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Ep. 123 From Incremental Reach to Performance Engine: NBCUniversals Kristina Shepard on Streaming TV
00:24:55
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- [00:01]
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- [00:33]
Christina Shepherd
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- [00:34]
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Ad Tech God
Welcome to the AdTech Godpod, your window into the world of advertising technology and the people behind it. I'm your host, Ad Tech God. Welcome back to another episode of the AdTech God Pod, where we speak to the women who lead in streaming. Today's guest is Christina Shepherd, EVP Streaming and Performance Sales and Partnerships at NBCUniversal. Christina has a truly impressive background, having worked at Roku Opera Media Works and more. She's also a member of Chief and MMA Global, So she's all over the advertising industry, and I'm super excited to meet her today, especially since she works in streaming, which is something that I personally love. Christina, thank you so much for joining me and welcome to the pod.
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Christina Shepherd
Yeah, thank you so much for having me. It's great to be here and love nothing more than to spend the time talking about two of my favorite things, streaming and performance.
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Ad Tech God
Connected television in particular has always been a performance channel, so TV overall has always been attributed to brand lift, to performance, et cetera. But it seems like it had disappeared into this branding bucket for years. And recently, over the last 12, 18 months, it suddenly rose again, and everyone's like, you have no idea how much performance happens from television now we can attribute it. And so I love the fact that that's happening again.
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Christina Shepherd
I 100% agree. I mean, I think the evolution of streaming, when you think about Hulu, was launched in 2008 as, ironically, a joint venture of News Corp and NBCU, which was News Corp being my first employer and NBC Universal being my current employer. You know, I started my career in one of the most traditional forms of media, which was print. So at News Corp, I was selling the New York Post, and then since then, you know, kind of evolved into really gravitating towards places, you know, where the industry was moving faster than the playbook was being built and into industries and companies that were almost like the challenger sell within an emerging medium. So mobile, for example, working at Opera Media Works, which was actually started in at mobile theory, acquired by Opera Media Works. And so that kind of came through an acquisition and then into an ad colony acquisition. So at the time being there was selling mobile video, but in a performance lens. So really incentivized video, if you can remember those days where that was, you know, big and hot. And then in 2017, I moved into Roku when I was thinking kind of back to early days. I remember I started in January 2017 at CES and as I was preparing to go and meet with, you know, clients out there, I opened up the first go to market deck, which obviously had kind of, you know, overall scale of the Roku TV OS. And at the time there was 13 million active accounts. So it was still very much early days. It was in the days where it was really Roku and then Hulu was the biggest and in some cases, you might argue the only game in town for streaming. And then, you know, you fast forward to today, it's a totally different ecosystem with Roku as the leading OS with 90 million active accounts. Almost every major TV network has a streaming extension, in some cases multiple. Right? NBCU having PeaceRock launching in 2020. So we've seen a huge evolution during those number of years. And you could argue that early days of streaming look very different now. I think Covid and the pandemic really accelerated what streaming was and grew into. I think what could have taken years to grow scale actually probably happened within months. And I think going back to the branding versus performance, I think, you know, when I had started at Roku in 2017, most brands were using Roku strictly as an incremental reach vehicle. It was, you know, they understood that there was a trend in cord cutting and cord shaving. People were dropping their cable subscriptions and they really used cable streaming as that incremental reach vehicle. It was kind of bought and sold very similar to how traditional TV was. So a brand would bring over their 15 and 30 second spot. They use the same creative, they deploy the same targeting, and they kind of use the same strategies and playbooks that they did in traditional tv. Which I think to your point, is oftentimes why it was really seen as that branding vehicle. Because really the main KPI and goal was delivery against a darling measurement in a DART demo. Since then, I think we've seen so much of an acceleration into really realizing the true benefits of streaming, which, you know, we used to really say a lot of streaming is the brains of digital and the beauty of tv. It brings together, you know, the two best parts of digital and television together. And with that we can deploy a completely new playbook with new, you know, elements that, you know, really can allow for brands to realize the true performance capabilities of streaming.
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Ad Tech God
It's incredible to just see and you had mentioned kind of the acceleration of cord cutting in 2020 and how that impacted growth. I recall a time where there was a little bit of panic and we saw this pullback of advertising spend in 2020. It was March, right? Everybody panicked a little bit and paused. And then it was almost like the world woke up to something called streaming. And then it was just this consistent boom of user base ad revenue to the point where nobody could keep up in terms of ad revenue related to the number of avails available. And it was a wild time to see just how much. In a 12 month period of time, streaming became a massive player in the market. And it continues to until today. Like the growth percentages year over year are still very impressive across all the streaming solutions in the market.
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Christina Shepherd
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, in 2020, during the pandemic, NBCU launched Peacock. So and I think what was really innovative at the time and on the Roku side of it all being the platform, you know, Peacock, Hulu, Paramount plus Disney plus, they were both competitors from the media advertising side as well as amazing partners. Right. Because we were the platform that was distributing their channels. And so it was great to be on the Roku side of it helping to build Peacock subscriber base and engagement. And then obviously now sitting on this side where, you know, we're the owner of the ip, the content and the channel. And it was really trailblazing to see Peacock launch with ads. Right. Being a fully, you know, hybrid ad supported streaming service was very novel at the time. And it did not none of the other streamers actually launched like that when they were an extension of a TV network. And so, you know, I think with that helped to kind of pave the way for what then became normalized. Now we're seeing every single TV network channel, you know, have an ad supported tier, even Netflix, which literally publicly said they never would. So, you know, really where we saw a major change in kind of what could the ad experience be in the streaming ecosystem. And on top of that, within Covid, again putting back on the Roku platform hat what we saw in the shift in not only streaming in Terms of acceleration on viewership. We also saw the types of content that, you know, users and viewers were leveraging and streaming be much more diversified. So we saw people use the Roku device, listen to Spotify, listening to podcasts like this. We saw people turn on their Peloton app and start to work out with their Roku device. So I think with streaming, when you think about the true potential of it, it really can be this amazing intersection of the best of digital, best of television, best of social into one experience is truly an operating system that I think over time the audience is really getting immersed into what again, the potential of streaming can really be.
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Ad Tech God
You touched up on the monetization part. The subscription model just seemed to be a route that everyone was adamant would scale. But there's nothing that scales like ad revenue. Yeah, there's ebbs and flows. Churn isn't as big of a concern. But generally speaking, as your audience grows, ad revenue follows. The sheer level of data and signals that are passed in streaming television bring so much value to advertisers that it's almost a no brainer for them to spend money on streaming television if they were spending on, you know, search or display or online video. It's just a natural transition and we've seen those budgets really shift towards streaming. And now with performance as, as an outcome, it's becoming more and more important to their media buys.
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Christina Shepherd
Absolutely. I think, you know, what started as an incremental reach vehicle, now we're looking at streaming as one of the first channels that a brand might plan around based on how the audience has shifted into streaming and also just the true kind of dynamic nature of the capability. And I think that's why when you think about, you know, again being at NBC Universal putting on the content hat, you know, we really have both a, you know, promise to deliver on for the viewer. And how do we curate the peacock in the app itself? How do we also make diversity of content available both in Peacock, which is whether you're the ad tier or not, a subscriber channel, as well as distributing our content across know the full footprint of digital. Right. So there's Peacock for us, but there's 299 other endpoints. And so I think the reason why that's so important for whether you're NBC or anyone else is that the streaming audience, there's not a one size fits all. Right. You know, we're seeing audiences shift into streaming for many choices, but most of, you know, one of the top choices was choice but also value. Right. So people, they no longer want to pay for their monthly cable subscription. And so when they shift over to streaming, they, they want to be getting, they want to be paying less than they were previously. Right. So we're seeing, you know, on average audiences want to subscribe to, you know, a handful of subscription services and then they want to complement that with free ad supported content. So, you know, for NBC, we have a variety of fast channels that we make available and distribute in other, you know, OEM channels or, you know, fast channels. And I think that's, that's really important because the audience coming into streaming is very diverse and wants a very unique, curated, personalized experience. And so I think that's again, both, you know, incumbent upon the content owner as well as the advertiser to make sure that they are bringing the right experience to the right audience at the right time. And streaming allows for that in a way that traditional television might not have been able to in the past.
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Ad Tech God
And you know, Christina, you sit in a, in a unique position where you have your content and your content is absolutely premium video. And it's, it is not poor quality video. This is like highly produced, fantastic quality shows across the NBC portfolio. But how, how has that in particular changed how advertisers think about premium video in the market overall? Even on, just online? Are you seeing that they value this type of content more and that's something that they want on a regular basis, or do they just not necessarily care because they're looking for performance and outcomes?
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Christina Shepherd
Right, Outcomes versus quality. I don't think they're mutually exclusive. And I also think, you know, one of the things that, you know, you mentioned before, like screaming as a performance channel, I think it isn't yet, I don't think it's seen yet as a performance channel. I think some advertisers are coming in and buying it the right way and driving towards the right outcomes. But I, I don't know if the average CMO wakes up every day thinking of streaming as a performance channel, but I think it's getting there in terms of the capability set, the right third party partners, the right interoperability made available by the many different players in the space. And so I think what's interesting about being the content owner and then brands is they know how, how fragmented the marketplace is today, which is very different than it was even 10 years ago. And so I think all of us are fighting for attention and scale, whether you're the content owner or the advertiser. And I think the question then becomes in the job of the marketer and the agency is how do you aggregate attention and scale and how do you stay relevant in big moments of culture? And so where I think different audiences might consume content differently are on different platforms, for example, traditional TV versus streaming versus social versus, you know, online video, they're still consuming cultural relevant content. Right. And so I think when you think about, you know, someone like bcu, I'd be remiss not to sit here in February and talk about our legendary February with Super bowl into Olympics into NBA All Star. You know, these are moments that drive culture. And I think that's really important to keep in mind is that whether there's clips and highlights being consumed on social media that still can be content that is, you know, starting through a cultural moment driven from the Olympics or Bad Bunnies halftime show. I think got 4 billion social views in 24 hours. Right. So I think you're still seeing the brand prioritize what is premium content. And I think there's now an over shared focus on cultural driving live moments that can be true across multiple content owners. But I think those are the moments where there's concurrent viewing. There is, you know, big water cooler moments happening after the event is viewed. And I think brands want to be a part of those conversations because in order to really drive performance, you need to be part of the conversation. You need to kind of drive the scale that really can now come from these big live temples.
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Ad Tech God
I think you touch upon something, the cultural relevance is so important and NBC in particular is so involved with the Olympics, the NFL. I think nascar life, sports just seem to be a big win for NBC overall in terms of that content and that audience. How important is live to you guys moving forward? Is that a big part of your focus at NBC Universal? Are you finding that interest internally the same as it is externally from advertisers? Because the market talks a lot about live, the importance of live streaming and what that means is that somewhere you guys are leaning into.
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Christina Shepherd
Yeah, absolutely. I think live, like I said, I think with the way, you know, content's being consumed, it can be very hard for brands to aggregate scale and attention. And so I think live is right now the number one way to do so. And it's been a huge priority, you know, for many, many think TV networks and content owners, especially here at nbcu. I mean, if you look at just Sundays, we've had a leadership position on Sundays with Sunday Night Football and then with know, the addition of NBA this past fall and then MLB to come in the spring, you're going to see us own 51 out of 52 Sundays. And so that's a really great opportunity for brands to think about us from a live perspective, but also just an always on media perspective. Right. They can really start to plan around, you know, this, you know, ownership of Sundays. And then how do you message in that live moment when you have that, you know, attention from the audience and then think about, you know, your messaging and your dynamic creative and your retargeting efforts throughout the rest of the week to kind of continue to build that memorability with your audience on a kind of always on fashion. So I think it's been and it's going to continue to be a big priority for us.
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Ad Tech God
Yeah, the first thing that popped in my head was imagine the creative messaging you can do with people who are committed to watching every single Sunday and the storytelling you can tell over multiple games, multiple Sundays, multiple weeks. A brand that really wants to focus on digging in and building an audience and creating awareness. It's really endless when it comes to that long of a period of time and that focus of a group that you can target.
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Christina Shepherd
Absolutely. I think that's the other interesting part about streaming is you need to drive consistent engagement within that audience. And that is a lot of comes down to the way you program your channel, the way you speak to the audience, what the ad experience might look like, Is it memorable, is it enjoyable? And I think, you know, launching off of the ownership of Sunday, it can be what Peacock can bring to the table, which we see consistent everyday engagement from a very large portion of our audience. And that is, to your point, very important on how brands can tell their story, get their message across. A big component of performance that often gets lost in kind of the conversation is that scale is one of the most important indicators on driving performance. Right. You need to be able to reach a large audience in order to drive the right amount of business outcomes to really hit the bottom line for a brand. Right. And so we reached 286 million people every month. And then if you look at just legendary February, there's 200 million of those people we reached just in the last 11 days. So, you know, when you think about really the opportunity for brands to lay the foundation on, of course, brand awareness and really key brand metrics, but how do they then take that to the next level and leverage different measurement, creative targeting to then get to that, you know, point where they're able to actually, you know, drive results as the brand.
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Ad Tech God
Christina, I have a couple questions for you. You sit in A very unique spot, major streamer, content distribution, you basically have it all. But where do you see things going in 2026 in terms of streaming television overall? What do you think is hot, what do you think is not and what's your opinion on where things are going?
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Christina Shepherd
I know, I love all the futurist conversations. I mean, I think what we know to be true about streaming right now that I think will only continue to become more important in the future is streaming can be automated, it can be personalized, and it can be dynamic and interactive. And I think you'll see more of that in the future. I think the early eras of streaming, you could argue that streaming is an app based version of television, right? It's just a different format in which to get a lot of the same content delivered in a lot of the same ways. And I think there is a lot of opportunity to really bring a more dynamic experience to the viewers. You look at younger audiences, they want to interact with their TV screen, right? I think the traditional way of looking at television has been it is a fully lean back environment. And, and I don't think that's going to be true in the future. I think it's going to be very important to have personalized experiences, dynamic interactive ways of engaging with the audience. You know, when you think about cultural moments and why social is such an amazing kind of extension of television, it's because fandom is huge, right? Like you watch the Olympics and you follow an athlete and you want to go as deep as possible and go into their, you know, social media handles and learn about their backstories and how did they train. And we want to, as the owner of the content, satiate that. And I think streaming can do that in a really dynamic, interesting way. You've seen different streamers drive unique shoppable experiences, whether you can purchase on the screen or on your mobile device. I think what we've tried to do is think about how can we make a very personalized experience for the audience within Peacock. So for example, if you are a casual viewer, avid viewer of any given sport, Olympics, you know, NBA, we have a different experience for you, right? So for NBA, for example, you can, you know, see courtside viewing and you could see what, you know, who's sitting at the court, what are they wearing and you can kind of lean into the overall kind of, you know, culture around it, or you can be watch the Olympics and get multi view and watch many different sports at the same time. So I think you're going to see a much more curated Personalized experience. Experience that's really going to allow television to both be a lean back and a leaned in experience.
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Ad Tech God
I'm going to pivot a little bit on the pod. I want to ask you, as someone who's worked in in the space for so long, both at Roku and now NBC, how has it been being a female in the space? How are you involved with chief? How has that helped you? I'd love to hear about what that community means for you and how that has helped you be a better person, be a better leader. And how has that helped you grow in your career?
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Christina Shepherd
Yeah, I think being a female in the industry, specifically working in ad tech, it's all very unique, right? So there's not a one size fits all, and not everyone has the same experience. I've been, you know, single in the industry. I've been with and without kids in the industry. And so every kind of chapter has looked different, I think. You know, now I just came back from my third maternity leave and, you know, the question you often get is, how do you manage it all? How do you balance it all? I think. I think the short answer is you don't. And I think that's okay. I think, you know, if I'm here, there's something else at home that I'm missing. And I think, you know, again, it's all about, you can have it all, but you can't have it all at the same time, and that's okay. And I also think with that question, sometimes we can flip it, right? You know, I'm a working mom, but with that actually comes a lot of experience in multitasking and being creative. And Lord knows I'm negotiating with my daughter at home on a daily basis, which helps me a lot at work. Right? So really, one is not mutually exclusive from the other. And I think both, you know, make me a better mother and a better person in the ad industry, Sales leader, whatever you want to call me. And so a lot of what we can do is bring that perspective into rooms internally, you know, publicly into panels, and kind of create an environment where you can fully bring your whole self to work and that that's okay. And really be the example that hopefully shows that having a family doesn't mean your career trajectory is over and that you can still continue to grow and learn through all your phases of your life. And then I think the other thing that I think is important to say is we can also be uniquely female in the way we approach leadership as well. You know, we can be strategic and amazing stewards of the business and forward thinking and make the hard decisions. But we can also bring empathy and kindness and what makes us authentic to the role in a way that can be equally as successful as, you know, our counterparts, you know. So I think all of that's just important to keep in mind. And I think Chief, as you asked, has been an amazing vehicle in which to advocate in small, you know, core rooms where they bring, you know, female leaders together. It's also an opportunity to bring, you know, in fireside chats and just be with like minded female leaders who you can learn from and learn with. And I think that's a really important kind of support system that we all need.
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Ad Tech God
Well, Christina, I can tell you're killing it, so keep doing you. Congratulations on. I know it's been over a year and a half you've been with the company, but congrats on all your success. Thank you. And thank you to the NBC team, NBC Universal team for having you on my pod. I really appreciate it and I loved our chat.
- [24:07]
Christina Shepherd
Thank you so much. It was great.
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Ad Tech God
Thanks for tuning in to another episode of the Ad Tech gotpod, a podcast for the people about the people. Stay connected with me for more insights, trends and interviews in the realm of ad tech. Don't miss out on the latest updates. So follow me on X Instagram and connect with me on LinkedIn. Don't forget ATG Slack community has insights, networking opportunities and jobs. Keep the conversation going and stay at the forefront of ad tech innovation.