Kelly and Sean break down Guideline’s new quarterly programmatic benchmark report, explain how DSPs fit into the media buying ecosystem, and share the latest trends in programmatic, CTV, and streaming.

Programmatic advertising plays a growing role in digital media buying, but it is still one of the more misunderstood parts of the industry. In this episode, Kelly and Sean use Guideline’s newly announced quarterly programmatic benchmark report as a starting point for a practical discussion on what programmatic actually is, how DSPs work, and what the latest benchmark data suggests about the market.

They begin by defining programmatic at a high level: automated buying and selling of digital media, often built around audience targeting, pricing efficiency, and near real-time optimization. From there, Sean explains why this episode focuses specifically on DSPs, or demand-side platforms, which are the tools buyers use to purchase programmatic inventory.

The conversation then turns to the benchmark findings. Sean shares that programmatic saw very strong growth through 2024, though the pace slowed through 2025 as the market matured and economic pressure weighed on ad spend. They discuss how much of that activity is tied to streaming and connected TV, and why the growth pattern looks different now that most large streaming platforms already offer ad-supported products.

They also look at category-level movement, with telecom, insurance, and quick-service restaurants increasing programmatic spend, while categories such as alcohol, toys, and games have pulled back. Kelly and Sean then walk through the current split between programmatic and direct buying, why programmatic has remained near 30% of market activity, and why Sean expects that share to move higher in 2026.

The episode closes with a closer look at buying methods inside the programmatic ecosystem, including private marketplaces, programmatic guaranteed, and the open marketplace, along with a request for listener feedback on where the programmatic series should go next.

Key topics include:

• What programmatic advertising means in practice
• How DSPs function in digital media buying
• Why Guideline launched a quarterly programmatic benchmark report
• Growth trends in programmatic across 2024 and 2025
• The link between programmatic growth and streaming / CTV
• Which advertiser categories are increasing or reducing spend
• The current split between programmatic and direct buying
• Private marketplaces, programmatic guaranteed, and open marketplace buying

Chapters

00:00 Spotify reviews and why the episode topic matters
00:50 Guideline’s new programmatic benchmark report
02:22 What programmatic advertising means
03:48 DSPs and how programmatic buying works
06:01 Global programmatic growth trends
08:40 Categories gaining and losing spend
11:05 Programmatic vs direct buying share
12:28 Sean’s 2026 outlook
13:07 Private marketplaces, guaranteed deals, and open marketplace
16:13 Invitation for listener feedback on the series

If you’d like access to the benchmark report or want to suggest a topic for the next part of the programmatic series, reach out to press@guideline.ai.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow or subscribe so you don’t miss future conversations on advertising, media strategy, and cultural marketing moments.

And if you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, a quick rating or review helps more people discover the show.

Kelly and Sean examine global trends in out-of-home advertising, why the U.S. market trails international growth, and which industries are driving recent spending increases.

Kelly and Sean begin the episode with a light conversation about long-running broadcast partnerships after a Western Australia news anchor duo set a Guinness World Record for more than 40 years and 10,000 broadcasts together.

The discussion then shifts to the topic of out-of-home advertising and why the format continues to generate mixed reactions among U.S. marketers despite strong growth in many international markets.

Using Guideline data, Sean explains how the U.S. market compares globally and why the share of out-of-home spending is significantly lower than in countries such as China and the United Kingdom. While the U.S. represents roughly 70% of total advertising spend in Guideline’s dataset, it accounts for only about 40% of out-of-home spending—suggesting the channel is more mature and widely adopted internationally.

Kelly and Sean also explore structural reasons behind the difference, including geography, population density, transportation habits, and the pace of digital billboard adoption.

Although out-of-home represents a smaller portion of the U.S. media mix, the format is still projected to grow in the coming year. The growth is being driven primarily by digital placements and by industries that benefit from location-based targeting.

Key topics include:

• The role of out-of-home advertising in the global media mix
• Why the U.S. market trails other regions in adoption
• Geographic and infrastructure factors affecting reach
• The importance of digital out-of-home inventory growth
• Industries currently increasing investment in the channel
• How localized advertising strategies influence spending

Sean also highlights emerging spend patterns from industries such as insurance and legal sports betting, which increasingly rely on geographic targeting and regulatory considerations when placing out-of-home campaigns.

If you’d like access to the benchmark report or want to suggest a topic for the next part of the programmatic series, reach out to press@guideline.ai.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow or subscribe so you don’t miss future conversations on advertising, media strategy, and cultural marketing moments.

And if you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, a quick rating or review helps more people discover the show.

Netflix has stepped away from its bid for Warner Bros, clearing the path for Ellison and raising questions about consolidation in streaming, valuation logic, and what this means for consumers and advertisers.

In this episode, Kelly and Sean revisit the streaming saga and discuss how further consolidation could affect subscription pricing, content availability, theatrical releases, and advertiser strategy.

They also examine WPP CEO Cindy Rose’s announcement that the company is “no longer a holdco,” introducing the multi-year Elevate 28 strategy. With a focus on AI integration, structural realignment, and outcomes-based models, the move signals a broader shift in how agency groups define value. But what does an outcomes-driven future mean for brand creativity, performance measurement, and platform power?

The conversation expands to The Trade Desk’s earnings reaction, the tension between revenue growth and market expectations, and what’s happening inside the DSP ecosystem.

Sean closes with a “data delight” examining the long-term shift from brand to performance marketing. The data shows performance spend rising significantly faster than digital alone—suggesting a deeper strategic shift in advertiser behavior.

Key topics include:

• Netflix exiting the Warner Bros bidding process
• Streaming consolidation and advertiser implications
• WPP’s Elevate 28 strategy and AI-backed restructuring
• Outcomes-based agency models and platform incentives
• The Trade Desk earnings reaction and DSP competition
• NBA expansion into Europe and streaming distribution
• Brand vs. performance marketing data trends (2017–2025 shift)

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Headline Grab Bag
01:00 Netflix Withdraws from Warner Bros Bid
03:24 Streaming Consolidation and Consumer Impact
05:42 WPP’s Elevate 28 and Agency Restructuring
08:31 Outcomes-Based Models and Platform Incentives
12:07 The Trade Desk Earnings Reaction
14:29 NBA European Expansion and Streaming Strategy
17:17 Brand vs. Performance Marketing Data Trends
20:13 How to Access Guideline Data

For access to the data discussed in this episode or to learn more about Guideline’s market insights, contact press@guideline.ai.

If you’d like access to the benchmark report or want to suggest a topic for the next part of the programmatic series, reach out to press@guideline.ai.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow or subscribe so you don’t miss future conversations on advertising, media strategy, and cultural marketing moments.

And if you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, a quick rating or review helps more people discover the show.

Podcasting isn’t just a format — it’s becoming a major force in advertising.

Digital audio has grown more than 2.5x faster than the overall media market since the pandemic, and podcasts now account for nearly 30% of digital audio ad revenue. Even more striking: 77% of incremental digital audio growth is coming specifically from podcasts.

In this episode of Media Monitor, Kelly and Sean unpack what’s driving that momentum.

They discuss:

• Why consumers listen to podcasts (and what that means for advertisers)
• The surprising resistance to AI-generated podcasts
• Why only 22% of listeners want AI influencing podcast content
• How video podcasts are reshaping monetization
• Why TV budgets are shifting into podcast advertising
• Pharma’s growing presence in the space
• Insurance brands quietly pulling back
• The economics of podcast production vs traditional streaming content
• How Netflix, FAST channels, and streamers are using podcasts as low-cost content engines
• Whether podcasts are becoming the “reality TV” model of the next media cycle

They also explore how 400,000 new podcasts per quarter are entering the market — and why consumers are still tuning in.

If you work in media, advertising, audio, or streaming, this episode explains not just where podcasting is today — but why it may be one of the most resilient formats in the industry.

Chapters

00:00 Podcast rhythm and listener shoutouts
01:00 Why people listen to podcasts (2025 research)
05:00 Digital audio growth vs total media market
08:30 AI in podcasts vs audiobooks vs music
12:00 5 trillion hours of streamed audio annually
14:00 Where podcast ad growth is coming from
16:00 TV budgets shifting into podcasting
18:30 Pharma’s expansion in podcast ads
20:00 Insurance brands pulling back
22:00 Video podcasts and CTV economics
25:00 Romance novels and AI-generated audio
27:30 The future of podcast monetization

If you’d like access to the benchmark report or want to suggest a topic for the next part of the programmatic series, reach out to press@guideline.ai.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow or subscribe so you don’t miss future conversations on advertising, media strategy, and cultural marketing moments.

And if you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, a quick rating or review helps more people discover the show.

The January jobs report came in stronger than expected, with 130,000 jobs added — nearly double what economists predicted. But a closer look reveals that most of that growth came from healthcare, raising questions about what the numbers actually signal for other industries.

In this episode, Kelly and Sean dig into what the latest labor data means for advertising and marketing. They examine whether agency hiring is keeping pace with broader economic growth, explore correlations between ad spend and job postings, and discuss what forward booking data might reveal about where the industry is headed.

They also tackle the bigger question looming over the labor market: how much of today’s hiring slowdown is cyclical… and how much could be tied to AI? From job revisions and offshoring to creative automation and “AI DR” culture pushback, this episode connects economic data to real-world industry implications.

Key topics include:

Why the January jobs report surprised economists
How healthcare skewed overall job growth
Differences between Bureau of Labor Statistics and ADP payroll data
What marketing job postings reveal about industry health
The correlation between ad spend and hiring trends
How forward booking data may predict labor shifts
AI’s potential impact on creative and agency roles
Whether we’re approaching an AI “takeoff” moment

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction and shared government roots
02:30 January jobs report breakdown
05:30 Why economists are skeptical of the numbers
08:20 Marketing job postings and industry health
12:15 Correlation between ad spend and hiring
16:00 Forward booking data as a leading indicator
19:40 AI, offshoring, and creative job disruption
24:30 AI DR and cultural pushback
27:45 Valentine’s Day + Super Bowl crossover

If you’d like access to the benchmark report or want to suggest a topic for the next part of the programmatic series, reach out to press@guideline.ai.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow or subscribe so you don’t miss future conversations on advertising, media strategy, and cultural marketing moments.

And if you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, a quick rating or review helps more people discover the show.

Publicis closed out 2025 with strong fourth-quarter earnings, the Winter Olympics officially kicked off with unprecedented levels of coverage, and Super Bowl weekend arrived with a familiar twist: counterprogramming aimed at siphoning attention away from the halftime show. In this episode, Kelly and Sean switch up the format with a rapid-fire review of the biggest media headlines shaping the industry right now.

The conversation unpacks what Publicis’ results do—and don’t—say about the health of advertising overall, why Olympic ad revenue growth can’t be separated from the explosion in programming hours and distribution, and how alternative Super Bowl programming fits into a long history of attention battles. Along the way, they connect these stories back to broader themes around media fragmentation, monetization, and how advertisers navigate moments of peak cultural focus.

Key topics include:

Publicis’ Q4 earnings and what they signal for agency holding companies
Why strong agency performance doesn’t always reflect industry-wide health
How Olympic advertising revenue has grown alongside massive increases in programming
The shift from limited broadcast coverage to thousands of hours of Olympic content
Why comparing Olympic ad revenue across decades can be misleading
The history of Super Bowl halftime counterprogramming
How alternative programming competes for attention during major live events

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to Media Monitor
01:10 Media morsels and episode format overview
02:40 Publicis Q4 earnings and industry implications
10:30 Holding company growth vs margin pressure
15:20 Winter Olympics advertising and content scale
23:40 Expansion of Olympic coverage across streaming
29:30 Super Bowl weekend and counterprogramming history
36:10 Alternative halftime shows and audience attention
41:30 Wrap-up and what to watch next week

If you’d like access to the benchmark report or want to suggest a topic for the next part of the programmatic series, reach out to press@guideline.ai.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow or subscribe so you don’t miss future conversations on advertising, media strategy, and cultural marketing moments.

And if you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, a quick rating or review helps more people discover the show.

TikTok saw a sharp increase in app uninstalls in late January, and that trend could have real implications for advertisers. In this episode, Kelly and Sean break down what’s driving the spike, how different age groups are responding, and why this matters for media budgets.

They revisit the last major period of TikTok uncertainty, when ad dollars were pulled and reallocated to other platforms, and compare it to what’s happening now. The conversation covers audience behavior shifts, advertiser risk tolerance, and where budgets are most likely to move if instability continues.

Key topics include:

• The reported surge in TikTok uninstalls and why it’s happening
• Differences in behavior between Gen Z and millennial users
• What happened to ad budgets during the last TikTok scare
• Why Reddit and Instagram benefited from past reallocations
• How content moderation, privacy changes, and short-form video trends factor in.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to Media Monitor

01:42 Hosts Reconnect at Company Summit

02:30 TikTok's Uninstall Surge and Its Impact

04:19 Focus Groups on TikTok Usage

06:46 Historical Context of TikTok's Challenges

11:41 Advertisers' Response to TikTok Instability

15:15 Engagement and Closing Remarks

If you’d like access to the benchmark report or want to suggest a topic for the next part of the programmatic series, reach out to press@guideline.ai.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow or subscribe so you don’t miss future conversations on advertising, media strategy, and cultural marketing moments.

And if you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, a quick rating or review helps more people discover the show.

Advertising often reveals where the economy is heading before the headlines do.

In this episode of Media Monitor, we break down one of the biggest advertising developments in years: OpenAI officially testing ads inside ChatGPT.

We explore what this move means for advertisers, media companies, and brands trying to understand where digital budgets are shifting. Using real advertising data, we compare ChatGPT’s ad rollout to past platform launches and unpack realistic growth scenarios.

Topics covered include:

• Why advertising data signals economic change early
• How ChatGPT ads will work across free and low-cost tiers
• Early pricing signals and CPM expectations
• Lessons from TikTok’s explosive ad growth
• What Meta’s ad maturity tells us about long-term potential
• Why Hulu offers a cautionary first-mover comparison
• How competition from Google, Gemini, and others could shape the market

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to Media Monitor

00:43 Weekly Market Breakdown

02:19 OpenAI's Ad Announcement

03:23 Analyzing the Impact of Ads on ChatGPT

06:08 Scenario Analysis: TikTok's Explosive Growth

19:46 Scenario Analysis: Meta's Steady Growth

26:10 Scenario Analysis: Hulu's First Mover Advantage

30:44 Conclusion and Future Insights

If you work in advertising, media, or marketing, this episode offers a clear-eyed look at what ChatGPT ads could mean today and where the opportunity may land over the next several years.

If you’d like access to the benchmark report or want to suggest a topic for the next part of the programmatic series, reach out to press@guideline.ai.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow or subscribe so you don’t miss future conversations on advertising, media strategy, and cultural marketing moments.

And if you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, a quick rating or review helps more people discover the show.