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What to expect at next week?s 2013 MultiScreen Summit

With the rise in multi-device consumers, executives from Sears, Build-A-Bear and Scripps Network will speak about the ongoing challenges and opportunities that marketers face nowadays in connecting with consumers.

Unicomm?s 2013 MultiScreen Summit next week is aimed at brands, agencies and media publishers that are looking to gain insights into navigating a multi-device world. The event is produced in partnership with the Location Based Marketing Association and The Hollywood Reporter and will take place in New York?s Metropolitan Pavilion from June 11 ? 12.

?There is no such thing as a first screen,? said Gary Schwartz, MultiScreen conference chair.

?All screens are connected and all screens have become part of the mobile narrative irrespective of their form factor,? he said.

?From a media perspective we need to go beyond optimizing content and ad banners to the screen dimensions and understand what a particular screen is used for, where and when. Content and messaging needs to be seamless across the multiple screens.?

Multi-screen consumers
Instead of focusing discussions around omniscreen or second-screen tactics, topics presented at the summit will be about following the consumer journey from one screen to another through detailed behavioral data.

For example, a session with Dave Finnegan, chief information officer at Build-A-Bear Workshop will present attendees with a look at how the retailer leverages business analytics to improve the customer experience while also building loyalty.

The event will also discuss the importance for marketers to buy mobile media media vertically and horizontally with the idea that small-screen media buys must have a native strategy tied to them.

The event is described as a mix between TedTalks and a hands-on workshop that focuses on insights, per Mr. Schwartz.

This is the first time that a MutiScreen event will take place in New York and is also the first event from the company to have a brand, commerce and retail focus.

Previous Multiscreen events have been held in Los Angeles and Abu Dhabi, and there are plans to host events in Berlin and Sao Paulo later this year.

Here, a few speakers weigh in on their expectations for the conference.

Robert John Davis, executive director of content marketing and the advanced video practice at OgilvyOne
The rise of smaller, portable screens brings two new challenges to the marketer.

First, we have to resist the temptation of thinking everything has radically changed ? it hasn't. Good content and engagement experiences still win. The trick is bringing them to mobile devices in a way that makes sense.

That gives rise to the second point ? we have to develop the interactive experience for the target devices. This can dictate how we approach everything from how a video is composed to what elements of UX can be activated on each platform.

My rule of thumb is this: if developing campaigns for the multiple screen-world feels easy, you are not doing it well.

Dr. Donnell Walton, tech director at Corning
New devices, with their enhanced capabilities and reliability, are becoming even more integral in our lives. Specialty glass enables an immersive screen experience where displays and touch technology are becoming ubiquitous with everyday life. 

The mobility of devices creates many opportunities for marketers ? whether you?re a marketing executive needing to pull a up a presentation on your tablet for a client during a meeting on the road or a small business owner that relies on your smartphone to interact with clients and purchase items.

The common theme is that regardless of what type of marketer you are, we are heavily reliant on our devices to make our daily lives easier.

Channing Dawson, senior multiscreen advisor at Scripps Network
Multiscreen helps TV networks meet the ubiquity imperative ? to be wherever the viewers wants us to be, accommodating changing viewer behavior.

Multiscreen helps to dissolve time constraints on experiencing our brands ? HGTV, Food Network, Travel Channel, DIY, Cooking Channel and GAC ? freeing viewers to engage with our content when they are able to.

Multiscreen increases the potential for engagement, helping us create better, deeper more meaningful relationships with our viewers. Multiscreen also dimensionalizes our video, allowing us to layer video content with text, image and social content.

Multiscreen allows advertising to be more interactive, increasing the chance that advertisers can get closer to potential consumers. Multiscreen makes sharing easy and immediate, so that viewing TV content can again be a social experience. At the same time, multiscreen nurtures personalization, leading content providers to super serve their best customers in the manner they want to be served.

Final Take
Lauren Johnson is associate reporter on Mobile Marketer, New York