on what matters: executing strategic programs that drive growth.

Placements.io: Advertising infrastructure for a better internet.

Playing with creative lines and concepts to test some ideas 
 
Digital advertising doesn’t have to be a zero-sum game

With publishers, agencies, brands and retail networks all optimizing and automating the buying and selling of media – and with more adtech and intermediaries complicating the picture – digital advertising feels like a zero-sum game. When someone gets a better deal, it’s because someone else gets a worse one. Not to mention the effect of all this on the rights, privacy and experience of the audiences targeted by advertisers.

We believe there’s a better way. So we’ve built the operating system for digital advertising that’s fairer for brands, publishers and consumers.

Placements.io: Advertising infrastructure for a better internet.


The Open Web’s 
open secret

Everyone knows the supply chain for digital media is leaky. Agencies, intermediaries, adtech and other players all take their cut.

But did you know that The ANA estimates that 25% of the Open Web programmatic market is “straight-up waste”?

That’s about $22 billion that can’t be accounted for. Waste? Inefficiency? Arbitrage? Whatever you call it, we think it’s time to make the Open Web’s open secret a thing of the past.

Placements.io: Making digital advertising efficient, transparent, and profitable.


Placements.io: Making the internet less creepy since 2013.


The advertising marketplace of the future.

Ad media infrastructure for a better internet.


Placements.io: where advertising businesses grow.


Think outside the black box.

Placements.io makes digital ad sales transparent.

Farm-to-table digital advertising management

The digital media supply path is a long and winding one, with a growing list of players, channels, business models and media types. All of this complexity has made it basically impossible to run an efficient, profitable ad operation with total confidence and control.

Until now. Finally, there’s a unified platform for managing your digital advertising end-to-end. From media plan to placement, from IO to invoice and payment – Placements.io helps you profitably scale your advertising revenue by consolidating data, workflow automation, and cross-functional alignment.

Placements.io: the operating system for ad sales.

More ad products.
Fewer billing headaches.

Everyone loves cross-platform, multi-channel, omni-present digital campaigns – until they have to figure out the billing. 

That’s why Placements.io exists. It’s the single platform for managing your advertising business end-to-end. Which means simpler billing, fewer errors, faster payments and huge improvements in visibility and control.  

Placements.io: the operating system for ad sales.


E2E campaign management. On a single platform.

Streamline your digital advertising operations with Placements.io, the operating system for ad sales.



Track every KPI 
without getting RSI.

With so many different channels to manage and systems to log into, all that screen switching can quickly turn into a workplace health risk for Ad Ops professionals.

Do your Ad Ops team (and their necks) a favor. Give them Placements.io, the platform that unifies advertising operations so you can get more done in less time.

Placements.io: the operating system for ad sales.



You’ve got the most intelligent, dynamic digital ad solutions… and you’re still using spreadsheets to sell them?

Placements.io: the operating system for ad sales.


Placements.io isn’t the sexiest adtech out there. 

Unless you’re into unifying your end-to-end ad business, improving productivity and visibility, and setting your entire operation up for profitable growth. 

In which case it’s okay to get excited about our boring operating system for ad sales.

Placements.io: monetization infrastructure for companies that buy and sell advertising.


Be as good at buying ad media as publishers are at selling it.


Campfire by Placements.io: The demand-side platform you’ve been dreaming about.


Hey media strategists, here’s a breakthrough insight for you: 
You should be spending more time actually doing strategy.

Placements.io can help. Our intuitive interface, AI, workflow automation, and expansive, bi-directional API integrations centralize activities and consolidate data, aligning sales, operations, and finance teams.

Placements.io: the operating system for ad sales.


They say that in strategy, what you don’t do is as important as what you do.

Don’t: waste time dipping in and out of countless channels and systems.

Do: consolidate data, automate processes, and maximize productivity via one unified platform.


Placements.io: the operating system for ad sales.

Product hierarchy and naming 

Some thoughts on naming


 
Current
OMS
Campfire
Marketplace
Notes
Descriptive
Placements for Ad Sales
Placements for Ad Buys
Placements Marketplace
Is “ad sales/buys” too narrow?
Descriptive
Placements for Ad Sellers
Placements for Ad Buyers
Placements Marketplace
 
Evocative
Treehouse
Campfire
Tradepost
Too much like SFDC national parks brand?
Portmanteau
Sellplace
Buyplace
Marketplace
Could combine with “...by Placements.io”
…
 
Next steps and questions

	•	Are we on the right track?
	•	What’s missing?
	•	It feels like we should go down the manifesto route for our brand narrative: create a longer(ish)-form story that we publish on the site, so we have the space to explore all the ideas and nuances, and it can act as a piece of POV marketing in itself. 
	•	Think about naming