Jeff Giacchetti named Digital Rising Star by OMMA magazine
Ten talented digital media strategists making names for themselves
In ancient times, important news or information was always delivered in person, by a human messenger. Sometimes the news wasn’t good and, well, you know what happened then.
But gradually humans got more sophisticated and creative at getting a message across. From Martin Luther nailing his 95 theses to the wall of Castle Church in Wittenberg, to Paul Revere’s famous ride from Boston to Lexington, to the much-maligned 30-second TV ad, media strategy has evolved considerably over the centuries.
In recent years, the task of getting the right message to the right audience at the right time has only become more daunting (though, fortunately, no longer fatal). Now that media is more fragmented than ever, devising strategies is far more complex than in the past, when the vast majority of consumers could be reached via ads on network TV. Even on the Web, reaching an audience is no longer a question of simply buying inventory on the major portals and a few large newspaper sites.
Today, Web users spend time reading blogs, visiting social networking sites, posting photos, watching clips on video-sharing properties, and engaging in a host of other media activities that once appeared implausible.
In this issue, we look at rising stars of the digital media world - those men and women faced with the challenge of finding consumers online and getting a message to them when they’re in the right frame of mind to receive it.
Jeff Giacchetti, 34
EarthQuake Media, Media Supervisor
A star is born Before joining EarthQuake Media in 2004, he was a senior media manager in VNU Business Marketing’s worldwide sports division where he handled B-to-B marketing for clients including Under Armour Athletic Apparel and Starter Apparel.
Red carpet moments For record labels including RCA and Wind-Up Entertainment, Giacchetti developed youth-oriented campaigns aimed at Web properties such as entertainment site ugo.com and video-sharing site eBaumsWorld.com.
For Cinemax, led an online effort to promote the cable service’s premiere of the Star Wars film series in high-definition. The media plan included targeted sections on Yahoo, Star Wars fan sites and ifilm.com.
On getting marketers to part with their money on the Web “It’s really a matter of demystifying it for marketers and saying, ‘This is not a new medium.’ Consumers are using the Internet as part of their normal, everyday activities.”
What’s up with Web 2.0? “It’s the next generation of online communication, expanding the relationship between the media and consumers.”
Can’t live without … “The DVR and on-demand programming are two things that have become part of my daily routine. I’m a big fan of the HBO series ‘The Wire.’”