Programmatic advertising is undergoing a major transformation. Increasingly, media buyers are recognizing the value of being one step closer to the rich signals available on the sell side. By strategically curating inventory and moving decisioning closer to the impression, global agencies are gaining greater efficiency and achieving stronger outcomes.
To explore how this industry-wide shift is affecting the agency world, I sat down with Amedeo Guffanti, Global Managing Director of JAKALA’s activation business.
The video transcript below has been lightly edited for clarity.
1. Before we start can you tell us about JAKALA’s History? And by the way— what’s the deal with the crocodile behind us?
Amedeo Guffanti: The crocodile is very connected to the history of JAKALA. Matteo De Brabant founded JAKALA, and when he was young, he was part of a Boy Scout troop. The leaders in those groups often took their names from “The Jungle Book.” JAKALA, the crocodile, was Matteo’s scout name. So the crocodile stayed with us and became part of the company’s identity—I think it brings good luck.
JAKALA was founded in the early 2000s, right after the first internet bubble, but the company was built to last—one of the few. Today we count around 3,600 employees and more than 12 offices around the world. Our goal is to become, in the next five years, one of the top global leaders in marketing and sales enablement.
2. What role will the sell side play in the future of ad tech?
AG: The sell side is a fundamental part of the ecosystem. Even if it’s talked about less than the demand side, it will continue to help agencies like ours make more qualitative use of the inventory available. For example, through sell-side curation, we can now build and shape inventory around what advertisers actually need.
3. You have been strong advocates for sell-side decisioning and curation. Why does this model work well for JAKALA?
AG: In a world where programmatic platforms are dominated by a few giants, media buyers may feel that their audiences seem the same, whether they’re buying from Google, Amazon, or any other major platform. Curation flips this perspective on its head. With curation, we begin by looking at the data held by publishers before activating campaigns on the demand side.
When we approach publisher-side signals with the advertiser’s needs in mind, that’s where the magic happens. And that’s why we chose to move in this direction.
4. Can you share any results from your clients that are using algorithmic curation and sell-side decisioning?
AG: If we look at different industries, I think travel is a very good example of how we use sell-side curation to address consumers within a complex customer journey—one that can stretch up to 120 days. The most recent research shows that consumers have at least 113 different touchpoints with a travel brand before they decide to book a cruise.
With this level of complexity, marketers need to make sure they are delivering the most relevant message at each stage of the customer journey. This isn’t just about where the message appears, but how it appears, and whether it’s relevant to the consumer’s buying intent.
This can be done in a better way through sell-side curation. Why? Because you’re one step closer to the data.
5. Why did you choose Index Marketplaces for this strategy?
AG: That’s a very good question. There were several platforms we considered, but we thought that Index was the best possible partner because there are no hidden fees and it’s state-of-the-art technology, which means it perfectly fit our needs: it’s transparent, ensures relevancy for our customers, and provides the right level of technology to serve our campaigns.
One thing about this industry is that it can sometimes lack transparency and consistent inventory quality. From an outside perspective, all inventory might look the same, but in reality, that’s not the case.
You need to know whether the technology is truly state-of-the-art and capable of delivering the quality inventory you expect.
“Index Exchange combines transparency with strong technology, and that’s why we chose to work together.”
6. How are you using AI today and what do you expect for the future?
AG: There’s almost nothing we do without leveraging artificial intelligence. JAKALA has been active in artificial intelligence since 2015, when it wasn’t even called artificial intelligence, but machine learning. Our team are used to working with AI every day, and now it has become even more accessible, because everyone uses AI through generative tools that build on what we’ve always done.
“AI helps us do more of what we’ve always tried to achieve in marketing: reaching people at scale with what is relevant for them.”
And let’s remember that advertising is not the art of convincing somebody to buy something—it’s the way we can provide a relevant message from a brand to the right audience and the right person. This is where AI can really help.
7. What excites you most about the future of programmatic advertising?
AG: Programmatic is still in a transition phase. Even the name “programmatic” belongs to a moment about 10 years ago, when it was simply the move from Excel spreadsheets to automated exchanges between publishers and agencies.
With generative AI, programmatic will play an even more relevant role in matching audiences with connected devices like television. Technology will change, but we will still have a living room with a device we call a television—and it will be connected.
Matching audiences and households, something that belonged to the old world of TV, will become relevant again.
See how you can activate sell-side decisioning with Index Marketplaces and unlock better outcomes for your business.
