Inside Talon: Todd Palatnek

Mel Lindquist’s Journey in Talon OOH: A Focus on APAC Region

Outside thinking – it runs in the Talon family. We pride ourselves on being a company built on people with big ideas. People who constantly challenge themselves and the industry to re-imagine and re-invent the possibilities of what Out of Home can be. ​ 

This week, Talon US CEO, Jim Wilson, chats with Todd Palatnek, Senior Vice President of Client Development for Talon US, to learn more about the newest member of the Talon family!

Todd, welcome to the Talon family! To kick off, tell us about your background along with your expectations for the future of OOH?   

Having spent over 17 years immersed in the dynamic world of OOH, I’ve gained a unique perspective from both agency and vendor angles. Throughout my journey, I’ve always believed that adopting digital into OOH will play a crucial role in shaping the industry.

I had the privilege of contributing to the growth of C2C Outdoor, a specialized OOH group, serving as Vice President for a decade until its acquisition by Posterscope. My journey then took me to Waze, a Google company, where I pioneered a new OOH product and spearheaded its expansion across the OOH and digital landscapes. Subsequently, I joined MediaMath as Vice President of Client Success, leading the Retail team and overseeing a talented group of 15 individuals. At MediaMath, my role as a mentor and leader extended beyond the organization’s boundaries, as I played a pivotal role in cultivating growth within the Retail vertical across all programmatic digital channels.

My career has traversed the digital media landscape, offering me a front-row seat to the transformative evolution of OOH. Today, OOH stands at the intersection of boundless creativity, cutting-edge technology, and an expanding range of inventory formats, making it an exceptionally thrilling medium. The ongoing digital revolution within OOH, driven by data and technology investments, has elevated it into an advanced media platform. This platform empowers advertisers to achieve remarkable results through broad-reaching brand awareness campaigns or precision-focused performance marketing initiatives.

As more marketers across sectors embrace the potential of OOH, there’s tremendous growth potential. I am eager to assist brands and agencies seize this opportunity – to help them reimagine OOH’s possibilities to think outside and drive their businesses forward.

Omnichannel marketing has become increasingly important for advertisers. How do you see OOH fitting into the broader landscape of omnichannel strategies?

Now more than ever, advertisers are focused on maximizing their investments by putting their dollars into the most effective channels. Many are prioritizing an omnichannel approach. They’re testing and learning to see which channels are working — and OOH has the data and tech to prove the results.

Including OOH in an omnichannel strategy is way more than just extending reach. It allows marketers to influence consumers with cohesive messaging across channels. Advertisers that integrate OOH into their cross-platform strategy can truly reap the benefits of engaging with consumers throughout the entire customer journey.

A prime example is the growing trend of connecting OOH and CTV campaigns. We’re seeing more advertisers testing and connecting audience data between CTV and OOH in an integrated campaign. Watch this space!

What’s your view on getting more advertisers to increase their ad share spend in OOH?

Education is critical to unlocking the vast potential within OOH advertising and is one of my core priorities as I work closely with brands and agencies. Many marketers remain unaware of the expansive capabilities OOH offers today, which has come a long way from the days of simply placing a static billboard ad with a local vendor. I am passionate about educating on the evolution of OOH’s capacity to yield measurable results and how it’s advanced – unlocking a world of opportunity!

At Talon, we stand at the forefront of this evolution, equipped with industry-leading technology, a team of experts, and a wealth of compelling case studies. We are passionate about illustrating how OOH continues to transform and its unique value as the final touchpoint along the consumer’s path to purchase. There’s a wealth of untapped opportunities in this space, and through education and innovation, we can unlock its full potential.

What attracted you to Talon, and how does Talon exemplify the pioneering of technology and data-driven insights in the transformation of OOH advertising?

Talon’s appeal lies in its pivotal role in reshaping the out-of-home (OOH) advertising landscape through cutting-edge technology and data capabilities. In the realm of education, Talon empowers brands and agencies with tools that streamline the OOH planning and buying process, liberating them from cumbersome manual procedures and spreadsheets. Notably, Talon’s comprehensive inventory scoring system offers advertisers invaluable insights into the most effective locations for their campaigns, enhancing the precision of their strategies.

Furthermore, Talon leverages innovation, particularly in targeting and measurement within OOH. Audience targeting enables advertisers to zero in on specific demographic segments, leveraging mobile location data to identify real-world movement patterns, allowing advertisers to obtain inventory that best reaches their target demographics. Talon’s advanced measurement and attribution solutions close the loop by directly linking OOH ad exposure to a wide array of results, including brand sentiment, purchase intent, foot traffic, and website visits. This empowers performance marketers with reliable insights into the impact of OOH campaigns on consumer journeys and path-to-purchase, emphasizing OOH’s unparalleled ability to deliver broad-scale results.

What drew me to Talon is its position at the forefront of OOH’s transformation, driven by leading-edge technologies and expert teams. Talon’s unwavering commitment to innovation and substantial investments in tools and technology guarantee an exceptional experience and foolproof outcomes for advertisers. The phenomenal creative capabilities of Grand Visual are another attribute that sets Talon apart, being awarded consistently for creativity at prestigious events like Cannes Lions. In this exciting era for OOH, there’s no better place to be part of this transformation than here at Talon.