Second-screen technology, 360° digital campaigns, and math class pay-offs
Editor's Note: What's on the minds of media planners? That's what our "Meet a Media Planner" series ai
ms to uncover as we chat with media and search planners at agencies across the country. Today we’d like to introduce you to Syuzi Gorgoyan, a media planner at Universal McCann in Los Angeles. Syuzi has been working for UM since she graduated from college in 2010. She started as a group coordinator, but quickly moved up to assistant planner and then to her current role, which services the Sony Pictures Home Entertainment account. Although the number-crunching aspects of her job are immensely fulfilling, Syuzi admits that the free movie screenings she “has” to sometimes attend aren’t so bad either.
Yahoo! Ad Blog: Did you come out of college knowing you wanted to be a media planner?
Syuzi Gorgoyan: I knew I wanted to get into advertising, but I thought I would get into more of the creative side of it. To be completely honest, I just applied everywhere but when I ended up at UM, I immediately fell in love with the agency and the job. Even now, there’s rarely a day I don’t wake up and feel excited about coming to work.
YAB: What have been some of the most challenging parts of the job you’ve encountered so far?
SG: One challenge has just been finding ways to break through all the clutter and make sure our campaigns and the technology we use are as integrated as possible. I love how some of the second-screen devices and tablet second-screen opportunities really integrate everything together, especially with TV.
Sony just debuted their 4K TV at CES [Consumer Electronics Show], and it’s getting a lot of press. I think the biggest challenge is that there isn’t enough content in the marketplace for it yet. But because Sony is a leader in content-creation, I feel like they’ll be spearheading the entire movement and that there could be some opportunities for us in Home Entertainment to extend on their efforts in terms of media marketing.
It’s also been a challenge to find ways to get people excited about their UltraViolet initiative. The home entertainment industry isn’t what it used to be, so my clients are always trying to find new ways to spice it up and make it new and fun again.
YAB: What’s the UltraViolet initiative?
SG: UltraViolet is a digital locker for your DVDs. As of right now, anytime you buy a new DVD or Blu-ray title, you’ll get an UltraViolet redemption code in the packaging with directions on how to access the films in your digital locker. It’s on the cloud level, so you can access it from your tablet devices, home desktop, or mobile device. It’s a really great idea because it gives consumers more access to content they’re buying, but it’s just a challenge to get people to adopt it.
YAB: Looking back over the last couple years, are there any campaigns that really wowed you?
SG: With our DVD release of "The Amazing Spider-Man," we were able to work with our Yahoo! sales representative to really create a 360° digital campaign that not only had roadblocks and takeovers on the desktop, but put us on mobile and tablet devices, as well. I really think that helped us break through on the day of our release. We were everywhere digitally.
YAB: What are some misconceptions that people have about your job?
SG: A lot of people tend to think I’m just planning media and not buying it. They don’t understand that all those years of math do pay off! To effectively buy media, we really need to memorize certain formulas and use critical thinking and analytical skills that people might not think we would need in this type of position.
YAB: If you had to change careers tomorrow, what would you do instead of media planning?
SG: I would probably put myself behind a charity that helped our youth. The incident at Sandy Hook Elementary School really affected me more on an emotional level, so I kind of see myself doing something with teens and mental health. I want to do something to support teenagers and kids, and help make sure they become great contributors to our society and don’t have to grow up in a world where they fear going to school.
