Glam Media Evolves Vertical Ad Network Targeting Women

Glam Media, number one in reach for women online, has unveiled Glam Evolution, the Web's first primetime inventory placement and vertical targeting brand advertising technology platform. Glam Evolution is uniquely designed to deliver primetime placement of premium ad inventory, targeted by audience, brand-proximity, content, categories, behavior, context, and engagement-mode on the Glam distributed media network of over 450 Glam owned and operated sites, publishers, media partner websites and blogs.

Press Release: January 24, 2008

Glam Media Introduces the First Internet Primetime Placement and Vertical Targeting Brand Engagement Advertising Platform-Glam Evolution

Glam Media, number one in reach for women online, today unveiled Glam Evolution, the Web's first primetime inventory placement and vertical targeting brand advertising technology platform. Glam Evolution is uniquely designed to deliver primetime placement of premium ad inventory, targeted by audience, brand-proximity, content, categories, behavior, context, and engagement-mode on the Glam distributed media network of over 450 Glam owned and operated sites, publishers, media partner websites and blogs.

"Brands are seeking better ways to connect with niche audiences on a large scale," said Rishad Tobaccowala, CEO, Denuo, the futures unit of marketing services giant Publicis Groupe, SA. "Glam Media's ad platform maximizes brand engagement and proximity in ways that deliver what clients are looking for online."

Today, Glam is introducing the first comprehensive advertising platform designed specifically to help brand advertisers reach the right audiences with primetime placement and target engagement that they are used to in television and magazines-packaged vertically to ensure customers find ads desirable. The focus on the next generation brand advertising platform will be supported by forthcoming strategic hires and expansion of Glam's technology and product teams.

Prime Rank-Primetime Placement

Glam Evolution introduces Prime Ad Ranking by identifying primetime placement for display and video inventory on web pages using a five point system: placement-above the fold versus below the fold, mid/co/pre-roll; contextual-next to relevant content such as blog postings, versus over on the side; engagement mode-time spent on information-entertainment versus utility- communication; brand proximity-level and types of advertisers clustered together versus random ad network placed inventory, and editorial quality- level and type of content and popularity the brands are placed next to and custom advertorial immersion versus user-generated pages or link farms.

Glam Media is also increasing premium ad inventory by providing Prime Ad Sizes-by significantly increasing large ad size inventory for brands-adding the largest IAB standard in page 300x600 half page ads and 300x250 medium ad sizes; in addition to roadblocks, skyscrapers and banners for display and rich media, video viewer-takeover, and highly packaged advertorial content, full page ads and sponsorships.

Target Rank - Vertical Targeting

Glam Evolution introduces the first multi-dimensional vertical targeting ad platform that allows hyper-targeting using five critical dimensions, while safeguarding consumer privacy and ensuring the advertisements are contextually desirable: demographic- targeting women in different age groups, geography and affinity groups; psychographic-personality, values, attitudes, interests, and lifestyle; behavioral-intent-content types visited, intention in search, and segment behavior; vertical: niche and micro targeting by channel, site, section, and page; topical-categories, keywords, and topics.

Glam is also introducing Influentials Targeting-helping create campaigns to reach and leverage key influencers by channel and category. This allows brands to engage the right targets to help create word of mouth and viral marketing, especially useful in introducing or building consumer brands.

Prime Target Ranking

By creating a highly targetable set of attributes that are both qualitative and quantitative, Glam Evolution takes the first steps toward creating a new brand online advertising performance ranking that can help place, monitor and improve brand engagement: Prime Target Rank (PTR). PTR is a comprehensive tool that solves the question raised by brand advertisers. While CTR effectively communicates a way to monitor action-based direct response, it is a challenge to better monitor engaging the right audience with brand awareness and engagement without using clicks as a metric. PTR continually monitors and reports Prime Placement and Vertical Targeting factors to ensure the highest impact for brand advertisers.

"Glam Evolution reflects Glam Media's commitment to and focus on providing the best brand advertising technology platform online by leveraging our deep Silicon Valley roots," said Fernando Ruarte, co-founder and CTO. "Unlike other targeting systems that compromise consumer privacy or serve ads without regard to whether the user is engaged in an activity where they'll be receptive, Glam Evolution delivers superior inventory as a function of technology and ranking."

Glam Media created Glam Evolution after four years of experience of running campaigns for over 300 of the world's top brands ranging from Neiman Marcus, Reebok, MaxFactor to Diet Coke. As the advertising spend on the Internet, as a percentage of all media in the U.S., has risen to 7-8% in 2007- with some categories as high as 20%-brand marketers and agencies have been increasingly seeking ways to significantly grow display and video advertising in addition to the web's first wave of search-based direct-marketing.

Glam Media accepts only premium and brand advertisers, thus guaranteeing them relevant adjacency and proximity to other premium brands. Glam currently serves more than 200 premium and luxury advertisers, including: Bergdorf Goodman; Johnson & Johnson; Levis; Macy's; Procter & Gamble, Target and others. Glam Media was the fastest-growing Top 100 Web property of 2007 and Top 25 in November 2007.

About Glam Media

Glam Media's distributed media network model is revolutionizing the very definition of what a media company is in the 21st Century. With more than 43 million unique monthly visitors (comScore MediaMetrix) Glam Media provides a compelling mix of fresh, original content created in-house with a carefully curated Glam Publishing Network of more than 450 popular and influential lifestyle websites, blogs and magazines. For premium national brand advertisers, Glam Media offers an unprecedented array of targeted options that are singularly attractive to both upscale and aspirational consumers. Glam Media is backed by such premier venture capital firms as Accel Partners, DAG Ventures, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Walden Venture Capital and Information Capital. Glam Media is based in New York City and Brisbane, California.