The FINANCIAL — Viacom on August 12 announced the launch of the Velocity Products Group, a new division within Viacom Ad Sales designed to bring multi-platform social partnerships, products, and services to clients.
In addition to offering a specialized set of Velocity Product experts that are aligned with each Ad Sales team, the group harnesses the collective power of Ad Sales’ pioneering social and data products to super-serve clients. The Velocity Products Group will also drive partnerships with key external social media platforms, including Snapchat, Twitter, and Tumblr, according to Viacom.
“Intense demand for our innovative products during this Upfront season made it a strategic necessity to create a group singularly dedicated to evolving and developing our industry-leading offerings,” said Jeff Lucas, Viacom Head of Sales. “As the industry’s largest sales distribution network, Viacom’s Ad Sales organization and the new Velocity Product Group bring our ad partners unrivaled creativity, cutting edge possibilities, and expertise to connect them with our highly-engaged millennial audience.”
Year-over-year, Ad Sales has doubled the number of advertisers utilizing the suite of product offerings from the Velocity Product Group, totaling more than 100 blue chip clients after this year’s Upfront.
Elizabeth Herbst-Brady, who reports to Lucas, oversees the team in her expanded role as Executive Vice President of Ad Sales Strategy and Products. Reporting to Herbst-Brady are Kalina Nikolova, SVP Strategy, and Sarah Iooss, who steps into the newly created role of SVP, Velocity Product Group. Deborah Brett becomes VP of Velocity Products Group reporting to Iooss.
This new team of nearly two dozen Velocity Product experts is charged with growing strategic partnerships, spearheading product development, and augmenting sales efforts across the entire Viacom network portfolio. The group will also be the bridge between advertising partners and 645 million socially engaged fans across Viacom’s brands.
Velocity Product Group’s industry-leading offerings consist of a comprehensive slate of solutions, including:
Viacom Vantage – Using a combination of Viacom’s proprietary data and third party data from multiple sources, Vantage offers advertisers precise consumer targeting and unmatched predictive capabilities.
Echo – A strategic approach to harnessing Viacom’s unparalleled social reach with customized programs for ad partners. The groundbreaking analytics tool, Echo Social Graph, measures engagement deeply and holistically by tapping multiple social platforms, including those outside of Viacom’s own portfolio.
The Social Talent Platform – Velocity makes talent engagement turnkey by giving advertisers direct access to a growing roster of social superstars for custom campaigns.
Integration+ – This offering gives advertisers added flexibility and choice when customizing their branded entertainment opportunities.
Pulse Real-Time Marketing – An exclusive multi-platform functionality that puts partners into the cultural conversation with sharable content in their authentic voice.
Social Media Advertising Partnerships – Key social media partnerships with Twitter, Snapchat, and Tumblr bolster the reach and impact of social-by-design campaigns.
