Today we're excited to sit down with Jad Najjarine and Leah Fox with Chief Media. Advanced Curation's partnership with Chief Media represents a larger technological shift toward greater autonomy and precision in programmatic activation. By integrating the AC platform into their core workflow, Chief Media has successfully moved away from fragmented, manual processes to a centralized strategy that prioritizes efficiency and transparency. This collaboration empowers their team to navigate the complex digital landscape with more agility, ensuring that every campaign is backed by streamlined Deal ID management and real-time inventory controls.
We've distilled down our conversation into a few key highlights, illustrating Chief Media's steps towards improving performance for their clients.
Can you describe your day-to-day operations regarding Deal ID management before leveraging Advanced Curation, and how those workflows have changed since?
Chief Media moved from manual, email-based Deal ID coordination and spreadsheet tracking to managing deals directly on a single self-serve platform, cutting turnaround time and increasing control over inventory.
"Before using AC, most of our deal management was manual. We would coordinate with SSP reps over email, wait for updates, track Deal IDs in spreadsheets, and then distribute those deals across DSPs. Any changes to pricing or inventory usually required another round of communication, which could slow activation down. Now we can manage much more of that process ourselves from a single platform, which has reduced turnaround time and given us more control over our inventory."
Efficiency is one of the core benefits of the platform, but how does the ease of creation and management allow your team to be more agile in responding to client needs or market shifts?
Direct, self-serve platform access lets Chief Media respond to publisher delivery issues and inventory performance gaps in real time, with changes reflected in live campaigns without lag.
"Whether it is balancing publisher delivery or addressing inventory performance gaps, being able to access the platform ourselves means we can move quickly to make adjustments in real time, allowing those changes to be reflected in our live campaigns without much lag."
With the programmatic landscape constantly evolving, what specific inventory or targeting capabilities do you find yourself accessing most frequently through the platform?
App/bundle management is Chief Media's most-used capability for CTV placement quality, alongside pricing controls for buying efficiency and geo targeting for regional campaigns.
Chief Media pointed to a few capabilities they rely on most:
- App/bundle management: "Probably what we use most, especially for CTV campaigns where placement quality has a significant impact on performance."
- Pricing controls: Referenced to ensure buying happens efficiently.
- Geo targeting: Valuable when campaigns require regional targeting.
Looking ahead at the future of CTV and programmatic, what role do you see curation technology playing in your strategy for the next 12 months?
Chief Media expects curation to become central to supply path optimization and transparency, moving from a tool used for select buys to a core part of how agencies plan and optimize every campaign.
"I think curation will become more important as advertisers focus on supply path optimization and transparency. As inventory becomes more fragmented, having the ability to build custom supply packages and react quickly to performance trends will be a big advantage. I expect curation to become a core part of how agencies plan and optimize campaigns rather than something that is used only for select buys."
If you were speaking to another agency leader who is still managing their deals the legacy way, what would you tell them about the impact of making the switch?
The biggest benefit of switching is control—curating inventory down to the individual publisher or app level, and managing deal contents throughout a campaign's life for more flexibility and better client outcomes.
"I would tell them the biggest benefit is the level of control you gain over your supply. You have the ability to curate inventory down to the individual publisher or app level. You can also manage and optimize the contents of the deal throughout the life of the campaign, giving you more flexibility and ultimately better outcomes for your clients."
We want to thank Chief Media for their continued support, platform insights, and engagement with AC. If you're interested in learning about our Curation Platform and how it can help your business drive efficiencies, please reach out by going to advancedcuration.com/contact.