The Good News and the Bad News

According to Emily Steel of the Wall Street Journal in her article “More Digital Ads are Produced Offshore”, Madison Avenue is jumping on the outsourcing bandwagon with its digital ad production. Agencies interviewed cite both cheaper labor AND the fact that “most ad agencies can't find enough talent in the U.S. to fill their needs.”  If you’re an out of work graphic designer, this might want to make you smash your new MacBook Air.  On the other hand, could this finally give advertisers access to the quick and affordable creative necessary to forge bravely (and profitably) ahead in the digital frontier?

Micro-versioning, micro-segmentation, micro-targeting, and personalization are no longer just the buzz words of the day. As online advertising technology advances, the idea of actually sending a customized creative/message to a known user in zero point seven seconds (OK, maybe not on dial up but do we really care about those people?) is not only possible, but even preferable (see Michael Estrin’s article “Are users lost in a sea of ad networks”)  Will cheaper ad production actually help me find relevance in a sea of online Karenia brevis algae? (red tide, yes, I Googled it)  If so, Costa Rican and Ukrainian labor is looking pretty good right about now. As long as it’s not my job, right?

- Layne Salter