Good morning, Marketer, consider this your one-week-warning for Black Friday.

Speaking of buying things, many of you may be on the hunt for new marketing technology for your organizations. Before you start shopping, take a look at our guide to negotiating with vendors. You may be able to get a better deal than you think.

Henry Powderly,
VP, Content

 
 
 
Social Short
 

YouTube to show ads on channels outside of the Partner Program

In it’s latest terms of service update, YouTube creators agree to allow the service to monetize their content with ads (or by charging users for access) but are not necessarily entitled to revenue sharing. To be eligible for YouTube’s revenue sharing Partner Program (YPP), channels need to have more than 4,000 watch hours in the past 12 months and have more than 1,000 subscribers among other requirements. 

This is part of our ongoing investments in new solutions, like Home Feed ads, that help advertisers responsibly tap into the full scale of YouTube to connect with their audiences and grow their businesses,” said YouTube.

Why we care. For advertisers, the change means there’s more advertising inventory on YouTube, which as the company noted, it has been focusing on. That begs the brand safety question. Do you want your ads on these channels? 

YouTube says its brand suitability controls have gotten better since many advertisers boycotted the platform over ads running alongside objectionable content in 2017. “Over the past three years, we improved our ability to identify appropriate placements for advertisers, in part by working closely with our advertising partners and industry organizations,” the company said. 

For creators, of course, it means YouTube can start earning revenue from your content before you become eligible for YPP. 

 

Learn the benefits of using a customer data platform and compare top vendors

MarTech Today’s “Customer Data Platforms: A Marketer’s Guide ” examines the market for customer data platforms and the considerations involved in implementation. This report answers the following questions — What features do CDPs provide? What trends are driving the adoption of CDPs? Does your company need a CDP? — It also includes profiles leading vendors, capabilities comparisons, and recommended steps for evaluating and purchasing.

Get it now »

 

How to kickstart your channel on Roku and stand out

Sponsored by Allroll

Roku is the world’s most popular connected-TV platform with the number of active accounts nearly at 40 million and expected to climb even higher, meaning channel owners have a golden opportunity to establish themselves and collect ad revenue. If you’re just getting started or looking for options for promoting your channel, what’s the best approach? Find out the pros and cons of various methods of creation and promotion in this comprehensive guide.

Read more »

 

Are you ready for the future of search marketing?

Join 2020 Search Engine Land Award winners Areej AbuAli and Mike King for two forward-thinking keynotes, December 8-9, only at SMX. Reflect on what’s changed — from evolving SERPs to new opportunities with A.I. — and prepare for what comes next!

Get the details here »

 
 
 
Martech
 

How to negotiate with vendors

Many marketing teams are preparing to negotiate software contracts that expire on Dec. 31, or are already in the middle of doing so, and this in a climate where marketers are looking for quick wins, and vendors are more eager than ever to secure customer success and loyalty. 

How should martech purchase teams negotiate the best deals?

Start at the top. “We work primarily with global 2000 companies, and 99% of our subscribers think they are behind in technology; that point of view matters, and desperation can seep into your contract negotiations with vendors,” said Tony Byrne, founder of the technology analyst firm Real Story Group, which evaluates martech and CX technologies. “It is not a new story, just one that has been accelerated a lot more during the time of COVID.” 

This desperation communicated by enterprise organizations with deep pockets can lead to proposal responses with increased pricing, including dramatic pricing increases on overhead and especially personnel. 

“It is important to check in quarterly to make sure you are getting value in the different personnel roles assigned to your account and not just a bunch of overvalued account executives,” said Byrne. “Regardless of the vendor, or how long the relationship, identify what parameters and metrics are driving costs. Once you understand vendor architecture that increases costs, then you can understand the ‘what if’ scenarios and you will get push back from vendors, but that is when you know you are doing your job.” 

Keep a close eye on costs: “This is a good time to negotiate with large vendors like Adobe, Salesforce and Oracle, because they are trying to lock in multiyear large contracts to get capital before the end of the year,” said Byrne. “We advise our clients to negotiate hard and use a test-based selection method.” 

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