Supernova Award Category
The Problem
FlipBoard is depending on cloud applications and ad tech analytics to make sure the content from its advertisers and publishers is being read by real people, rather than non-human bots sneaking in from automated browsers and search engine spiders. In addition to fighting the fake news epidemic, Flipboard serves both readers and advertisers by preventing unwanted content from getting in front of its readers. Plus, not all ads are created or measured equally. Most online banner, button, or text ads take up a small fraction of a web page, which makes it difficult to determine whether consumers actually saw those ads or ignored them.
The Solution
Flipboard is using artificial intelligence and machine learning to deepen its analysis of popular news themes, and relying on human curators to tell the difference between a legitimate breaking news story and anecdotal analysis. The company uses machine-learning algorithms that generate “probabilistic data sets” to tie publisher content to consumer interests, and then identify digital ads that are contextually important to that content. “People are really tired of being abused on the web with click-bait and pre-roll that has no connection to them or what they’re doing in a particular moment,” says Nicole McCormack, Senior VP of Revenue Strategy.
To McCormack, understanding why people come to Flipboard is key to knowing how to market to them. For example, “people come here to learn,” she says. “They use the platform to get better at their jobs, improve their health, learn more about their favorite hobbies or explore new ones.”
The results
Oracle Data Cloud platform captures real-time information about what users are reading, whether on the web, mobile or social platforms, and then taps into other data sources with similar attributes. Mapping these interests to its publisher’s content is fundamental to how Flipboard’s platform works. It’s also the key to helping the company better understand the mindset that the people on its platform are in when they see ads. Flipboard uses Oracle MOAT, also part of Oracle Data Cloud, to measure “reader engagement” beyond page views or clicks. For example, MOAT captures the amount of screen real estate an ad takes up, as well as how long the user dwells on that screen. Flipboard mostly shows ads that take up a full screen, which means that each time readers “flips” to a new page; they see a full-page, magazine-style ad before they can continue on to the next page. Oracle MOAT helps to validate that consumers are actually seeing the ads and to quantify how long they are viewing those ads.
Flipboard also uses MOAT to capture receptivity to video ads. At the end of a clip, for example, MOAT can determine whether the sound is turned on. If the audio is off, it’s unlikely that a consumer even looked at video. By using Oracle Data Cloud analytics to capture metrics, FlipBoard can prove to publishers and advertisers that the platform delivers true, user engagement.
Metrics
By using “bot blocking” technology, Flipboard claims it has less than 1% non-human traffic on its platform; significantly less than most websites which average 52% bot traffic, according to the 2016 Bot Traffic Report by cybersecurity firm, Incapsula. As of June of this year, Flipboard’s mobile app has grown its referral traffic to 1 million daily page views, making it the fourth most common referrer behind Facebook, Google Search, and Twitter, according to digital publishing analytics company Parse.ly.
The Technology
Oracle Data Cloud
Disruptive Factor
To help the company improve how it personalized content for its growing base of readers, Flipboard acquired Zite, a mobile media aggregator app, from CNN. Incorporating Zite’s interest taxonomy, Flipboard created a proprietary database storing tens of thousands of topics. While advertisers can serve ads against these topics, the company partnered with Oracle to curate audiences based not just on similar interests but also demographics or behavior patterns. Flipboard can then make these audiences available to advertisers and attract publishers with content appealing to readers who share similar characteristics.
“This was a pivotal moment for us,” says David Wigder, head of insights, performance, and data strategy at Flipboard. The data cloud platform captures real-time information about what users are reading, whether on the web, mobile or social platforms, and then taps into other data sources with similar attributes.
Shining Moment
Understanding why people come to Flipboard is key to knowing how to market to them. For example, people use Flipboard to learn, to get better at their jobs, improve their health, learn more about their favorite hobbies or explore new ones.
“We have teams of full-time editors and curators from all over the world who authenticate news sources, scour topics, and study news trends in 26 different countries,” says Flipboard chief business officer Cecily Mak.